THE Department of Labor and Immigration says a piece of legislation introduced by Rep. Stanley T. Torres might be a duplication of an existing law.
DOLI Secretary Joaquin A. Tenorio, in a recent letter to House Vice Speaker Manuel A. Tenorio, R-Saipan, said H.B. 13-89, or the Foreign Retiree Entry Permit Act, “is similar in nature to P.L. 11-60 which created a new immigration classification of foreign retiree investor certificate. “
He recommended that P.L. 11-60 “be retained” instead of H.B. 13-89, since the existing law “provides for specific guidelines of eligibility,” while the bill “proposes broad and generalized requirements.”
The bill seeks to establish a specific non-immigrant entry permit in the Immigration Code to attract the “silver club” market consisting of retired persons in Japan.
Torres, R-Saipan, said H.B. 13-89 would help facilitate foreign investment and boost the economy of the CNMI by attracting silver club members.
Silver club members are composed of Japanese citizens who are more than 50 years old and who will stay in the CNMI for up to two years. Those who have spouses would also be allowed to get permits.
But Tenorio said the measure’s intent is already a part of P.L. 11-60, which grants an investment certificate to a foreign retiree if he has at least invested $150,000 in the CNMI, is over 55 years old and owns not more than 10 percent of a commonwealth business.
“It is unclear whether the intention of the…bill is to amend the existing paragraph (in the law) or to add an additional immigration classification,” DOLI said.
If the intention of the bill is to amend P.L. 11-60, the DOLI chief said the following concerns should be addressed: Whether the change in age requirement is only applicable to citizens of Japan; whether Japanese citizens are exempt from the $150,000 investment requirement; and whether a provision in P.L. 11-60 which allows foreign retirees to stay in the CNMI for a renewable period of five years would also be applicable to Japanese citizens.
But if the bill’s intention is to create a separate immigration classification unrelated to P.L. 11-60, DOLI said it should be mentioned in the bill if these qualified Japanese retirees will have to invest a specified amount of money in the CNMI.
“Also, the requirement that the alien be a citizen of Japan, as opposed to any other foreign country may be inappropriate and perceived as discriminatory in nature,” DOLI said.
Furthermore, H.B. 13-89 does not state whether the non-immigrant may or may not be employed in the CNMI, DOLI said.
It does not also include specific guidelines such as criteria for eligibility, steps in the application process, revocation procedures or reporting procedures, “in order to decrease possible misinterpretations of the…bill’s original intent.”
