Colombia: Extension of the deadline for holders of a permanent residence visa (R visa) to exchange for a new visa
The Colombian Ministry of Foreign Affairs recently published a resolution extending the deadline for affected holders of a permanent residence visa (R visa) to exchange it for a new visa until October 31, 2026.
Foreign nationals in Colombia who hold a permanent residence visa (R visa) issued before October 22, 2022 have until October 22, 2024 to exchange their old R visa for a new one that complies with the 2022 Immigration Law. Foreign nationals must submit the application for the new R visa online to the Department of State, which generally takes around 30 calendar days to process applications. Affected foreign nationals who do not receive the new R visa by October 22, 2024, may lose their visa and legal status in Colombia.
Kolumbien: Fristverlängerung für Inhaber eines Daueraufenthaltsvisums (R-Visum) zum Umtausch in ein neues Visum
Das kolumbianische Aussenministerium hat vor kurzem einen Beschluss veröffentlicht, der die Frist für betroffene Inhaber eines Daueraufenthaltsvisums (RVisum) zum Umtausch in ein neues Visum bis zum 31. Oktober 2026 verlängert.
Ausländische Staatsangehörige in Kolumbien, die ein vor dem 22. Oktober 2022 ausgestelltes Permanent Residence Visa (R-Visum) besitzen, haben bis zum 22. Oktober 2024 Zeit, ihr altes R-Visum gegen ein Neues auszutauschen, das dem Einwanderungsgesetz von 2022 entspricht.
Ausländische Staatsangehörige müssen den Antrag für das neue R-Visum online beim Aussenministerium einreichen, das in der Regel etwa 30 Kalendertage für die Bearbeitung der Anträge benötigt.
Für betroffene ausländische Staatsangehörige, die das neue R-Visum nicht bis zum 22. Oktober 2024 erhalten, besteht das Risiko, dass diese ihr Visum und ihren Rechtsstatus in Kolumbien können.
New Zealand: Introduction of changes for approved employers with effect from October 7, 2024
The New Zealand Immigration Department introduced changes for accredited employers with effect from October 7.
The important points here are:
- From this date, accredited employers must provide the Department of Work and Income with a contact person in the company who will be responsible for recruitment decisions, such as a recruiting manager, HR manager or owner/operator for most ANZSCO Level 4 or 5 vacancies at the Job Check stage.
- The government expects approved employers to act directly at the Work and Income stage, so immigration lawyers or licensed advisers will no longer be able to complete this information on behalf of employers.
- Officials pointed out the difficulty in contacting employers about potential applicants, as most of the work and income sections only contain the contact details of immigration professionals, and stated that the change will encourage accredited employers to really test the domestic labor market.
Additional information: Accredited employers may continue to hire outside organizations to conduct the work and income determination process, provided that the organization remains involved in hiring decisions.
Conclusion: These changes aim to address the concerns expressed by certain sectors in relation to temporary work visas and improve current procedures.
Neuseeland: Einführung von Änderungen für zugelassene Arbeitgeber mit Wirkung vom 7. Oktober 2024
Die neuseeländische Einwanderungsbehörde führte mit Wirkung vom 7. Oktober Änderungen für akkreditierte Arbeitgeber ein.
Die wichtigen Punkte hierzu sind:
- Ab diesem Zeitpunkt müssen zugelassene Arbeitgeber der Abteilung für Arbeit und Einkommen eine Kontaktperson innerhalb des Unternehmens angeben, welche für Einstellungsentscheidungen verantwortlich ist, z. B. einen Recruitingleiter, Personalleiter oder Eigentümer/Betreiber für die meisten Stellenangebote der ANZSCO-Stufe 4 oder 5 in der Job Check-Phase.
- Die Regierung erwartet, dass zugelassene Arbeitgeber in der Phase Arbeit und Einkommen" direkt tätig werden, sodass Immigrationanwälte oder zugelassene Berater diese Informationen nicht mehr im Namen der Arbeitgeber ausfüllen können.
