Immigration Insights

October 5, 2018

Effective 5 November 2018, application fees for New Zealand visas will increase dramatically. The fee changes will impact individuals applying for work, residence and visitor visas and employers seeking accreditation or sponsoring work and residence visas.

October 5, 2018

How do free trade agreements and international political and economic unions impact global mobility? A brief survey of the agreements and unions around the world with visa and immigration provisions for international business. NAFTA, EU, MERCOSUR, ASEAN, GCC, African Union, CETA, CPTPP, and ECOWAS.

October 4, 2018

The Spanish immigration authorities have issued an announcement confirming the temporary suspension of in-person and telephone consultations at both the Large Companies Unit (Unidad de Grandes Empresas – “UGE”) as well as the temporary suspension of in-person consultations at the General Subdirectorate of Immigration.

October 3, 2018

A new decree published 11 Sept 2018, took effect in Portugal on 1 Oct 2018. As well as implementing 2017 amendments to immigration law, transposing some EU Directives into Portuguese law, the decree seeks to simplify visa application and residence permit procedures and to reduce processing times.

October 2, 2018

Effective immediately, a new online appointment booking system is in place at the Warsaw immigration office (Mazovian Provincial Office) in Poland for initial and renewal applications for type A work permits.

October 1, 2018

Discover the latest immigration news and updates from around the globe with your weekly newsletter from Newland Chase. In this week’s edition, we bring you news from Switzerland, the US, Russia and France . Plus there are updates from India, and also from Iraq.

October 1, 2018

On 5 September 2018, Law No. 2018-771 on “freedom to choose one’s professional future” was signed by the French president, codifying several important changes to the rules for workers posted to France.

October 1, 2018

The Swiss Federal Council has decided to increase the work permit quotas for 2019. The quotas are imposed on a national, rather than per-company, basis, on long-term B permits and short-term L permits. B permits are valid for up to five years and are renewable.

October 1, 2018

Effective 1 October 2018, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has begun implementing its 28 June 2018 policy memorandum, prioritising the removal of foreign nationals from the United States on the basis of public safety, in compliance with Executive Order 13768.

September 27, 2018

Effective immediately, Iraq’s Ministry of Interior (MOI) requires companies that do not have a waiver from the Prime Minister’s Office to pay a security deposit of IQD 100,000 for each visa applicant to obtain a visa Letter of Approval (LOA).

September 27, 2018

The Supreme Court of India today upheld the constitutional validity of the Aadhaar scheme, while also striking down several contentious provisions of the Aadhaar Act.

September 27, 2018

Effective immediately, Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) officials at the Moscow migration office in Sakharovo are neither checking nor registering work permit applications on the day of submission, due to technical difficulties.

September 25, 2018

The e-FRRO system for online registration and visa-related services has been extended to Gurugram, Faridabad, Ghaziabad and Gautam Buddha Nagar. Plus, an Indian electronic visa (e-Visa), whether for tourism, business or medical purposes, can now be used up to three times in a single calendar year.

September 24, 2018

Effective 21 September 2018, amendments to the immigration rules in Luxembourg have streamlined the documentary requirements for applications for authorisation to stay for locally-hired non-EEA (third-country) workers.

September 24, 2018

Discover the latest immigration news and updates from around the globe with your weekly newsletter from Newland Chase. In this week’s edition, we bring you news from Hong Kong, Brazil and the UK. Plus there are updates from Luxembourg and Greece.

September 21, 2018

Effective 19 September 2018, the Hong Kong government has revised its immigration policy to allow a same-sex spouse or civil partner, or an opposite-sex civil partner, in a foreign legally-recognized relationship with an eligible sponsor, to apply for a dependent visa.

September 20, 2018

The federal Police in Brazil are currently implementing a new internal IT system (SISMIGRA) to replace the previous one (SINCRE).

September 20, 2018

Effective 12 September 2018, new fees ("stamp duty") are applicable in Greece to non-EU nationals applying for various categories of residence permit.

September 20, 2018

On 18 September 2018, the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) published its much-anticipated report on the impact of migration to the UK from the European Economic Area (EEA).

September 19, 2018

A look at the business climate and corporate immigration system of South Africa and evaluation of the opportunities for companies expanding internationally. The fourth edition in Newland Chase's 'Going Global' series.