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New p

July 2016

PEREGRINE NEWS
Welcome to the Peregrine News digest for July 2016!
Immiguru
In July we added four new immigration processes to Immiguru:

CANADA - Entry as a Business Visitor (Employees of Foreign Companies Contracting


Canadian Companies)
LUXEMBOURG - Residence Permit (Assignment from EEA/Switzerland)
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - Employment Permit to Mainland
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - Employment Permit to Abu Dhabi Mainland

Table of Contents
CANADA GOVERNMENT LIFTS VISA REQUIREMENT FOR MEXICAN NATIONALS
2
VIETNAM VISA WAIVER FOR FIVE EUROPEAN COUNTRIES EXTENDED FOR ONE YEAR
2
COLOMBIA NEW QUOTA FOR OIL, MINING AND INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS IN BARRANCABERMEJA
MUNICIPALITY
3
INDIA CONVERSION OF PERSON OF INDIAN ORIGIN (PIO) TO OVERSEAS CITIZENS OF INDIA (OCI) EXTENDED
UNTIL 31 DECEMBER 2016
4
GHANA VISA ON ARRIVAL FOR ALL AFRICAN UNION NATIONALS
4
BULGARIA NEW LABOUR ACT ESTABLISHES SIMPLIFIED EU BLUE CARD FOR HIGHLY-QUALIFIED IT SPECIALISTS,
AND SETS NEW RULES FOR INTRA-CORPORATE TRANSFERS
5
POLAND NEW REQUIREMENTS FOR EMPLOYERS OF SECONDED WORKERS
7
FRANCE MINIMUM SALARY INCREASES FOR EU BLUE CARD
8
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES FAMILY VISAS CAN NO LONGER BE PUT ON HOLD
8
INDONESIA FIVE-YEAR MULTIPLE-ENTRY VISITOR VISAS NOW AVAILABLE
9
LUXEMBOURG MINIMUM SALARY INCREASES FOR EU BLUE CARD
10
TAIWAN UPCOMING VISA-FREE ENTRY FOR NATIONALS OF THAILAND AND BRUNEI, AND EXPANSION OF TRAVEL
AUTHORISATION CERTIFICATE
11
MALAYSIA EXPATRIATE SERVICES DIVISION REQUIRES EMPLOYMENT PASS APPROVAL BEFORE ENTRY
11
GHANA ENFORCEMENT OF COMPANY OBLIGATIONS
12
MORE FROM PEREGRINE
13

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CANADA Government
Lifts Visa Requirement for
Mexican Nationals
Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau announced
this week, that the visa requirement for
Mexican citizens will be lifted on 1 December
2016. The announcement was made during a
state visit by Mexican President Pena Nieto
and follows through on a promise that
Trudeau made during his recent election
campaign.

How will this visa exemption work?


Citizens of Mexico travelling to
Canada before 1 December 2016
will be required to obtain a visa to
visit Canada.
After 1 December, Mexican
passport holders who do not
already hold a valid Canadian visa
will need to obtain an Electronic
Travel Authorisation (eTA) prior to
flying to Canada.

Background
Canada imposed a visa requirement on
Mexican citizens in 2009 in response to a
dramatic increase in the numbers of Mexican
citizens making refugee claims in Canada. The
visa requirement was not well received by
Mexico and has been an irritant in bilateral
relations between the two countries. Mexico
and Canada are partners in NAFTA.
It has been reported that Canadian
immigration officials were opposed to the
lifting of the visa requirement citing increased
risk of visa fraud, asylum claims and
international crime.

For his part, President Pena Nieto announced


that Mexico would open its market to
Canadian beef imports.

Action Items
Ensure that, after 1 December
2016, Mexican nationals travelling
to Canada have obtained an eTA,
unless they hold a valid Canadian
visa.

VIETNAM Visa Waiver for


Five European Countries
Extended for One Year
The Vietnamese government has issued a
Resolution extending the visa waiver program
for nationals of France, Germany, Italy, Spain
and the United Kingdom for another year.

