{"id":147245,"date":"2022-03-01T08:33:04","date_gmt":"2022-03-01T12:33:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?p=147245"},"modified":"2022-03-01T08:33:04","modified_gmt":"2022-03-01T12:33:04","slug":"immigration-amnesty-commences-thousands-expected-to-benefit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/immigration-amnesty-commences-thousands-expected-to-benefit\/","title":{"rendered":"Immigration amnesty commences, thousands expected to benefit"},"content":{"rendered":"
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As many as several thousand foreign nationals are expected to converge on the Immigration Department\u2019s headquarters starting today as the amnesty programme commences.<\/p>

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Directed at those whose immigration status has lapsed and, as a result, have lost their eligibility to reside and work in the country, the Gaston Browne administration said the amnesty will give non-nationals the opportunity to regularise their stay without the fear
\nof harsh penalties.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Browne acknowledged that many people fell on hard times due to the COVID-19 pandemic and may have encountered difficulties in fulfilling the immigration mandate.<\/p>

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In preparation for the influx of foreign nationals, a shift system will be introduced at the immigration headquarters to facilitate the process until 30th April, 2022. The Immigration
\nDepartment will also operate during extended hours Monday through Friday, from 2 pm to \u2013 8pm.<\/p>

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<\/div>\n
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Last week, the Cabinet agreed that the amnesty will take a two-tiered approach.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo regularise residency of anyone who has resided in Antigua more than four years but less than seven; and the other for those who have been resident in Antigua for more than seven years and would therefore qualify for citizenship.\u201d<\/p>

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<\/div>\n

A decision was also made to reduce the fees associated with extensions and other requirements associated with the process.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe amnesty processing fee will be EC $200.00 per person which will accompany the application form; and, an extension fee will be EC$150.00 for CARICOM nationals and
\nEC$300.00 for non-CARICOM nationals.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n

\u201cThose CARICOM Nationals who are seeking citizenship will have an additional base fee of
\n$2,000.00 and a processing fee of $200.00; and, for non-CARICOM nationals a base fee of $3,500.00 and a processing fee of $200.00 will apply,\u201d the Cabinet Notes outlined.<\/p>

\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n

The amnesty has been touted as a political ploy by detractors of the governing ABLP, but the Gaston Browne government insists they are acutely aware of the hardships some people have endured, including loss of livelihood.<\/p>\n

As a result, a plan was developed which would allow foreign nationals to regularise their
\nstatus, which will allow them to remain here and to contribute to the development of Antigua and Barbuda.\u00a0\u2014 POINTEXPRESS<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As many as several thousand foreign nationals are expected to converge on the Immigration Department\u2019s headquarters starting today as the amnesty programme commences. Directed at those whose immigration status has lapsed and, as a result, have lost their eligibility to reside and work in the country, the Gaston Browne administration said the amnesty will give […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":147246,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-147245","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nImmigration amnesty commences, thousands expected to benefit - Antigua News Room<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/immigration-amnesty-commences-thousands-expected-to-benefit\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Immigration amnesty commences, thousands expected to benefit\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"As many as several thousand foreign nationals are expected to converge on the Immigration Department\u2019s headquarters starting today as the amnesty programme commences. 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