- Beamte wiesen auf die Schwierigkeit hin, mit Arbeitgebern über potenzielle Bewerber in Kontakt zu treten, da die meisten Abschnitte über Arbeit und Einkommen nur die Kontaktdaten von Einwanderungsdienstleister enthalten, und erklärten, dass die Änderung akkreditierte Arbeitgeber ermutigen wird, den inländischen Arbeitsmarkt wirklich zu testen.
Zusätzliche Informationen: Akkreditierte Arbeitgeber können weiterhin externe Dienstleister mit der Durchführung des Prozesses zur Ermittlung von Arbeit und Einkommen beauftragen, vorausgesetzt, dass die Organisation an den Einstellungsentscheidungen beteiligt bleibt.
Fazit: Diese Änderungen zielen darauf ab, die von bestimmten Sektoren geäusserten Bedenken in Bezug auf befristete Arbeitsvisa zu berücksichtigen und die derzeitigen Verfahren zu verbessern.
Sri Lanka: Expansion of visa-free entry program to include nationals of seven additional countries
As of October 1, 2024 the government of Sri Lanka has expanded its visa-free entry program by 7 to a total of 35 countries. Nationals of China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Russia and Thailand are now also included.
Since October 1, 2024, foreign nationals from 35 countries can therefore enter visa-free and receive a simple tourist visa for a maximum period of 30 days.
This regulation is valid for six months and includes the following 35 countries:
Australia, Austria, Austria, Bahrain, Belarus, Belgium, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Oman, Poland, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and United States.
Additional information: It is additionally worth mentioning that the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka recently issued an interim order suspending a new eVisa platform that was originally scheduled to be launched in April 2024. Government officials have recently made several policy updates to simplify the visa system and attract more investors and tourists.
Sri Lanka: Erweiterung des Programms zur visafreien Einreise um Staatsangehörige von sieben zusätzlichen Ländern
Die Regierung von Sri Lanka hat per 1. Oktober 2024 ihr Programm der visafreien Einreise um 7 auf jetzt insgesamt 35 Länder ausgeweitet. Neu gehören jetzt auch die Staatsangehörigen von China, Indien, Indonesien, Japan, Malaysia, Russland und Thailand dazu.
Seit dem 1. Oktober 2024 können somit ausländische Staatsangehörige aus 35 Ländern visumfrei einreisen und erhalten ein einfaches Touristenvisum für einen Zeitraum von maximal 30 Tagen.
Diese Regelung gilt für sechs Monate und umfasst die folgenden 35 Länder:
Australien, Bahrain, Belarus, Belgien, China, Dänemark, Deutschland, Frankreich, Indien, Indonesien, Iran, Israel, Italien, Japan, Kanada, Kasachstan, Katar, Malaysia, Neuseeland, Nepal, Niederlande, Oman, Österreich, Polen, Russland, Saudi-Arabien, Schweden, Schweiz, Spanien, Südkorea, Thailand, Tschechische Republik, Vereinigte Arabische Emirate, Vereinigtes Königreich und Vereinigte Staaten.
Zusätzliche Informationen: Es ist zusätzlich zu erwähnen, dass der Oberste Gerichtshof von Sri Lanka kürzlich eine einstweilige Verfügung erlassen hat, mit der eine neue eVisa-Plattform, die ursprünglich im April 2024 eingeführt werden sollte, ausgesetzt wurde. Regierungsbeamte haben in letzter Zeit mehrere politische Aktualisierungen vorgenommen, um das Visasystem zu vereinfachen und mehr Investoren und Touristen anzuziehen.
Cross-border project assignment from Germany to Switzerland - is a work permit required?
Project assignments usually entail several challenges, but when they take place abroad, there are also a number of other challenges and aspects that need to be taken into account.
In practice, we repeatedly see that the work permit regulations in Switzerland are not always entirely clear and raise a number of additional questions.
Practical example:
Senna AG, based in Zurich (Switzerland), would like to implement an international reporting system that has already been installed as a pilot study in the German subsidiary. Martin Fuchs from Senna Deutschland AG in Munich (Germany) is to be seconded to Senna AG in Zurich for the implementation. The project assignment is scheduled to last 8 months.
