Blog · 2024-10-25

Relocation news digest - October 25, 2024

🇵🇹 Portugal: new five-year path to citizenship

Portugal's Constitutional Court has approved the country's citizenship law. Nationality can now be obtained five years after the date a residence-permit application is filed.

🇦🇪 UAE: doing business in the country gets easier

The UAE Ministry of Economy has unveiled a new national economic register platform called "Growth" - a single database of business and commercial licences across all seven emirates.

The platform is designed to streamline company formation and make it simpler to run economic activity in the country.

🌍 Middle East: flight cancellations continue

Many countries across the Middle East are seeing disruptions and cancelled flights. Travellers in the region should check with their airline for the latest information before setting off.

🇫🇷 France: proposed changes to tax law

An amendment to the 2025 budget bill would revise Article 4A of France's General Tax Code, introducing a new tax-residency test. It would apply to French nationals who have lived in France for at least three of the past ten years and subsequently moved their tax residency to a country where the tax rate is more than 50% lower than France's.

Despite living abroad, such individuals would now be taxed on their employment income, capital and assets. They would, however, receive a tax credit equal to the tax paid in their country of tax residence.

The amendment has passed its first reading.

🇭🇺 Hungary: Schengen visa now requires an employment record extract

Hungary's visa centre has added a requirement to provide an extract from the applicant's employment record covering the past 10 years.

The visa centres of Bulgaria, Italy and Spain have begun requesting the same document.

🇷🇺 Russia: airports propose letting passengers check in their own baggage

The International Association of Airports (IAA) has proposed formally allowing air passengers to register and drop off their own baggage at airports.

According to the association, this would require amendments to the federal aviation rules.

Experts note, however, that in practice passengers check in their bags more slowly than airline staff: employees need just one to one and a half minutes, whereas passengers spend about five minutes on the whole process.

🇳🇱 Netherlands: authorities want to limit English at universities

The Dutch Minister of Education has proposed restricting the use of English at universities in order to curb the influx of foreign students. If parliament backs the initiative, fully English-language bachelor's programmes will already be hard to find in the Netherlands in the 2025/26 academic year.

🇵🇱 Poland: authorities close the Russian consulate in Poznań

Poland is closing the Russian consulate in Poznań, Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski announced on the social network X. He attributed the decision to sabotage activity on Russia's part.

🇨🇦 Canada: harder to relocate under the skilled-worker programme

Quebec has introduced a cap on the number of foreign nationals from a single country who can be invited to apply for permanent residence under its regular skilled-worker programme.

Until 9 October 2025, the share of invitations issued to foreign nationals from any one country may not exceed 25%.

🇭🇰 Hong Kong: further details published on residency by investment

The Government of the Hong Kong SAR has published the details of its Capital Investment Entrant Scheme (CIES).

To obtain residency, applicants must prove net assets of at least HK$30,000,000. Investors who put at least HK$50,000,000 into residential property are now also eligible for the CIES.

Residency will initially be granted for a period of up to two years.

🇬🇪 Georgia: Wildberries launches sales and delivery in the country

The Wildberries marketplace has launched franchise-based sales and delivery in Georgia. Its catalogue includes 8 million items across a range of categories: clothing, health and beauty products, household appliances, home-improvement goods and more. Orders can be placed on wildberries.ge and via the mobile app.

In the first phase, the partner company will deliver goods to a pickup point on Paliashvili Street in Tbilisi. Delivery is expected to take about a week, with a courier option also under consideration.

🇿🇦 South Africa: new requirements for work visas

The Department of Home Affairs has published the points allocation and criteria for the general work visa and the critical-skills work visa.

The new points-based system has reduced the documentation requirements compared with the previous immigration process for these visas and is expected to shorten processing times for both.

Applicants for either visa type must score at least 100 points.

🇵🇪 Peru: new decree on foreign nationals' obligations in the country

The Peruvian government has published a decree concerning new identity cards for foreign nationals.

The decree sets out the obligations of foreign nationals and their hosts, including the corresponding penalties for non-compliance, the procedure for cancelling an identity card, and the powers granted to migration authorities to request identity cards.

It also clarifies the obligation of landlords to check foreign nationals' identity documents before signing a rental agreement - a rule that came into force in February 2023.

In addition, a state-run online platform will soon be launched requiring all accommodation providers (including hotels and temporary lodgings) to register foreign guests, recording their names, check-in and check-out dates, identity-card numbers and other details.

FAQ

How many years to get Portuguese citizenship?

The baseline is several years of lawful residence, traditionally five, plus A2 level Portuguese, a clean record and a genuine link to the country. Whether the clock should start at a different point, and whether the period should be longer, keeps returning to parliament and the courts. Go by the version of the law in force on your filing date, and factor in immigration backlogs that stretch real timelines.

When does the clock start for Portuguese citizenship?

The contested point is whether the period runs from the date you applied for a residence permit or from the date it was issued; with multi year backlogs the difference can be several years. Lawmakers and courts have revisited this and the position has shifted. Keep every filing receipt and payment confirmation, since those documents prove when your lawful period began.

When do you stop being a French tax resident?

Residence is not just about days: the centre of your personal and economic interests, where your family lives and where your main income arises all count. France has debated and introduced extra tests aimed at people moving to substantially lower tax jurisdictions, keeping a claim on part of their income. Before leaving, model the exit tax and the treatment of shares and property with a local adviser.

How do I set up a company in the UAE?

You choose mainland or a free zone, pick your activity and licence, register the company, obtain visas for yourself and staff, and open a bank account. The UAE has been consolidating licence registries into single digital platforms, which speeds up incorporation, while banking stays the slowest step because of compliance. Factor in corporate tax and substance requirements, since tax free is no longer automatic.

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