SPANISH NATIONALITY RIGHTS UNDER THE DEMOCRATIC MEMORY LAW

by with No Comment InternationalSpainUncategorized

The Law of Democratic Memory in Spain, commonly referred to as the ‘Law of Grandchildren,’ was officially ratified on October 21, 2022, and became effective on the day following its publication.

This legislation presents an avenue for individuals to seek Spanish nationality under the following circumstances:

  1. Those born outside of Spain to a father, mother, grandfather, or grandmother who was originally Spanish but lost or renounced Spanish nationality due to political, ideological, religious, or sexual orientation reasons, resulting in exile.
    • To substantiate the exile, a presumption exists that considers individuals who traveled outside Spain between July 18, 1936, and December 31, 1955, as exiles. For departures occurring after this date, evidence of exile is required.
  2. Children born abroad to Spanish women who lost their nationality by marrying foreigners before the enactment of the 1978 Constitution.
  3. Adult children of Spaniards whose original nationality was acknowledged based on the right of option, in line with the provisions of the current law.

It’s important to note that this new law does not impose an age limit on applicants. However, applicants have a two-year window, starting from October 21, 2022, to complete the application process, with the possibility of a one-year extension.

If you require further information or legal assistance regarding the Law of Democratic Memory, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us via email at info@expatfeliu.com or by phone at 938 75 46 60.

For additional details, please visit our websites:

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www.expatfeliu.com

Webinar on Immigration and Expatriate Compliance

by with No Comment Global MobilityInternational

Join our online webinar on foreigners and expatriation!

The presentation will be given by Montserrat Feliu, expert in international mobility and director of Expatfeliu.

In this session we will focus on analysing the key aspects for the movement of workers and for the recruitment of international talent. At the same time, we will analyse the new developments in foreigners and also the importance that expatriates comply with all their tax and labour obligations in the countries of origin and destination.

The webinar will be held on 20 June from 10 to 11:30h.

Participate in the webinar by signing up at the following link: https://www.amec.es/es/pag582/formulario-talento-internacional.htm

www.feliu.biz

www.expatfeliu.com

 

NEW SYSTEM FOR THE RECOGNITION OF OFFICIAL FOREIGN DEGREES

by with No Comment ActualityInternationalSpain

On 8 November 2022, Royal Decree number 889/2022 of 18 October came into force, which introduced a new “express” system of recognition and declaration of equivalence of officially valid degrees or diplomas obtained in the framework of foreign higher education systems.

Prior to this law, the procedure for recognition of foreign degrees could take up to 2 years, but now, following this reform, the public administration is obliged to issue a decision within a maximum period of 6 months from the receipt of the application (hence the name “express”).

If the homologation and equivalence procedures were initiated under the provisions of the previous Law, Royal Decree 967/2014, of 21 November, it will be possible to submit a new application as provided for in the reform, provided that you have not yet been notified of the hearing procedure in the previous file and that the new application includes a request for withdrawal of the previous procedure.

In these cases, it will not be necessary to pay the corresponding administrative fees again, provided that the previous fees have been paid correctly.

Finally, it is important to note that this Law only applies to official university degrees that correspond to studies already completed and that it only covers those professions regulated in Spain and contained in the annex of the Law itself.

If you need more information about the new “express” recognition and declaration of equivalence procedure, do not hesitate to contact us!

MEXICO: REFORM TO THE FEDERAL LABOR LAW REGARDING VACATIONS

by with No Comment ActualityInternationalMexicoMobility

On January 1, 2023 in Mexico, the reform of Articles 76 and 78 of the Federal Labor Law, published in the Official Gazette of the Federation on December 27, 2022, called “Dignified Vacations” in the draft reform initiative, has entered into force.

  • The reform of Article 76 implies a significant increase in the number of vacation days to which employees are entitled, which in the first year of the contract increases from 6 to 12 days. The vacation period will increase by two days every year until it reaches twenty, and from the sixth year onwards, it will increase by two days every five years.

 

  • Article 78 establishes that the employee must enjoy at least twelve continuous vacation days, however, if he/she wishes, he/she may distribute his/her vacation days as he/she deems necessary.

This reform is applicable on the effective date to all employment contracts in force at that date, provided that it is more favorable to the employees.

Companies must establish a clear procedure for the request and authorization of vacations and the way in which vacations will be accrued for the time worked in 2022, in addition to considering the economic implications of the reform.

