Immigration updates for APAC and EMEA regions
Asia-Pacific
India: Suspension of E-visa
The Indian government has suspended e-visas for Canadian and the U.K. nationals. However, they can apply for a regular sticker visa at the Indian embassy. Tourist visa is already suspended and people visiting India under other visa categories must apply for regular sticker visas.
This summary was prepared using information obtained from the Economic Times.
Malaysia: Entry restriction lifted
The Malaysian government has decided to lift the entry restrictions for India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Nepal. However, permission to enter is subject to the decision and discretion of the Immigration Department of Malaysia.
Arrivals with entry approvals will need to adhere to the following requirements:
- Fully vaccinated
- Present Covd-19 test during arrival
- Quarantine
This summary was prepared using information obtained from the Immigration Department of Malaysia.
Home Quarantine application
Home Quarantine application can be made online at eCovid19. The application must be submitted seven to 10 days before the arrival date.
Qualifying criteria:
- For double dose vaccines: recipients must be double vaccinated more than 14 days prior
- For single dose vaccines: of which more than 28 days have passed since date of vaccine dose
- Home or residence must be suitable based on risk evaluation. Risk evaluation is based on the number of:
- People in said home or residence
- Elderly persons in said home or residence (above 60 years of age)
- Children in said home or residence (below 12 years of age)
- Persons with chronic illnesses in said home or residence
- Pregnant mothers in said home or residence
- Rooms in said home or residence
- Bathrooms in said home or residence
- Bedrooms with en suite bathrooms in said home or residence
Document required:
- Identification Document (NRIC/Passport)
- Vaccination Document
- Entry Permission Approval (MYENTRY/MTP)
- Other additional document e.g. Long Term Pass in Malaysia, flight ticket, etc
This summary was prepared using information obtained from the Ministry of Health.
Singapore: Update on border measure
Following our last update, all travellers with travel history to Indonesia within the last 21 days prior to departure to Singapore will be allowed to transit through Singapore. They must submit a Covid-19 PCR and comply with Category IV entry requirements which can be found here upon arrival.
Category II: Travellers from Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Germany, New Zealand, Republic of Korea (ROK), Poland and Saudi Arabia.
Category III: Travellers from Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Norway, Switzerland, Croatia, Egypt, Finland, Malta, Netherlands, Sweden, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, France, Latvia, Portugal, and Spain.
No summary available at the time of writing.
Vietnam: New declaration
The Prime Minister’s office has issued a new government declaration aimed at relaxing the following key immigration rules for experts, specialists and technicians which had been implemented in the Decree 152 in response to skills gaps and other economic impacts felt as a result of Covid 19.
The changes are as follows:
- Previously issued work permits will be accepted to prove the applicant’s experience for a new work permit application under the decree 152. Those who are changing employers will use a current work permit as proof of experience for the new role.
- Other acceptable documents to provide proof of experience are a bachelor’s degree, an equivalent or higher degree certificate and at least three years of work experience relevant to the job position.
- Foreign workers who hold a valid work permit in one province can be temporarily transferred/assigned to work in another province for a period up to six months without obtaining another work permit in the new province (a work location report, in accordance with the previous rules, need only be filed).
This summary was prepared using information obtained from the Vietnamese government (in Vietnamese).
Disclaimer: The above information is provided for general information purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. If you have any further inquiries regarding the applicability of this information, please contact Debra Jane Beynon, Regional Immigration Manager (APAC).
Europe, Middle east and Africa
Ireland: Final blanket renewal of immigration permission
The Irish government has announced a final temporary extension of immigration and international protection permissions to January 15, 2022. This applies to permissions that are due to expire between September 21, 2021 and January 15, 2022 and includes permissions that have already been extended by the previous seven temporary extensions since March 2020.
Impact
This final temporary extension of immigration permissions means that people who held a valid permission to be in Ireland in March 2020 are legally permitted to remain until January 15, 2022, even if their Irish Residence Permit (IRP) card has expired and they are awaiting a new one. Renewal is on the same basis as the existing permission and the same conditions will continue to apply.
The public registration office in Burgh Quay is open for appointments and Dublin-based customers can renew a permission online. Renewals outside of the Dublin area are processed by the Garda National Immigration Bureau through the Garda Station network.
Action
Everyone who is covered by this final temporary extension should either register or renew their permission by January 15, 2022 to ensure that they have a qualifying permission to remain in Ireland after that date if that is their intention.
This summary was prepared using information obtained from the Irish government .
United Kingdom: Upcoming changes to the Immigration Rules
The U.K. government has published a statement of changes to their Immigration Rules with significant changes.
The key changes include:
- EU ID cards no longer accepted
- From October 1, 2021, EU nationals entering the U.K. will need to use their passport and not their national identification card unless they have a pending application or visa under the EU Settlement Scheme or Frontier Worker Permit Scheme.
- In- country applicants unable to travel whilst the application is pending
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- From October 6, 2021, in-country applicants who submit any visa extension application cannot leave the Common Travel Area (the U.K. , Ireland, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands) whilst the application is in process. If they do, their application will be deemed as withdrawn.
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- Youth Mobility Scheme
- Effective January 1, 2022 the Youth Mobility Scheme will be expanded to include:
- Iceland: will be added as a country without Deemed Sponsorship Status with an allocation of 1,000 places.
- India: will be added to other countries, such as Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong, where invitation to apply arrangements apply with allocation of 3,000 places.
- Effective January 1, 2022 the Youth Mobility Scheme will be expanded to include:
- New International Sportsperson route
- From October 6, 202, the new International Sportsperson route will replace Tier 2 and Tier 5 Temporary Worker routes for professional athletes with simplified, dedicated visa arrangements.
- Changes to Global Talent Route
- From October 6, 2021, the evidential requirements for digital technology endorsements are being amended which would lower the barriers to entry and increase the number of applicants, as an example the number of examples required for each of the exceptional promise criteria has been reduced from at least two to at least one, the list of “Prestigious Prizes” has been expanded significantly.
- Covid-19 concessions implemented into the rules
- From October 6, 2021, certain concessions which were previously part of the guidance have not been implemented into the immigration rules. These mainly relates to rules on Skilled Worker Visa holders, Tier 1 (Entrepreneurs) and EU Settlement Scheme visa holders, who approach settlement in the U.K. and have been impacted negatively by the pandemic.
This summary was prepared using information obtained from the Gov.uk.
Disclaimer: The above information is provided for general information purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. If you have any further inquiries regarding the applicability of this information, please contact Laxmi Vikraman, Regional Immigration Manager (EMEA).
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