How Does the Waiver Work?


The terms of this extension remain unchanged
from when the visa waiver was initially
introduced in 2015:
The new visa waiver will allow
entry and stay in Vietnam of up to
15 days, with no pre-approval;
All purposes of stay are allowed.
Out of caution, It is recommended
that the visa waiver be sparingly
used for business meetings only
and not for work;
The interval between the last exit
date from Vietnam and the new
entry date must be 30 days or
more;
Foreign nationals who enter
Vietnam on a visa waiver must
have a passport that is valid for six
months, cannot extend their stay

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andmust exit the country after


15 days;
The law is set to expire on 30 June
2017, at which time the
government will consider
extending it.

Action Items
Qualifying nationals should
consider using the visa waiver for
business trips, but should check
with a Vietnamese consulate in
their home country to determine
whether the visa waiver is
appropriate in their situation;
Qualifying nationals intending to
secure a work permit will still
need to enter the country on a
business visa sponsored by the
Vietnam entity and obtained at an
overseas Vietnamese consulate.
This will allow them to convert
later to long-term temporary
residence cards. Visa waivers
cannot be converted.

COLOMBIA New Quota


for Oil, Mining and
Infrastructure Projects in
Barrancabermeja
Municipality
Effective 13 June 2016, a quota for skilled and
unskilled local workers has been established
for projects in the oil, mining and
infrastructure sectors in the municipality of
Barrancabermeja, home to the largest oil
refinery in the country.

What is the quota?


Decree 173 establishes that public
or private companies in the
municipality of Barrancabermeja
that develop projects in the oil
industry, mining and
infrastructure projects with high
social and economic impact, must
ensure that 100% of the nonskilled workforce must be local,
and at least 80% of the skilled
workforce must be local;
These percentages do not include
strategic positions, special
projects, management positions
in specialised markets and
industries and positions that due
to their nature should not be
published pursuant to the
regulations in the public
employment system;
Oil and mining are decreed to be
activities of social and economic
impact by their nature, whereas
infrastructure projects require the
continuous and permanent hiring
of an outstanding number of
employees to qualify as of social
and economic impact;
For employment in these sectors
in this municipality, workers must
provide a certificate of
territoriality, to prove their local
residence.
The quota has been implemented
as a response to the increase of
immigration and unemployment
in the Barrancabermeja, to
protect the local workforce.

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Action Items
Companies engaging in projects in
the oil, mining and infrastructure
sectors in Barrancabermeja must
ensure that their workforce
complies with the quota for local
labour

INDIA Conversion of
Person of Indian Origin
(PIO) to Overseas Citizens
of India (OCI) Extended
Until 31 December 2016
The Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma
Swaraj announced at a press conference on
19 June 2016 that the deadline for the
conversion of PIO (Person of Indian Origin)
cardholders to OCI (Overseas Citizen of India)
status would be extended to December 2016.

Background
An ordinance of 6 January 2015,
amending the Indian Citizenship
Act, unified the two schemes and,
on 9 January 2015, the immediate
withdrawal of the PIO scheme
was announced.
The OCI is valid for the holders
lifetime and is accompanied by a
lifelong multiple entry visa to
India, with no requirement to
report to the FRRO, regardless of
length of stay.
The deadline for the conversion of
PIO to OCI has been extended
several times since January 2015.

Action Items
Applicants should submit their
PIO in lieu of OCI applications at
their local FRRO (Foreigner
Regional Registration Office) or
the overseas mission or consulate
of jurisdiction.
PIO card holders can continue to
use their valid PIO cards until
converted.

GHANA Visa on Arrival


for all African Union
Nationals
Effective 8 July 2016, Ghana has officially
started implementing a previously announced
visa-on-arrival policy for all nationals of
African Union member states arriving through
the Kotoka International Airport (KIA).