 

If you need more information on the Reform of Articles 76 and 78 of the Federal Labor Law in Mexico, please do not hesitate to contact us, our experts in the field will inform and advise you on the new reforms.

 

STUDENT VISA

by with No Comment InternationalSpain

The student visa is a residence authorization that allows non-EU citizens to stay in Spain while they study in public or private educational centers, carry out research in the country or participate in some type of training.

It is very important to bear in mind that the student visa is exclusively for citizens from outside the European Union.

The stay for studies is only an authorization to reside in Spain for the duration of the course, it is not a regular residence permit.

However, with the reform of the immigration regulations, it has become a great option for non-EU citizens. It allows you to work, automatically, 30 hours per week, and once you complete your studies (no matter how long they last), you will be able to change to a work permit in an easy and comfortable way.

However, you cannot obtain a student visa if you are from the European Union, since it is not required according to article 44 of the Royal Decree 557/2011 which states that all students from the European Union, the European Economic Area or Switzerland can stay in Spain while studying without a visa. This also applies to family members brought with them after a joint application.

It should be noted that it is possible to apply for the authorization of stay for studies while being a tourist in Spain, i.e. non-EU citizens can enter Spain with a tourist visa, enroll in the course and obtain the authorization of stay for studies, as long as they are not in an illegal situation in the country.

 

If you want more information about the student visa or you are interested in obtaining it, do not hesitate to contact us. Our experts in the field will help and advise you.

COLOMBIA: MODIFICATIONS TO THE TELEWORK DECREE

by with No Comment ColombiaInternational

The Telework modality was recognized in Colombia by the Law no. 1221 in 2008 and was regulated by the Decree no. 884 in 2012. Recently, thanks to the Decree no. 1127/2022, some articles were modified and a few more were added to the Single Decree of the Labour Sector, in order to fulfill all the rules that regulate it in Colombia.

Below, we will show the most important and relevant changes that private companies have to keep in mind, in regards to both employees and employers.

 

1. Specification of essential elements in employment contracts:
  • Technological and environmental tools, description of IT equipment and software, including restrictions and responsibilities.
  • Worker’s responsibilities to take care of the work elements.
  • Digital security measures that needed to be known and their fulfilment.

 

2. Internal Policies:
  • Tasks to be done by the worker.
  • Job requirements.
  • Fulfillment of equal treatment arrangements.
  • Equipment, programs, platforms and IT environment necessary to develop tasks by teleworking.
  • Conditions on the confidentiality of certain information and internal procedures.
  • Communication channels to report workplace harassment, hazards, illnesses or any other relevant circumstances.
  • Action plans.
  • Description of the workspace for all positions and roles.

 

3. Obligations of the Employer:
  • Processing the telework form supplied by the Occupational Risks Department (onwards “ARL”, as per the Spanish name).
  • Informing the ARL about the modalities of Telework adopted.
  • Including the Teleworking modality in the Occupational Health and Safety Management System.
  • Publicizing the different options to communicate to the company and report of hazard accidents or illness.
  • Providing the employees all the equipment and tools necessary to carry out the telework.
  • Fulfilling the legal obligation of periodical medical checks.
  • Ensuring disconnection from work and a good balance between private and professional life.
  • Training the workers about the prevention and promotion of occupational risks, self-care, mental health, ergonomic or biomechanical risks, as well as the use of digital security.
  • Informing the workers about the restrictions on the use of equipment and computer programs, legislation on data protection, intellectual property, cyber security, as well as the sanctions for non-fulfillment.
  • Adopting the Internal Telework Policy.

 

4. Obligations of the Teleworker:
  • Participation in risk prevention and activities that promote health in working environments.
  • Comply with the Law, internal rules, regulations and instructions of the Safety Management System and the recommendations of the employer and the ARL.
  • Take care of one’s state of wellness, as well as provide information to the employer about physical or mental health.
  • Report hazards and accidents happened during working hours or because of the job.
  • Return the equipment and tools provided by the employer once the professional relation has come to an end, in the same state in which they were received, except for deterioration caused by the normal use of them.

 

5. Hybrid working models:
  • It is possible to increase the hybrid model by increasing up to 2 or 3 days of telework a week and keeping the “traditional” work (physical work at the workplace) during the rest of week. However, it always has to be agreed by both parties.

