When you start your international expansion, you'll likely hire nationals in the country to support your company's goals. You may also choose to send some of your current employees abroad to encourage...
Read MoreWhen you start your international expansion, you'll likely hire nationals in the country to support your company's goals. You may also choose to send some of your current employees abroad to encourage success. Sending your existing workers to your new company can help bolster your international expansion efforts, but doing it legally requires the appropriate visas.
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When you start your international expansion, you’ll likely hire nationals in the country to support your company’s goals. You may also choose to send some of your current employees abroad to encourage success. Sending your existing workers to your new company can help bolster your international expansion efforts, but doing it legally requires the appropriate visas.
As a company owner, two types of visas are crucial to your company’s development and workforce. These types are:
Business visas are relevant if you intend to establish a subsidiary in the country, while employment visas are crucial for any nonnational worker. For your company to remain compliant, all your noncitizen employees must hold a valid employment visa.
Applicants need a series of materials to apply for an employment visa, including:
These items are required for employment lasting less than two years. If an applicant intends to work longer, they need additional application materials, including:
The Immigration Department may request information about your company, including proof of your company’s registration and license. The Ministry of Labor, Commerce, and Industries may also request the current number of nationals working at your entity.
As an employer, it’s not your responsibility to apply for non-national employees’ work visas, though you may choose to guide the process. You also need to provide materials for applicants to submit to the Immigration Department.
Applicants must first request a letter from the Ministry of Labor, Commerce, and Industries, permitting them to work in the country. From there, they can gather all the other required materials, including police reports, character references, and medical information. Applicants should submit these items with a completed work permit application form to their nearest consulate or the Immigration Department.
The Immigration Department requires all attached documents to be in English. If the applicant’s attachments are in another language, they need to create translated material and include a certification from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirming the translation is correct.
It can take up to a month to process employment visas. You should consider this processing time when establishing start dates for non-national employees.
Tonga has an array of visa regulations for countries around the world. Residents from certain countries can get a visa on arrival. However, visas on arrival only apply to visitor’s visas, not employment visas. If an applicant is from a country on Tonga’s visa-on-arrival list, they must still apply for a work visa before entering the country.
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