What does this mean?


The new policy means that a national of any
African Union member state can visit Ghana
from their country of origin or residence
without a pre-arranged consular visa, for
business, tourism or to obtain a residence
permit.
On arrival at the port of entry, an entry permit
allowing a stay of up to thirty days will be
issued at the discretion of the immigration
officer on duty.
The policy is being piloted for three months at
KIA only, after which it will be extended to
other ports of entry nationwide.

What documents are required?


On arrival, the African Union national must
have:

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a passport from their country of


origin, valid for at least three
months from the date of entry;
evidence of sufficient funds;
proof of accommodation; and
a return ticket or evidence of
onward travel.

Background
The African Union (AU), founded in 2001,
consists of 54 countries in Africa. The only
African state that is not a member is Morocco.
Previously, only nationals of the fifteen
countries of the Economic Community of
West African States (ECOWAS) were visa
exempt for travel to Ghana.

Action Points
Business travellers who are
African Union member state
nationals, and their employers,
can now benefit from facilitated
travel to Ghana.
Work permit holders can now
enter Ghana without a prearranged visa to complete the
residence permit application
procedure.

BULGARIA New Labour


Act Establishes Simplified
EU Blue Card for HighlyQualified IT Specialists, and
Sets New Rules for Intracorporate Transfers
On 21 May 2016, the Labour Migration and
Labour Mobility Act entered into force.

The new Act consolidates existing rules and


supersedes previous legislation, and brings
Bulgarian laws in this field in line with existing
European Union (EU) law.
The Act establishes a simplified procedure and
further benefits for highly-skilled non-EU
national IT specialists applying for an EU Blue
Card, and new rules for intra-corporate
transfers.

EU Blue Card for Highly Skilled


Shortage Occupations
The new Act clarifies an amendment
introduced in October 2015 to the work
permit regulations, establishing special rules
for EU Blue Card applicants in certain shortage
occupations. The official list of highly-skilled
shortage occupations, which will be updated
annually in January, includes the following
occupations:
Sales professionals in the field of
information and communication
technologies
System analysts;
Software developers;
Web content and multimedia
developers;
Applications programmers;
Software developers and software
applications analysts;
Designers and database
administrators;
System administrators;
Computer network specialists;

Database and network specialists.

The background to this is a shortage of highly


qualified specialists in the Bulgarian labour
market mainly in the Information
Technology (IT) sector.

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Labour Market Test Exemption

Intra-corporate Transfer

Highly-skilled non-EU nationals in qualifying


shortage occupations can now obtain an EU
Blue Card without the usual labour market
testing, and therefore with expedited
processing. The labour market test exemption
saves two weeks, and also reduces both EU
Blue Card and consular D visa application
processing by two weeks each.

The Labour Migration and Labour Mobility Act


also implements the 2014 EU Directive on the
conditions of entry and residence of thirdcountry nationals in the framework of an
intra-corporate transfer (2014/66/EU). The
principal changes to the law in Bulgaria are as
follows:

Extended Validity of EU Blue Card


Highly-qualified non-EU specialists on the
official list can now obtain an EU Blue Card
valid for a stay of up to three years, in line
with the employment contract. Normally, the
EU Blue Card is only issued for one year at a
time, and the renewal process is
administratively burdensome.

Minimum Salary Requirement


According to the Labour Migration and Labour
Mobility Act, the simplified EU Blue Card for
high qualified employees in the officially listed
shortage occupations can only be issued when
the gross salary of the employee is at least
two times higher than the average salary in
Bulgaria, according to the official data
available for the 12 months preceding the
signing of the employment contract.
The previous regulations, from October 2015
to May 2016, required the salary for these
listed professions to be three times higher
than the national average. For other
employees of non-EU countries (not included
in the shortage list), the gross salary must be
at least 1.5 times higher than the average
salary in Bulgaria, (no change under the new
law). For context, the average salary for IT
professionals in Bulgaria is well above 2 times
the average national salary.

