Vietnam - Guide to grant of work permit to foreigners

 Read the GUIDE on granting of work permit to foreigners.

Malaysia - Mandatory 7 days quarantine for fully vaccinated travellers (or 10 days for unvaccinated) from Australia, United States, United Kingdom, Norway and France

Following the infection of the Omicron (B. variant 1.1.259) worldwide some new control, prevention and protocols have been updated effective 8 December 2021.

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The EU and Singapore agree to strengthen bilateral partnership on digital trade

European Commission Executive Vice-President and Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis and Singapore Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations S Iswaran co-chaired the inaugural Trade Committee meeting under the EU-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (EUSFTA), which entered into force on 21 November 2019. 

READ THE PRESS RELEASE HERE

HKSAR - Tighter arrival rules set )Argentina, Croatia, Fiji and Latvia will be specified as Group A specified places from December 10)

The Government today announced that Argentina, Croatia, Fiji and Latvia will be specified as Group A specified places from December 10 and non-Hong Kong residents who have stayed in such places within 21 days are not be allowed to enter the city. 

READ THE NEWS HERE 

READ MORE ABOUT GROUP A INBOUND TRAVEL HERE

US - The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issues guidance regarding the retroactive termination of the Employee Retention Credit

The Internal Revenue Service issued guidance for employers regarding the retroactive termination of the Employee Retention Credit. 

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which was enacted on November 15, 2021, amended the law so that the Employee Retention Credit applies only to wages paid before October 1, 2021, unless the employer is a recovery startup business. 

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UK - Tests required before travel to UK and Nigeria added to red list

Nigeria to be added to travel red list from 6 December and people travelling to UK from any country will need to take pre-departure test from 7 December.

• Nigeria to be added to the travel red list from 4am Monday 6 December following 21 cases of Omicron reported in England which are linked to travel from this country, with 134 UK cases now reported in total

• In light of emerging evidence on the Omicron variant, from 4am on Tuesday 7 December anyone aged 12 and above wishing to travel to the UK will need to show a negative pre-departure test (LFD or PCR) as close as possible to departure and not more than 48 hours before to slow the importation of the new variant

• Government working at pace to expand Managed Quarantine Service capacity, but passengers are advised that hotel bookings may be limited as new hotels are onboarded

• These are temporary measures that have been introduced to prevent further Omicron cases from entering the UK, and will be examined at the three-week review point on 20 December 

READ MORE HERE

Singapore - Strengthening Precautionary Measures Against The Omicron Variant

To further step up our precautionary stance amidst growing transmissions of Omicron globally, we will extend travel restrictions to more countries which have seen a spike in Omicron cases. 

From 4 December 2021, 2359 hours, all long-term pass holders and short-term visitors with recent travel history to Ghana, Malawi and Nigeria within the last 14 days will not be allowed to enter Singapore, or transfer/ transit through Singapore. 

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New Zealand - Applications open for new 2021 Resident Visa

The first round of applications for New Zealand’s new 2021 Resident visa are now open.

“This one-off pathway provides certainty for a great many migrant families who have faced disruption because of COVID-19 and it will help retain the skills New Zealand businesses need to support the economic recovery,” Minister of Immigration Kris Faafoi said.

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HKSAR - Arrival rules to be tightened

The Government announced today that Japan, Portugal and Sweden will be specified as Group A specified places from December 3 and non-Hong Kong residents who have stayed in such places within 21 days are not allowed to enter the city. 

READ MORE HERE 

READ ABOUT GROUP A SPECIFIC PLACES HERE

Singapore - On-arrival PCR Test for All Travellers and Additional Antigen Rapid Tests for Travellers on Vaccinated Travel Lanes

To step up detection and containment of the Omicron variant until more information is available, Singapore will enhance our testing protocols for travellers arriving in Singapore after 2 December 2021, 2359 hours (Singapore time). 

These enhanced measures will apply for four weeks in the first instance, and will be reviewed and extended if necessary. 

READ MORE HERE