President Leonel Fernandez has sent the Congress the draft of new legislation that would overhaul the existing patchwork of nebulous immigration laws and regulations and fortify the regulatory agency. As proposed, the bill would govern immigration, emigration, residence, citizenship, transit through national territory, temporary and permanent worker status, and requirements governing the status of returning Dominicans. The omnibus bill, which consists of 250 articles divided into 33 sections contemplates the establishment of a new entity with teeth, the National Immigration Commission, to replace the General Immigration Office, which has been subject to much criticism concerning its feeble enforcement of migrant labor laws. The Commission will comprise ranking officials from the Foreign Affairs, Armed Forces, Labor, Tourism, and Interior Ministries. The bill’s underlying concept is "planned migration," and contemplates new requisites for establishing temporary and permanent residence, as well as the conditions for moving from the former to the latter status. In addition, it would create the basis for granting temporary and permanent employment permits. The bill also seeks to regulate movements across the porous 400-kilometer border with Haiti. A comprehensive fee structure is also proposed as well as criteria for refusal of admission, deportation, expulsion, extradition as these relate to infractions of Dominican law and migratory procedure.