The required ratio of foreign


national to Bulgarian national
employees of 1:10 is no longer
applicable to intra-corporate
transfers (ICT) (this ratio is also
not applicable to foreign nationals
hired under the EU Blue Card
scheme). This makes it easier for
smaller Bulgarian companies to
employ foreign specialists from
companies from within the same
group.
The maximum total stay for ICT
purposes has been set at three
years (if renewed annually) for
managers and specialists and one
year for trainees. Previously,
senior managers could apply to
renew their ICT work permit
indefinitely.

Action Items
Employers considering hiring
highly qualified non-EU nationals
to work in one of the officially
listed IT sector occupations can
take advantage of expedited EU
Blue Card application processing
and extended validity, provided
the salary offered is at least 2
times the national average.
Smaller companies in Bulgaria
intending to employ assignees

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from within the same group of


companies can take advantage of
the lifting of the 1:10 foreign
national to Bulgarian national
ratio requirement, but must take
into account the new maximum
stay of three years for intracompany assignees.

POLAND New
Requirements for
Employers of Seconded
Workers
Effective 18 June 2016, new legislation
establishes rules for employers of workers
seconded, or posted, to Poland for a shortterm assignment.
The Act requires employers of seconded
workers to notify the National Labour
Inspectorate (PIP), keep records and establish
a point of contact, and introduces fines for
non-compliance.
The legislation implements European Union
(EU) Directive 2014/67/EU (The Enforcement
Directive), which Member States were obliged
to transpose into their national legislation by
18 June 2016.

What are the new requirements?


A foreign employer sending any
employee (either EU national or
non-EU national) to Poland on
secondment, from either within
the EU or outside the EU, must
now provide a statement to PIP
no later than the day the
assignment starts, containing
specific information on the
secondment.

The employer must notify PIP of


any changes in the information
included in the statement no later
than within seven days of the
date of the change.
The employer is required to keep
certain documents relating to the
secondment in Poland, either in
electronic or paper format.
These documents must be
available in Poland during the
secondment and for up to two
years after the end of the
secondment.
The employer must provide PIP
with any of these documents,
along with their translation into
Polish, not later than within five
working days of receipt of the
request (or within 15 days if
requested during the two years
after the end of the secondment).
The employer must designate a
person resident in Poland who is
authorised to access the
secondment documents and to
contact PIP on the employers
behalf, as required.
The new legislation also
establishes protections for
seconded employees in terms of
working hours, holidays, pay,
health and safety, maternity leave
and non-discrimination, to ensure
that these are in line with what is
required for locally resident
employees in Poland.
Any employer posting workers to
Poland who fails to provide the
required information or
documents at the request of PIP,
or who otherwise breaches the
provisions of the new law on
posting workers, will be subject to

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a fine of between 1000z and


30,000z (about 250 -7500).

Action Items
Any employer with employees
already seconded to Poland
before or on 18 June 2016 must
ensure that they comply with the
notification and data retention
requirements of the new
legislation within three months
(i.e. by 18 September 2016).
Employers seconding employees
to Poland since 18 June 2016
must ensure that they are already
compliant with the new
regulations.

FRANCE Minimum Salary


Increases for EU Blue Card
The French government has increased the
minimum salary requirements for European
Union (EU) Blue Cards, effective 20 June 2016.

Salary Threshold
Blue Card holders in France must now be paid
at least 53,836 per year (up from 53,331) or
4486 per month (up from 4444).

Background
On 20 June 2016 the French Ministry of the
Interior published the latest average yearly
gross reference salary. The minimum salary to
qualify for the EU Blue Card in France is
calculated as 1.5 times this reference salary.
The EU Blue Card is a work and residence
permit, implemented in most EU countries,
designed to attract highly-skilled non-EU
nationals. To qualify, applicants need
advanced qualifications or substantial

experience, among other requirements.


