Vanuatu work visa: employment visa and work permit

The employment visa is granted to non-citizens who have been offered an employment contract in Vanuatu and have been issued a work permit by the Department of Labour and Employment Services. The holder must work only in the skilled job specified. Under section 45 of the Immigration Act, a residence visa holder may take up employment only subject to the Labour (Work Permits) Act [CAP 187].

The short term employment visa is for people nominated or sponsored by an employer to do skilled work in an occupation that is not on the Reserved Occupation List under the Labour (Work Permits) Act, and for people bringing a Vanuatu-registered aircraft or vessel in for maintenance. The specialist skilled visa covers short-term employment of no more than two weeks.

Employment visa: 12 months, multiple entries, VUV 257,500, extension allowed. Short term employment visa: 1 to 4 months, multiple entries, VUV 51,500, no extension. Specialist skilled visa: no more than two weeks, single entry, VUV 30,900, no extension.

Development support visa: for people nominated to work in a government agency or on a development programme agreed with the Government, or for NGO officials, consultants, experts or volunteers in a development field; up to five years, VUV 10,300 per individual or VUV 15,450 for a family of four, UN agency staff exempt. Religious worker visa: up to five years, VUV 10,300 per individual or VUV 20,600 for a family of four. Volunteer visa: up to two years in an approved community role, VUV 20,600, no extension.

The work permit is issued by the Department of Labour and Employment Services, not by the Department of Immigration, so the employer's work permit application comes first. Once the permit is granted, the visa application is lodged on the eVisa portal with the employment contract and the work permit attached, and the fee is paid online. Applications are lodged on the Vanuatu eVisa portal run by the Department of Immigration and Passport Services, Tamarama Building, Kumul Highway, Port Vila, telephone +678 22354, email evisa@vanuatu.gov.vu, open Monday to Friday from 8:00 to 17:00. The portal lists each class with its duration, number of entries, fee in vatu, whether it can be extended and whether a change of status is allowed.

The 12-month employment visa can be extended. Both the employment visa and the short term employment visa allow a change of status only to one of the investor visas; the specialist skilled visa allows a change of status, while the development support, religious worker and volunteer visas do not. Holders of these classes must not work outside the activity for which the visa was granted.

After the recent earthquake, Immigration has activated a disaster recovery visa so that companies can bring in foreign nationals to support businesses during the recovery. It needs a letter from the sponsoring company and a copy of a valid passport, is free, lasts 12 months with multiple entries, cannot be extended, allows a change of status only after 12 months and is decided within three working days of online lodgement.

Under section 37 of the Immigration Act No. 17 of 2010, a visa is granted only if the applicant is not a prohibited immigrant, passes the character test, does not have a contagious disease or mental condition that puts community health at risk, has provided any security required, and has the financial means to support themselves and any dependants. Under section 38, a sentence of 12 months or more, or several terms totalling two years or more, means the character test is failed, although the Director may waive minor offences committed at least five years earlier.

A refusal notice must state which criteria were not met and that you may ask the Minister to review it. Under section 58, the review request is made in writing within 14 days of the notice; the Minister must affirm, vary or set aside the decision within 14 days and send the reasons within 7 days. Under section 59, the Minister's decision can be appealed to the Supreme Court within 21 days.

Every visa is subject to the general conditions in section 44: obey the laws of Vanuatu and the visa conditions, do not behave in a way prejudicial to peace, good order or public morality, and tell the Director of any significant change in your personal or financial circumstances. Under section 47 the Director may cancel a visa, for example for a breach of conditions, false statements or loss of financial means, after giving the holder 14 days to answer a notice of proposed cancellation.