INSZoom Immigration Conference 2016 - Advance Global Immigration Training

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Gold sponsor Exhibitors

ADVANCE GLOBAL TRAINING

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IMMIGRATION & COMPLIANCE UPDATES

PROSPECTIVE ICT DIRECTIVE

PRESENTATIONAGENDA

SCHENGEN VISA OVERVIEW

https://www.fragomen.com/industries



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SCHENGEN VISA The Schengen Area is comprised of 26 countries that have agreed to allow free

movement of their citizens within this area as a single country.

• Luxembourg• Malta• Netherlands• Norway• Poland• Portugal• Slovakia• Slovenia• Spain• Sweden• Switzerland• Liechtenstein• Lithuania

• Austria• Belgium• Czech Republic• Denmark• Estonia• Finland• France• Germany• Greece• Hungary• Iceland• Italy• Latvia

Although most of the Schengen countries are in the European Union, you should not confuse the Schengen area with

the EU.

26 COUNTRIES

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SCHENGEN VISA

A Schengen Visa permits the holder to stay within

the Schengen countries for up to 90 days in any

period of 180 days for tourist or business

purposes.

Once you get a Schengen Visa, you can enter one country and travel freely anywhere within the Schengen

territory.

As a result of the on-going migration crisis and the terrorist attacks which took place in Paris in 2015, some Schengen member

states have temporarily reintroduced controls on some or

all of their borders with other Schengen states

For the latest information, it is

advisable to research the up-to-the-minute

rules regarding Temporary

Reintroduction

SCHENGEN VISASCHENGEN TERRITORY

TEMPORARY CONTROLS

TEMPORARY REINTRODUCTION

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SCHENGEN VISAS: UNDERSTAND COUNTRY-SPECIFIC COMPLIANCE

It is important to know and comply with the country-specific guidelines for the Schengen Visa.

For example, in Germany, Schengen Visa activities are

restricted to:

Tourism

CEO /CFO duties for German-based companies

Intra-Company trainings (not at customer site!)

Contract negotiations

Supervision of contract deliveries (not the delivery in itself)

Deconstruction of machinery bought from German vendor

Construction of plants / machinery sold to German customer

Establishment of a German subsidiary

NOT ALLOWED on a Schengen Visa in

Germany: Knowledge transfer, software service delivery

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UNITED KINGDOM: MAC ANNOUNCES REFORM

In March 2016, MAC issued preliminary

response to comprehensive review of Tier 2 (General) and

Tier 2 (ICT).

Implementation of changes will be rolled

out in two phases (November 24, 2016

and April 2017)

These reforms specifically aim to reduce economic

migration from outside of Europe and to ensure that skilled work visas

are limited to skills shortages and highly

specialist experts.

The primary impact is that of cost to

employers.

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UNITED KINGDOM: IMPACY TO TIER 2: GENERAL CATEGORY

Minimum salary threshold for experienced workers will be increased in two phases:

• £25,000 on November 24, 2016 • £30,000 in April 2017 • Some health and education

professionals (ie, nurses, paramedics) will be exempt from this increase until July 2019.

The Tier 2 (General) annual limit of 20,700 for Restricted Certificates of Sponsorship will remain.

An immigration skills charge will be introduced beginning in April 2017 and will require Tier 2 employers to pay a fee of £1,000 per Certificate of Sponsorship per year.

The government will not be implementing changes recommended by the MAC for Tier 4 students switching to Tier 2, and employers will be able to recruit students without being subject to the annual cap on Tier 2 (General) and without a Resident Labor Market Test.

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UNITED KINGDOM: IMPACT TO TIER 2: ICT CATEGORY

Tier 2 (ICT – Graduate Trainees)Minimum salary will be reduced

from £24,000 to £23,000 and employers may sponsor up to 20

(previously was 5)

Tier 2 (ICT – Short Term Staff) Will close to new applications in

April 2017. The transitional period until April 2017 will allow

employers to plan for these upcoming changes.Tier 2 (ICT – Skills Transfer)

Will close to new applications in November 2016. Minimum salary

threshold will be increased to £30,000.

Provisions will be amended to provide a route for senior managers and specialists

AMENDED PROVISIONS

ICT SUB-CATEGORIES

The current ICT sub-categories will be simplified by requiring all ICT

migrants to qualify under a single visa category, with a minimum salary threshold of £41,500.

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UNITED KINGDOM: IMPACT TO TIER 2: ICT CATEGORY

£155,300

April 2017, the minimum salary threshold for intra-

company transferees working between five and nine years in the UK will

be lowered from

£120,000to

The one year experience requirement will be

eliminated for applicants who are paid over

£73,900

All intra-company transferees will be required to pay the Immigration Health

Surcharge beginning in the fall of 2016.