Mr Fuchs is a married German national who lives with his wife and two children in Munich (Germany). He will remain in Germany as his main place of residence for the project assignment.
Question:
Senna Deutschland AG is unsure whether a work permit is necessary.
This example concerns a "classic" project assignment in which the employee, namely Mr Fuchs, is employed by a non-Swiss company and is to work in Switzerland for a limited period.
A work permit must be obtained in advance for Mr Fuchs. The existing Agreement on the Free Movement of Persons, which allows any EU/EFTA national to move to Switzerland and take up employment, only covers local employment in Switzerland, but not secondment. The permit application must be submitted to the cantonal labour market authority of the Canton of Zurich (Office of Economy and Labour in Zurich).
The following points must be fulfilled to obtain a work permit:
- Fulfilment of the overall economic interest: It must be shown that the deployment of the foreign person is in the interest of the Swiss company and will therefore have a positive impact on the economy.
- The licence holder is a specialist: As a rule, a specialist is a person who has a university degree in the same field in which the activity is carried out and at least 2 to 3 years of professional experience in this field. If the person does not have a university degree in the relevant field, they must have at least 10 years of professional experience in this field.
- Existence of a corresponding quota: There are quotas for service recipients with EU/EFTA citizenship, which are published quarterly in the respective cantons.
Because the assignment will last for 8 months, the legal condition from the Swiss side must be observed that Mr Fuchs must also take up residence in Switzerland.
After the application has been reviewed by the labour market authority and the work permit has been issued, the application will be reviewed by the cantonal migration office, in this specific case the migration office of the Canton of Zurich, which will issue a letter requesting Mr Fuchs to register with the municipality of residence responsible for him. Mr Fuchs may only start working in Switzerland once he has registered with the municipality of residence in Switzerland.
For the project assignment in Switzerland, Mr Fuchs requires a secondment contract that also contains the relevant Swiss legal provisions. In addition to working hours, public holidays, and holidays, this also includes mandatory compliance with Swiss salary regulations. This means that Mr Fuchs must receive a salary that corresponds to the level of a comparable Swiss salary for the duration of his assignment in Switzerland.
The most frequently used tool for this calculation is the official salary calculator (https://entsendung.admin.ch/Lohnrechner/lohnberechnung) of the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO).
In the event that the basic salary that Mr Fuchs receives from Senna Deutschland AG is the same or higher, no adjustment is necessary. However, if the basic salary is lower than the comparable Swiss salary calculated using the salary calculator, Mr Fuchs must also be paid the difference.
The difference is to be understood as a gross amount so that the corresponding deductions for social security contributions and taxes must still be made.
In addition, based on the Posted Workers Ordinance and the resulting accompanying measures, Mr Fuchs is entitled to reimbursement of the costs of accommodation in Switzerland, travel costs in Switzerland and travel costs at the beginning of the assignment from Germany to Switzerland and back to Germany at the end of the assignment, as well as meal costs in Switzerland. The employer generally has the choice of either paying the actual costs of the individual expenses or reimbursing or paying these as lump sums.
The fact that the employee retains his/her main place of residence in Germany has no effect on the assessment and procedure under work permit law.
From a social security law perspective, Mr Fuchs can remain subject to the German social security system during the project assignment so that he can be exempted from the Swiss social security obligation. Senna AG in Switzerland only requires a copy of the A1 form issued by the German authorities.
As a result of taking up residence in Switzerland, Mr Fuchs is subject to compulsory health insurance in Switzerland. He can also be exempted from this by submitting the A1 form. However, it is important to note that the application for exemption must be submitted within 3 months of taking up residence.
Conclusion:
Since projects are often subject to delays or, in some cases, changes at short notice, it is essential to take into account at the planning stage that it is not possible to react quite as quickly and at short notice to the necessary flexibility within the framework of work authorisation procedures. It is therefore strongly recommended to plan well and as far in advance as possible, taking possible eventualities into account.
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The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
