Documentary Requirements Expanded to Oil and Gas Industry Applicants

The situation

Based on verbal communications from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Guyana, the requirement for foreign nationals to submit a copy of their employment agreement with the sponsoring entity when applying for initial and renewed visas-on-arrival, permits to land and work permits has been expanded to applicants in the oil and gas industry, effective immediately.

A closer look

• Affected applications. All foreign nationals must provide a copy of their employment agreement when applying for initial and renewed visas-on-arrival, permits to land and work permits.
• Acceptable types of employment agreements. The agreement should be a contract of employment, work agreement, offer letter, letter of appointment or similar document between the foreign national and their employer.
• Details of employment agreement. The agreement should state the terms of employment and the employee’s remuneration; it should be signed by both the employee and the employer.
• Additional requirement for non-local hires. Oil and gas industry applicants who will not be directly employed by an entity in Guyana can still provide a copy of their home employment contract; however, they must now ensure that their sponsor letter specifies the qualifying relationship between the entity in Guyana and the entity abroad.

Impact

These additional documents may increase the amount of time spent gathering documents prior to submitting an application if the employment agreement is not readily available or does not meet the formalities established by the Ministry.

Background

This new rule follows the recent implementation of a police and medical certificate requirement for oil and gas industry applicants, which are part of Guyana’s immigration authorities’ efforts to standardize immigration processes, while scrutinizing applications to ensure companies are complying with their employment and tax obligations.

Looking ahead

As the number of foreign workers in Guyana continues to increase, and, after a five-year grace period where the oil and gas industry was exempt from certain immigration requirements, employers and foreign nationals should be prepared for additional changes or documentary requirements in the foreseeable future.

This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email to [email protected].