Benefits include the flexibility to change
employers or move to another EU country,
and work permission for a spouse.
The European Commission recently presented
a proposal for a revamped EU Blue Card
scheme, aimed at attracting more highlyskilled workers to the EU. The proposal
includes a lower salary threshold of at most
1.4 times the average national salary.

Action Items
Review the salaries of current and
FUTURE EU Blue Card holders in
France

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES


Family Visas Can No Longer
Be Put On Hold
Effective immediately, family members of
principal residence visa holders can no longer
apply to have their family residence visas put
on hold if the principal changes employer
and needs to apply for a new visa.

What has changed?


Previously, when a principal residence visa
holder changed jobs and had their initial visa
cancelled, any dependent family members
could apply to have their family visas put on
hold. When the principals new residence
visa was issued, the family visa would be
reactivated.
This is no longer possible. Instead, the family
member will have their visa cancelled as well,
and will have 30 days to obtain a new
residence visa or leave the UAE, or risk
overstay penalties.

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Who is affected?
This change affects family members of
principal residence visa holders transferring
from or to an employer outside of one of the
UAEs many Free Zones.
Principal visa holders changing from one job
to another within the UAE Free Zones are not
required to cancel their visa and obtain a new
visa, so their family members are not affected
by this change.

Action Items
Family members of principal
residence visa holders
transferring from or to an
employer outside of the UAEs
Free Zones should be prepared to
leave the country if the principals
new residence visa is not issued
within 30 days, and apply for a
new family residence visa once
the principals visa is issued.

INDONESIA Five-Year
Multiple-Entry Visitor Visas
Now Available
Effective 28 June 2016, foreign nationals can
apply for a multiple-entry visitor visa (Visa
Kunjungan) valid for five years, rather than for
just one year, as previously.
Another change is that former Indonesian
citizens and their families with multiple-entry
visitor visas can now have their initial 60-day
stay permit extended twice for 60 days each
time, for a total stay of 180 days before they
have to leave the country and re-enter (under
the same five-year multiple-entry visitor visa).

New Validity Period for Visitor Visa


A multiple-entry visitor visa was
previously issued with a maximum
validity of one year. This has now
been extended to five years.
The visitor visa (Visa Kunjungan) is
intended for purposes other than
business or tourism, such as
visiting friends or relations or
attending short study or training
programmes.

Extending the Stay Permit of a


Visitor Visa Holder
On arrival in Indonesia, a visitor visa holder is
issued with a stay permit for a stay of up to 60
days.
Single-entry visitor visa holders
can extend this stay permit up to
four times, for 30 days each time,
for a maximum total stay of 180
days. The latest amendment does
not change this rule.
Most multiple-entry visitor visa
holders cannot extend the stay
permit, but can instead exit and
re-enter the country for stays of
up to 60 days each time, up to a
(new) maximum of five years.
Since the introduction of the
latest amendment, however,
multiple-entry visitor visa holders
who are former Indonesian
citizens or their families are
allowed to extend their stay
permit twice for 60 days each
time, for a maximum total stay of
180 days, before they have to exit
and re-enter the country on the
same multiple-entry visitor visa.

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Existing and Pending Visitor Visas


Note that any applications for
visitor visas which have already
been submitted but where the
visa not yet been issued, will be
processed using the amended
regulations.
Furthermore, previously issued
visitor visas and stay permits will
keep their issued validity, and will
not be affected by the recent
amendment.

Legislation
the changes were introduced in Regulation
No. 26 of 2016 which amends Government
Regulation No. 31 of 2013 on the
Implementation of Law No. 6 of 2011 on
Immigration.

Action Items
Note that pending and future
multiple-entry visitor visas will be
valid for five years;
Note also that multiple-entry
visitor visa holders who are
former Indonesian citizens or
their families are now allowed to
extend their stay permit twice for
60 days each time, for a maximum
total stay of 180 days, before they
have to exit and re-enter the
country on the same five-year
multiple-entry visitor visa.

