‘Immigration - The Voice of the Experts’

minimal salary threshold for the Blue Card EU residence permit type (one of the most advantageous ones), 2) introduction of a job seeker residence permit type based on a points-system, 3) shortening the eligibility period for permanent residence permit and, finally, 4) potentially allowing applicants to keep their original citizenship after having been granted a German one. Further steps to digitalise and streamline the immigration process in Germany are planned. Persistent issues with backlogs on the side of immigration offices all over the country, paired with, in some cases, insufficient number of workers at immigration offices in Germany to deal with the sheer number of applications create challenges for applicants who are forced to wait for their residence permit application to come through for weeks or months. The proposed bill, however, conveys the government’s understanding that Germany does need foreign workers and that the country should future-prove its immigration strategy to become an even more attractive destination for international talent.

Sri Lanka is a strategically located island nation in the Indian Ocean, with a population of 22 million people. The country is currently undergoing a major development project, the Colombo Port City, which is being built by China. The Colombo Port City is a $1.4 billion project that is expected to be completed in 2025. The port city will be a special economic zone, which means that it will have its own set of regulations and tax laws. The port city is expected to create 800,000 jobs. The visa changes that Sri Lanka has made are part of a larger effort to attract foreign investment and talent. In addition to the Colombo Port City project, Sri Lanka has also recently made changes to its visa policy. The country has now started issuing longer-term visas, from 2 to 5 to 10 years, for certain categories of professionals. This is a significant change from the previous policy, which only allowed for 1-year residence visas. While Sri Lanka does not currently have a digital nomad visa, there are other visa categories that may meet the requirements of digital nomads. For example, the Investor Category visa allows for a stay of up to 5 years, and the Business Representative visa allows for a stay of up to 2 years. And even the tourist visa has options.

The new regulation for digital nomads and family dependents visas and permits through fast track and flexible requisites together with the modification of the Immigration Act with stronger benefits for freelancers’ initial applications, foreign students facilitating their access to right to work, simplified and faster process related to the Labor Market Test, and longer duration of renewed work permits, 4 years instead of two, as well as the right to work as employee but also as freelancer.

Regarding best practices in global immigration management, Audrey gave key tips about clients’ needs from vendors and best practices for managing vendors successfully. She highlighted the importance of the communication, trust, and proactivity.

Sarrah, from her side, highlighted the importance of the Immigration Due Diligence Profile for all corporate assignees that should take into account the Rankings of passport, and immigration history both at recruitment point and applications preparation process. Sarrah and Audrey, both agreed that clients expect a holistic approach to manage the international mobility process. They expect to receive advice not only about immigration, but also on other legal aspects linked to the international mobility process: social security tax, employment matters.

In connection with the increase of IT tools use in immigration process, Tom explained how are governments and commercial organisations using digital technology as part of the immigration process and its impact. Anastasia went through the trends and challenges in this field in Germany.

All participants felt that it is required to have in place an agile and less burdensome regulation involving procedures and digital tools.

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