August 2015

PEREGRINE NEWS
This month we have added 8 new immigration processes to Immiguru, including a new
destination country - Malta.
Immiguru now contains more than 1100 immigration processes to 90+ destination
countries, which our 190+ partners help us to keep up-to-date to reflect changes to rules
and procedures around the world.
We have also launched a useful new feature within Immigo, our global immigration case
management cloud software automatic emails to specific contacts on key milestones in a
case.

Table of Contents
SWITZERLAND QUOTAS FOR EU/EFTA L PERMITS EXHAUSTED FOR THIRD QUARTER OF 2015
2
INDIA E-TOURIST VISA EXTENDED TO 36 COUNTRIES
2
PORTUGAL PORTUGUESE IMMIGRATION AND BORDERS SERVICE STRIKE
3
AUSTRALIA UPCOMING DATA MATCHING PROGRAMME
3
APEC BUSINESS TRAVEL CARD TO BE EXTENDED TO FIVE YEARS
4
PHILIPPINES NATIONALS OF 41 COUNTRIES MAY BE ADMITTED WITH PASSPORTS VALID FOR UNDER 6 MONTHS
4
UNITED KINGDOM TIER 1 INVESTOR AND ENTREPRENEUR APPLICATIONS REQUIRE CRIMINAL RECORD
CERTIFICATE FROM 1 SEPTEMBER 2015
5
SPAIN CHANGES TO ENTREPRENEURS LAW INCLUDE NEW EU INTRACOMPANY TRANSFER AUTHORISATION 6
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SWITZERLAND Quotas for

EU/EFTA L Permits
Exhausted for Third
Quarter of 2015
The quota for L permits for the third quarter
of 2015, for short-term assignees from
European Union (EU) and European Free
Trade Agreement (EFTA) countries, has been
filled.

Who is Affected?
New, incoming EU/EFTA nationals who are
assigned to Switzerland but remain on foreign
employment contracts will not be issued L
permits until the fourth quarter of 2015. New
short-term L permit quotas for EU/EFTA
nationals will be available from 1 October
2015. Some cantons may, in exceptional
circumstances, continue to accept new
applications in this category; other cantons
will not. This should be checked on a case-bycase basis.

Who is Not Affected?

The quota for B permits, and permits not
subject to quotas, such as the 120 day permit
and the 4 month short term permit) are not
affected. Quotas for non-EU/EFTA nationals
are also not affected.

Background
The Swiss government has reduced the work
permit quotas for the year 2015 (see our alert
of 1 December 2014). The quotas are
allocated to the cantons on a quarterly basis.

Action Items
Allow for possible delays with sending
EU/EFTA nationals to Switzerland.
Contact your supplier for any new

EU/EFTA national assignments to

Switzerland, as pending applications
will be treated differently depending
on the canton..

INDIA e-Tourist Visa

extended to 36 Countries
The Indian government extended its e-Tourist
Visa (eTV) scheme twice, firstly to include
nationals of China, Hong Kong SAR (Special
Administrative Region) and Macau SAR , and
then to include applicants from a further 36
countries effective Saturday 15 August, thus
bringing the number of eligible nationalities
for the eTV scheme to 113. It has also added
seven more Indian airports as designated
entry airports for this immigration status.

Who is Eligible?
The eTV is now available to nationals of the
following additional countries (unless they are
of Pakistani origin or holders of Diplomatic or
Official passports): Andorra; Argentina;
Armenia; Aruba; Belgium; Bolivia; Colombia;
Cuba; East Timor; Guatemala; Hungary;
Ireland; Jamaica; Malta; Malaysia; Mongolia;
Monaco; Mozambique; Netherlands; Panama;
Peru; Poland; Portugal; Seychelles; Slovenia;
Spain; St Lucia; St Vincent & the Grenadines;
Suriname; Sweden; Taiwan; Tanzania; Turks &
Caicos Island; United Kingdom: Uruguay and
Venezuela. A full list of eligible nationalities
can be found here.

Which Airports are participating?

The airports that were already part of the
scheme were Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Goa,
Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai and
Trivandrum and they have all been
successfully issuing e-TVs since the launch of
the scheme on 27 November 2014.

peregrine: GLOBAL IMMIGRATION MADE SIMPLE

VAT registration number: 111 7916 32
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Seven more airports have now been

designated as additional ports of entry for the
eTV, bringing the total airports that issue the
eTV on arrival to 16. The new airports
included in the scheme are Ahmedabad,
Amritsar, Gaya, Jaipur, Lucknow, Tirchy and
Varanasi.