LUXEMBOURG Minimum
Salary Increases for EU Blue
Card

The Luxembourg government has increased


the minimum salary requirements for
European Union (EU) Blue Cards, effective 10
July 2016.

Salary Thresholds
EU Blue Card holders in Luxembourg must
now be paid at least 73,296 per year (1.5
times the average annual salary in
Luxembourg), up from 71,946.
For EU Blue Card Holders with jobs in
shortage occupations within group 1
(managers) or 2 (professionals) of the ISCO
(International Standard Classification of
Occupations), the minimum salary is now
fixed at 58,636.80 per year (1.2 times the
average annual salary), up from 57,556.80.
The list of shortage occupations is as follows:
mathematicians, actuaries and
statisticians;
systems analysts;
software developers;
web and multimedia developers;
applications programmers;
software and application
developers and analysts,
multimedia developers not listed
elsewhere;
database designers and
administrators;
systems administrators;
computer network professionals;

database and network


professionals not elsewhere
classified.

Background
The Luxembourg government regularly
adjusts the minimum salary requirements for
foreign nationals.

peregrine: GLOBAL IMMIGRATION MADE SIMPLE


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The EU Blue Card is a work and residence


permit, implemented in most EU countries,
designed to attract highly-skilled non-EU
nationals. To qualify, applicants need
advanced qualifications or substantial
experience, among other requirements.
Benefits include the flexibility to change
employers or move to another EU country,
and work permission for a spouse.

Background

Action Items

The existing Taiwan Travel Authorization


Certificate allows visa-free entry only to
nationals of India, Indonesia, the Philippines
and Vietnam who are currently holding a valid
visa for Australia, Canada, the Schengen area,
Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, the United
Kingdom, or the United States.

Review the salaries of current and


future EU Blue Card holders in
Luxembourg;
Note the occupations qualifying
for a lower minimum salary.

TAIWAN Upcoming VisaFree Entry for Nationals of


Thailand and Brunei, and
Expansion of Travel
Authorisation Certificate
Effective 1 August 2016, nationals of Thailand
and Brunei will be able to enter Taiwan visafree for stays of up to 30 days, on a trial basis
for an initial period of one year.
Moreover, from 1 September 2016 the
Taiwan Travel Authorisation Certificate
scheme will be extended, allowing nationals
of Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos,
Myanmar, the Philippines and Vietnam who
have in the last ten years received visas for
Australia, Canada, the Schengen area, Japan,
New Zealand, South Korea, the United
Kingdom, or the United States to enter Taiwan
visa-free after registering online.

The measures are part of Taiwans recently


announced strategy of strengthening
economic relationships with Southeast Asian
countries, known as the southbound policy.
Currently, nationals of Malaysia and
Singapore can enter Taiwan visa-free for up to
30 days.

A work permit is not required for applicants


going to Taiwan for business activities,
including fulfilment of a service contract
between the sending company and the
Taiwan company, for a period of up to 30
days.

Action Items
Note the upcoming new visa-free
privileges for nationals of some
Southeast Asian countries, which
will allow more nationals of
Southeast Asian countries to
travel to Taiwan for up to 30 days
on business or service contract
fulfilment.

MALAYSIA Expatriate
Services Division Requires
Employment Pass Approval
Before Entry
Effective 1 August 2016, the Expatriate
Services Division (ESD) of the Immigration

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Department of Malaysia (MID) requires that


all Employment Pass (ED), Professional Visit
Pass (PVP), Dependant Pass (DP) and Long
Term Visit Pass (LTVP) applicants must obtain
an approval letter before entering Malaysia.
The approval letter must be produced at the
port of entry in Malaysia for verification by
the immigration authorities.
Currently, applicants for these passes are
allowed to travel to Malaysia as visitors while
waiting for their pass application to be
approved. This will no longer be permitted
and any applicants who enter the country
before the approval is issued will need to exit
and re-enter following approval of their
application.
In addition, Employment Pass III applicants in
certain sectors (construction, mining and
manufacturing) who are nationals of certain
countries (Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri
Lanka, Indonesia, Nepal, Laos, Myanmar,
Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, Philippines,
Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan)
are now required to undergo a medical test at
a FOMEMA (Foreign Workers Medical
Examination Monitoring Agency) panel clinic
in Malaysia.