£1,000(person/ year)

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UNITED KINGDOM: COMPLIANCE

IMMIGRATION ACT 2016

MISUSE CONSTITUTES A CRIMINAL OFFENSE • People who work on a visitor’s visa;• People doing work that is not listed on

their visa;• Leave to enter or remain in the United

Kingdom has not been granted; and• Leave to enter or remain in the United

Kingdom has terminated.

UK PENALTIES • Six months imprisonment and/or • An unlimited fine in England

PENALTIES IN SCOTLAND AND IRELAND• Imprisonment of six months and/or • A fine of the statutory maximum. • The employees’ wages can be seized as

well, (considered to be proceeds of crime).

Foreign National must have the right to work in the UK.

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UNITED KINGDOM: BREXIT

Negotiations on the terms of the UK’s exit

might take up to

2yearsUntil any withdrawal

agreement is implemented, the legal situation of EU

nationals currently living and working in the UK, and UK

nationals resident in other EU countries, will not have

legally changed.

Any decision to leave and subsequent negotiations are

likely to fundamentally change the UK immigration landscape,

since the EU principle of freedom of movement of

people would no longer apply to the UK.

WITHDRAWAL AGREEMENT CHANGE IN NEGOTIATIONS

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UNITED KINGDOM: BREXIT IMMIGRATION CONSIDERATION

PR confirms that the foreign national has indefinite leave

to remain in the UK

It would be very difficult for the UK to go back on this

status when the UK exits the EU

Employees should consider applying for Permanent

Residence, if they have lived and worked in the UK for

5years

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GERMANY: IMMIGRATION TRENDS

Until any withdrawal agreement is implemented,

the legal situation of EU nationals currently living and

working in the UK, and UK nationals resident in other EU

countries, will not have legally changed.

years

Due to a strong economy and its over-aging

workforce demographic, Germany tries to attract

qualified migration.

Either academic degrees or vocational qualifications may migrate to Germany provided they have a job offer from a

German-based employer. Dependents are allowed to

work.

The influx of refugees has created delays in

processing times.

Potential changes on business immigration law

are on hold. (ie, ICT Directive)

While Germany, in general, is still a very welcoming country for migrants, certain parts of the political

landscape shift towards more restrictions and better controls. We expect a trend towards more checks / verifications of employment permits in the future.

MIGRATION CRISIS

INCREASED VERIFICATION

QUALIFIED EMPLOYEES

POTENTIAL CHANGES

QUALIFIED MIGRATION

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GERMANY: IMPROVEMENTS FOR VISA APPLICATIONS

Principal visa applicants, and their dependents, who were previously in Germany under long-term stays, can now enter Germany solely upon consular approval. If the German local authorities do not give a denial notification within ten days of the submission of the application, the consular post will assume the local authorities’ consent.

Dependents who have submitted their visa applications along with the principal applicant, and who have not previously resided in Germany, should experience reduced processing times of two to three weeks. (Family reunification previously took months for processing)

The changes have driven down processing times significantly and made the following improvements:

To simplify visa applications, the Federal Government amended

the visa application procedures for

employment and family reunion entry visas.

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GERMANY: IMMIGRATION OPTIONS FOR IT SECTOR: EU BLUECARD

May be obtained by Non-EU nationals who are offered local employment by a German company.

University degree comparable to German standardsMinimum annual salary of EUR 49,600 (2016)

Local employment with an employer in Germany for min. 1 year

Can work in Germany only with this

VISA REQUIREMENTS For certain shortage

occupations, of which some professionals within

Information Technology qualify, the salary threshold

is reduced to

EUR 38,688(2016)

This offers an incredible advantage for IT sector

firms and their employees.

The EU Blue Card is the only German immigration permit that allows a person to be leased out to a third party.

• This is of special value to the IT industry that often provides services to their customers on a contractual basis.

• In Germany, this may be regarded as labor lease, which is subject to strong government regulations however, with the EU Blue Card, this can be avoided

• The EU Blue Card is portable after 2 years of Blue Card being issued.

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GERMANY: IMMIGRATION OPTIONS FOR IT SECTOR: SOFTWARE INSTALLATION VISA

This option can be used when the project in Germany involves software and information technology.

VISA QUALIFICATIONS

The software must be individually

programmed for the customer (not using

modules or an off the shelf product);

It cannot be an extension or upgrade to an existing system; and It must be for a stand-

alone application.

If criteria is met, assignee can travel to

Germany without meeting traditional 1

year tenure requirements.

This permit type is often misused and to avoid penalty, all the

mentioned criteria must be met.

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GERMANY: COMPLIANCE REMINDERS

Differentiate between business travel and employment / work. If in doubt,

ask a lawyer. Do not trust oral communication from the authorities!

Misuse of Schengen visa for work is a criminal offence. Also results in up to

5 year blacklisting.

Information on salary that is provided to authorities must be correct. Inform

authorities about changes..