Action Items

Permissible Activities and Duration

of Stay

PORTUGAL Portuguese
Immigration and Borders
Service Strike

The visa is available to those traveling on

leisure, for short duration medical treatment,
for a "casual business visit" or to meet friends
and relatives. Travellers must show proof of
onward travel and sufficient funds.
As mentioned in previous alerts the definition
of "casual business visit" is not clear and if
there is any uncertainty over whether the
activities to be carried out qualify as a
business visit or not please contact us.
The eTV is valid for 30 days from the date of
arrival in India, is non-extendable, nonconvertible and allows a maximum of two
visits in a calendar year.

How Does it Work?

This visa applicant must apply online, at least
four days before the intended date of arrival
to India, for an e-TV. The visa fee (about
US$60) should be paid at this time. A digital
photograph and copy of the passport
information page must be uploaded as part of
the application.
The successful applicant should receive their
eTV within 72 hours, which they must carry at
the time of travel. On arrival in India at one of
16 designated airports, the traveller will go
through biometric registration.

Review upcoming trips by qualifying

nationals and bear in mind that the eTourist Visa may be a suitable route in
some business travel cases.

Portuguese immigration offices will be closed

today, 13 August 2015, and tomorrow, 14
August 2015, as the administrative staff from
the Portuguese Immigration and Borders
Service (SEF) stage a two day strike.
All booking for appointments for immigration
applications during this time will be rescheduled causing delays in current residence
permit applications.

Action Items
Note the closure of Portuguese
immigration offices today and
tomorrow and plan applications
accordingly.

AUSTRALIA Upcoming
Data Matching Programme
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO)
announced on 4 August 2015 that, beginning
in September 2015, it will request
immigration data from the Department of
Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) as
part of a data-matching programme intended
to ensure that certain taxpayers are correctly
meeting their taxation obligations.

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

What Data Will Be Collected?

The ATO will acquire data about visa holders,
their sponsors and migration agents covering
four financial years (from 2014 to 2017),
including names and addresses, visas granted
and arrivals and departures information.
It is estimated that records relating to
approximately one million individuals will be
obtained under this programme and checked
against the ATOs tax records.

Action Items
Ensure that the relevant details of
temporary visa holders are available,
including:
notification to the DIBP if any 457 visa
holder has ceased employment;
any change of position requiring a
new nomination;
any decrease in guaranteed earning;
record of any exemption from
superannuation payments;
notification to the DIBP of any merger
and/or acquisition.

APEC Business Travel Card

to be Extended to Five
Years
The APEC (Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation)
Business Mobility Group, has announced that
its APEC Business Travel Card (ABTC) will be
valid for five years from 1 September 2015,
rather than the current three years.

What are the Benefits of the ABTC?

The ABTC allows business travellers who are
nationals of participating APEC member
countries to enter participating member
countries for multiple short-term stays (two

to three months) without having to apply for

individual visas or entry permits.
ABTC holders also benefit from fast-track
immigration lanes at major airports in
participating countries.

Who Qualifies for the ABTC?

APEC Member Economies fully participating in
the scheme include Australia, Brunei
Darussalam, Chile, China, Hong Kong,
Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico,
New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru,
Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand,
Vietnam, and the Russian Federation.
Canada and the United States are transitional
members of the scheme which allow
cardholders from participating economies to
use fast-track immigration lanes.

Action Items
Consider the newly extended ABTC
for frequent business travellers who
are nationals of participating APEC
economies, to benefit from savings in
immigration costs and visa processing
time;
Postpone applications for the ABTC
until 1 September 2015 or after, to
benefit from the new five-year
validity.

PHILIPPINES Nationals of
41 Countries May be
Admitted with Passports
Valid for Under 6 Months
Effective 15 July 2015 nationals of 41
countries may enter the Philippines with a
passport or official travel document valid for
less than six months from the date of arrival.

peregrine: GLOBAL IMMIGRATION MADE SIMPLE

VAT registration number: 111 7916 32
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The usual passport validity required for entry

to the Philippines is at least six months from
the date of arrival.

Which Nationalities are Affected?

Nationals of the following countries may now
enter the Philippines with passports of less
than six months validity:
Angola, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium,
Benin, Brazil, Cambodia,, Canada, Chile,
Cyprus, Ecuador, France, Germany, Greece,
Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan,
South Korea, Kuwait, Laos, Mexico, Myanmar,
Netherlands, New Zealand, Niger, Papua New
Guinea, Peru, Portugal, Romania, Saudi
Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland,
Thailand, Turkey, USA, Venezuela.
These are countries whose nationals are
allowed entry to the Philippines without a visa
for a stay not exceeding 30 days, and which
also have an embassy or consulate located in
the Philippines which is authorized to renew
or extend the validity of passports or official
travel documents.
The Bureau of Immigration National
Operations Center (BINOC) will regularly
update the list by confirming with all
embassies and consulates located in the
Philippines on their authority to renew or
extend passports.