Background
The ESD is one of the agencies which issue
Employment Passes for foreign nationals in
Malaysia. Malaysia Digital Economy Sdn Bhd
(MDEC) processes Employment Passes for
Information Communication Technology (ICT)
companies and companies registered for
Multimedia Super Corridor Malaysia (MSC
Malaysia). MDEC is expected to announce
that it is implementing a similar requirement
to obtain an approval letter before entering
Malaysia in the next few weeks.

minimum salary rule, valid for only 12


months, and with fewer benefits.

Action Items
Employers sponsoring foreign
nationals for Employment Passes,
Professional Visit Passes,
Dependant Passes or Long Term
Social Visit Passes via the
Expatriate Services Division or
MDEC should ensure applicants
are not in Malaysia at the time of
application filing, and allow more
time before assignees can enter
Malaysia.
Employment Pass III applicants of
one of the above nationalities in
the construction, mining or
manufacturing sectors must
undergo a medical test at a
FOMEMA panel clinic in Malaysia.

GHANA Enforcement of
Company Obligations
Effective Monday 1st August 2016 the
Ghanaian Registrar of Companies will enforce
financial penalties for any local entity that has
not filed Annual Returns or renewed their
company partner registration. These penalties
will apply until 31st December 2016 when any
companies that are not up to date will be
removed from the Registry.
Companies registered with the Registrar
Generals Department before October 2011
are also now required to re-register with the
Registry by the end of this year (31st
December 2016) or risk being deleted from
the records thereafter.

The Employment Pass III is a category of


Employment Pass which is exempt the usual

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VAT registration number: 111 7916 32
Peregrine Immigration Management Ltd, Registered in England and Wales: 7569415

process is completed prior to 31st


December 2016.

Background
All companies are required by the Companies
Act to file their first Annual Return within
eighteen months of incorporation and once
every year thereafter. The Incorporated
Private Partnership Act also requires that
company partners submit a statement
renewing the registration of their partnership
once every year. These requirements are now
being enforced more vigorously.
The RGD has also requested all companies
incorporated and registered in Ghana prior to
October 2011 to re-register as part of an
ongoing e-Government Project which seeks to
network the RGD and the Ghana Revenue
Authority for the purposes of operational
efficiency and effectiveness. This process
usually takes three weeks.

Applicable Penalties

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www.peregrine.im.
For any enquiries please contact
info@peregrine.im or +44 (0)20 7993 6860.
DISCLAIMER: The information contained in this immigration newsletter has been
abridged from laws, court decisions, and administrative rulings and should not be
construed or relied upon as legal advice. If you have specific questions regarding the
applicability of this information, please contact Peregrine 2015 Peregrine
Immigration Management Ltd.

Fines of up to 300.00 Ghanaian Cedi


(approximately $76 USD) will apply per day
that the company is not current with
registration or annual return reporting,
starting 1st August 2016, and the entity name
will be erased as of the beginning 1st January
2017 if no action is taken.

Action Items
All businesses registered in Ghana
should ensure that their company
registration is complete and
Annual Returns have been filed
up to 2016 prior or as soon after
1st August 2016 as possible.
Any company partners should
make certain that the partnership
registration has been renewed.
Businesses that were registered
before October 2011, should
ensure that their re-registration

peregrine: GLOBAL IMMIGRATION MADE SIMPLE


VAT registration number: 111 7916 32
Peregrine Immigration Management Ltd, Registered in England and Wales: 7569415

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