 

6. Costs of services and use of teleworker-owned work tools:
  • By mutual agreement, the employer may pay to the employees an additional monthly amount to compensate the workers’ expenses for internet, telephone and electricity.
  • By mutual agreement, they also may agree on establish a monthly amount of compensation for the use of worker-owned work tools.

 

7. Teleworker Registration:
  • Employers must process the digital form of the Ministry of Labor to inform the number of teleworkers.

 

If you are interested in the modifications of the Telework decree in Colombia, do not hesitate to contact us. Our team will advise you on the modifications that have been implemented.

THE GOVERNMENT ELIMINATES THE «BEG VOTE» FOR SPANISH EXPATRIATES

by with No Comment InternationalSpain

On October 4, 2022, Organic Law 12/2022 came into force, which amends Organic Law 5/1985, of June 19, 1985, on the General Electoral System, which, since 2011, established the obligation of Spaniards living abroad to request or beg to vote.

 

Before the aforementioned reform, expatriate nationals had the obligation to «beg» to be granted the right to vote, generally to an electoral authority in their place of residence.

The limitation, which came into force in January 2011, raised several controversies, linked not only to the inconsistency of the obligation to request what is a constitutional right recognized to all citizens, but also derived from the cumbersome bureaucratic procedure that this request entailed: first of all, the short period of 25 days from the date of the convocation of the elections and the absence of a clear and unified procedure regarding the request for requesting the right to vote.

 

As a result of this reform, Spaniards abroad will receive the necessary documentation ex officio, by the Provincial Delegations of the Electoral Census Office corresponding to the address of registration of each person of Spanish nationality registered in the census of resident-absentee voters living abroad.

Likewise, the deadline for the deposit of the ballot in the ballot box is extended from 3 to 7 days and the possibility of downloading the ballot paper telematically is introduced, which will allow considerably shortening the deadlines for sending the documentation.

This is, as can be understood, a great step forward towards the debureaucratization of the system of voting from abroad, with the aim of facilitating the exercise of this right by all expatriate Spaniards.

 

If you are interested in how the new law on «beg» voting affects you, do not hesitate to contact us. Our team will inform you about the change made by the Spanish government for Spanish expatriates.

ANDORRA: CHANGES IN RESIDENCY REQUIREMENTS ANNOUNCED

by with No Comment AndorraInternational
On September 12, 2022, the session of the General Council (parliamentary chamber of the Principality of Andorra) held the political orientation debate, which began with the intervention of the Head of Government, Xavier Espot.

In this intervention, the Andorran president communicated a series of measures aimed, according to Mr. Espot himself, at moving towards a more harmonious and balanced model of the country with resources and a tourism model. Espot himself, to move towards a more harmonious and balanced model of country with resources and a more sustainable and quality tourism model.

In this programmatic context, the Head of Government announced measures to enable the Principality to opt for value-added foreign investor profiles, in areas such as innovation and sustainability.

Specifically, Mr. Espot announced the increase in the amount of economic investment or deposit to be made by the applicants in the passive or self-employed residence who decide to settle in Andorra.

Thus, in the case of passive residents, the necessary investment would increase from 400,000€ to 800,000€ and in the case of self-employed residents, the deposit to be made would increase from 15,000€ to 50,000€.

The Head of Government clarified that limitations will be introduced in the case of investments in real estate in order not to introduce further tension in the housing market.

It was also announced the intention that these announced legal changes should be imminent and approved through the urgency procedure instead of the ordinary legislative procedure.

At the time of writing, there is no record of any legal initiative having been presented in this regard, so we will be ready to follow up on any developments in this regard. If you need more information, please do not hesitate to contact us.

HAVE YOU RECENTLY VISITED CUBA AND NEED TO TRAVEL TO THE UNITED STATES?

by with No Comment CubaInternationalUSA

For those foreigners who have been in Cuba as of January 12, 2021, it will no longer be sufficient to present the ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization), but in any case it will be necessary to apply for a visa at the Consulate General or Consular Section of the U.S. Embassy of the applicant’s place of residence.

To obtain the visa it is necessary to go in person to the consular appointment and currently, the U.S. Embassy in Spain is granting appointments for August 2023.

For this reason it is important to work on the visa application well in advance for those who have to visit the United States even if the trip is not imminent.

At ExpatFeliu we remain at your disposal to support you in the processing of the corresponding visas!