Action Items
Ensure that your foreign national
employees or assignees travelling to
the Philippines have sufficient validity
remaining on their passport or other
travel document;
Note that nationals of the above
countries may enter the Philippines
with less than six months passport
validity, provided there exists no

other ground to deny them entry

under existing laws, rules and
regulations.

UNITED KINGDOM Tier 1

Investor and Entrepreneur
Applications Require
Criminal Record Certificate
from 1 September 2015
The requirement for applicants to provide an
overseas criminal record certificate will start
in September with the Tier 1 (Investor) and
Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) categories.

Which Applicants Are Affected?

This requirement will be introduced in phases,
starting on 1 September with Tier 1 (Investor)
and Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) applicants and their
adult dependents, before applying more
widely.
The change does not currently apply to
extensions or in-country switching
applications.

Background
The Home Office introduced a new rule in
April 2015 which would require applicants to
provide the certificate from any country in
which they have lived continuously for 12
months or more over the past 10 years.
The Home Office has stated that by starting
with a small category of applicants, it will be
able to monitor and evaluate the
implementation of the policy.

Action Items
Applicants in the Tier 1 Investor and
Entrepreneur categories should allow

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

enough time to obtain a criminal

record certificate from any country in
which they have lived continuously
for 12 months or more over the past
10 years.

SPAIN Changes to
Entrepreneurs Law
Include New EU
Intracompany Transfer
Authorisation
Effective 30 July 2015, a new law (Ley
25/2015) amending the entrepreneurs law
(Ley 14/2013) introduces some significant
changes, especially in the investor and
intracompany transfer categories.

New Intracompany Transfer

Category
The new law states that there are now two
categories of intracompany transfer (ICT)
authorisation new EU ICT category and the
existing national ICT category:
The new EU (European Union) ICT
authorisation has a maximum validity
of three years for directors and
specialists and one year for trainees.
Processing time is 20 days, according
to the new law.
This authorisation can in principal also
be used to work in other EU member
states. For example, a non-EU
national holding an EU ICT
authorisation from another EU
country can enter Spain after
communicating with the Unidad de
Grandes Empresas (UGE or Special
Unit of Large Companies) and can
start work once they have registered

in Spain. However, it remains to be

seen how this will work in practice.
The existing (national) ICT category
is still in place for applicants other
than directors, specialists and
trainees, or once the maximum
validity of the EU ICT authorisation
has been reached.
Background
The EU intra-corporate transferees directive
(2014/66/EU, adopted in May 2014) must be
transposed by the EU member states into
their legislation by 29 November 2016.
This directive complements three existing
legal migration directives setting out the
admission criteria for and the rights of highly
qualified third- country workers: the EU Blue
Card directive on highly qualified workers
(adopted in May 2009), the Single Permit
directive on third-country workers legally
residing in an EU member state (adopted in
December 2011) and the Seasonal Workers
directive (adopted in 2014).

Changes for Investors

Investors no longer need to obtain an
investment visa to be able to apply for
a residence permit, if they are already
in Spain with a different legal status,
but can apply for residence
authorisation directly;
An investor can now appoint a
representative to submit their
immigration applications in Spain, and
is no longer required to appear in
person;
A six-month investment visa can now
be obtained if a property purchase is
in process but not yet completed;
the new law also regulates in detail
the investment required in various

peregrine: GLOBAL IMMIGRATION MADE SIMPLE

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

categories of investment fund to

obtain an investment visa and/or
residence status.

Companies Employing Highly

Qualified Employees
The new law regulates the registration
process for companies registering under
corporate criteria to apply for work
authorisation for highly qualified foreign
nationals, and specifies the validity of the
registration and how to report any changes to
the UGE.

Action Items
Directors, specialists and trainees may
be able to take advantage of the EU
mobility benefits of the new EU ICT
authorisation, depending on the
practical implementation of this rule;
Companies registering to employ
highly-qualified foreign nationals
under corporate criteria should
ensure that they report any changes
correctly to UGE;
Investors can consider entering Spain
with a non-Investor status, and
appointing a representative to
manage their immigration
applications.

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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.

peregrine: GLOBAL IMMIGRATION MADE SIMPLE

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