Keep application documentation and visa / permits on file.

Permits become invalid if employee spends > 180 days outside Germany.

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FRANCE: IMMIGRATION UPDATES

October 28, 2016: A decree was issued enforcing that a short term (<3 months) work permit will no longer be required for the following categories:

Employee on a Local Contract in France in:• Sports, cultural, artistic and scientific events • Professional conferences, seminars and workshops• Film, audio-visual, entertainment and Phonographic publishing production and distribution, if the employee is an

artist or technical personnel that is directly part of the production or project• Modelling • Personal services and domestic workers during the assignment in France of their private employers • Education given occasionally by visiting professors

Employee on Detachment:• Assignments for audits, and• Experts in IT, management, finance, insurance, architecture and engineering• There is no indication yet of what information will be required for nationals requiring a short term Schengen Visa

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FRANCE: IMMIGRATION UPDATES

The new “Talent Passport” will impact highly skilled foreign nationals, entitling the holder to a new classification of residence permit valid for four

(4) years.The following will fall under the Talent passport category:

• Change of status for students holding a Master degree from France

• European Blue card• ICT “salarié en mission” with a local employment

contract in France• Scientists/Researchers• Applicants holding a Master degree who wish to open

a business in France • Foreign nationals who present a project in innovation

that has been recognized by an official administration• Foreign nationals who invest directly in France• Artists

• Talent Passport permits will be processed at the French consulates.

• All applications that have been filed prior to November 1st will be processed in the previous manner

• Delays expected in adjudication until the visa services are operational and the new forms are introduced

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FRANCE: IMMIGRATION UPDATESThree separate permit categories will exist for ICT Employees on Detachment

status:

ICT Employee on Detachment – issued for

an employee who is on an assignment in a senior

management position or to provide expertise, to a company in France that is part of the same group as

the home country employer.

ICT Trainee – issued when there is an approved

training agreement within the framework of an internship with an

institution or company of the same group as the

home country employer.

Mobile ICT Employee on Detachment or Mobile ICT

Trainee – issued if the foreign national already holds a residence permit

issued by another EU country under the

category ICT employee or ICT trainee.

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FRANCE: IMMIGRATION UPDATES (CONT.)

ICT Employees on Detachment status updates:

ICT Employees on Detachment permits will be processed at

the French consulates.

All applications that were filed prior to

November 1, 2016 will be processed as it was

in the past.

Delays expected in adjudication until the

visa services are operational and the

new forms are introduced.

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FRANCE: COMPLIANCE

Employers sending or hosting foreign

workers in France are subject to increasing inspections by labor

authorities.

A new decree requires that sending companies appoint a legal

representative in France to act as a liaison with the Labour Inspectorate. The legal representative must have

access to documents pertaining to the applicant’s employment and the French

assignment, and to send the host company in France certain documents prior to the start of the assignment.

Failure to comply with the new requirements could result in fines for

both the employer abroad and the host company in France.

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FRANCE: COMPLIANCE

• The sending company must designate a legal representative in France who will be the liaison between the labour inspectorate and the employer abroad. The legal representative must have access to the following documents:• The employee’s French work permit, immigration medical

certificate, payslips, proof of salary payment and timesheet;

• Evidence of the employer’s business activity abroad and in France, and social security compliance;

• The employment contract of the employee and, if applicable, the service agreement between the employer and the host company in France; and

• A copy of the letter designating the legal representative.

This affects employers transferring their employees to France in both

the salarié en mission detaché (intra-company transfer with home

payroll) and the salarié detaché hors mobilité intragroupe (service

provider with home payroll) categories.

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FRANCE: COMPLIANCE

The host company in France must now ensure that it has access to the following documents before the assignment starts:

The prior detachment declaration filed with

the labour inspectorate that has

jurisdiction for the place of work

A copy of the letter designating the legal

representative

A copy of the French work permit, which needs to be

added to the personnel register.

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ICT DIRECTIVE FOR EUROPEAN COMPETITIVENESS This directive is aimed at

improving European access to needed global talent which

will promote EU competitiveness and economic growth.

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Meant to facilitate intra-EU mobility for ICTs, eliminating

country-by-country applications and substituting instead common EU rules designed to save time

and trouble for applicants.

According to the Commission 15,000 to 20,000 intra-

corporate transferees will be admitted annually in the

framework of this directive.

The recent tumultuous political environment throughout Europe, and the on-going refugee crisis,

have resulted in heavy scrutiny and postponement of this.

Not only will the EU gain "new skills and knowledge, innovation and enhanced economic opportunities for the host entities", but multinational companies within

Europe should find great relief in the additional immigration flexibility brought forth by the directive.

EUROPEAN ACCESS

HEAVY SCRUTINY

ANNUAL ADMITTANCE

INTRA-EU MOBILITY

IMMIGRATION FLEXIBILITY

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