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(MENAFN - Arab News) The Labor Ministry announced Wednesday that it would continue to allow expatriates working in premium and green category companies to change their professions and that there would not be any deadline for them to complete the procedure.

"The process of changing profession is still open for workers in premium and green categories," said Hattab Al-Anazi, spokesman of the ministry. "This is one of the incentives given to the two categories and it will not be restricted by any date," he said.

However, he pointed out that Feb. 22, 2012 was the last date for changing profession for those expatriates in the red and yellow categories. "We'll not give them any extension to change their professions," he added.

The ministry had allowed all private companies and establishments the provision to amend professions on the work permits of their foreign workers electronically without visiting the ministry.

Engineering and medical professions, which require special licenses, are excluded from the provision.

Foreigners might amend their professions to any other one with the exception of director of labor and laborers, personnel manager, personnel specialist, personnel clerk, employment official, HR clerk, timekeeper, receptionist at hotels and hospitals, complaint writer, cashier, special security guard, pursuer, and senior HR official.

The ministry warned private companies and establishments that if they were caught giving incorrect data about their foreign workers, it would suspend their operating licenses for five years and prevent them from foreign recruitment in future.

There are about 8 million foreigners in Saudi Arabia, representing about 30 percent of the country's population. Nearly 6 million expatriate workers are employed by the private sector.

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Saudi- No deadline to regularize profession for 'green' expats

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday urged the Bangladeshis living abroad to mobilise public opinion in favour of making Bangla as one of the official languages at the United Nations.
She made the call while inaugurating a three-day programme marking Language Martyrs Day and International Mother Language Day 2012 held at the International Mother Language Institute in Dhaka.
Sheikh Hasina said the government was trying its best to make Bangla as one of the official languages at the United Nations and she herself had already placed a proposal to this end before the UN General Assembly.
She said International Mother Language Day “calls us all to become world citizens being respectful to all. By bearing this spirit, all countries and people of all languages will benefit. And this will lead to unity in diversity.”
“Whenever the Awami League government came to power, the Bangali nation received honour internationally, as it achieved success in every field, including economy, agriculture, education, and in poverty-alleviation.”
She said Bangladesh first placed formal proposal to Unesco in September 1999 to name February 21 as ‘International Mother Language Day’. Unesco then recognised February 21 as ‘International Mother Language Day’ on November 17, 1999 and through this February 21 has become the day for protecting the rights of languages of different ethnic people of the world.
The prime minister also said that the government has taken steps to turn the language institute into an international organisation where researches would be carried out as well as languages of different ethnic people of the world would be preserved.

Originally posted here:
PM urges expats abroad to push for Bengali as UN language

Expats get wide range of services Last Updated(Beijing Time):2012-02-22 09:30

A service center catering for foreign residents has officially opened in the city's Pudong New Area following a two-month trial period.

The Foreign Affairs Service Station, set up by Pudong district police and Lianyang community at No 3 Building, 2797 Yaogao Middle Road, provides temporary residence permits and guidance on daily life and work. Eight staff workers offer assistance in English, Japanese and Korean.

"The station is equipped with personal data systems, so expats can complete temporary residence registration here in a short time, rather than having to go to the local police department and wait a long time," said Sun Qianyi, a Pudong district police officer.

The station also offers assistance to expats on more day-to-day aspects of life.

Staff workers answer inquiries from an expat in the Foreign Affairs Service Station in Pudong, Shanghai, on Monday. [Provided to China Daily]

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Expats get wide range of services

A nonprofit group representing the interests of U.S. citizens living overseas met with congressional staffers to push for a residence-based taxation system.

The group, American Citizens Abroad, met with Democratic and Republican staff members of the main tax-writing committees in Congress, the Senate Finance Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee, along with the Joint Committee on Taxation. The ACA’s new proposal advocates residence-based taxation instead of the present system of citizenship-based taxation, along with other reforms aimed at increasing America’s global competitiveness.

“There is already a strong movement in Congress to shift corporate taxation from worldwide to residence-based taxation in order to level the playing field for U.S. companies competing in the world economy,” said ACA director Jackie Bugnion in a statement. “Following the same logic, I met with Members of Congress to convince them that the U.S. should make this move for individuals as well, to allow Americans to compete on that same level playing field.”

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Other proposals from the group include eliminating the cap on the foreign earned income exclusion to return the law to the situation prior to 1962. The group argues that eliminating the cap would allow Americans to seek employment opportunities throughout the world, particularly in high-growth developing economies.

It also advocates allowing overseas residents the right to use the currency of their residence as their functional currency instead of the U.S. dollar, and to allow foreign net wealth taxes to be creditable against U.S. taxes.

“ACA will be systematically contacting all Congressional offices on the Senate Finance and House Ways and Means Committee to get issues concerning Americans residing overseas included in legislation on fundamental tax reform,” said ACA executive director Marylouise Serrato. “Changing to residence-based taxation would be good for Americans overseas, but also good for the entire U.S. economy.”

The group has also been pushing for repeal of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, which was included in the HIRE Act of 2010. FATCA imposes extensive reporting requirements on banks worldwide on the holdings of U.S. citizens. The final regulations have still not been issued by the IRS, although the IRS and the Treasury Department have proposed to soften and phase in some of the requirements (see IRS and Treasury Propose New FATCA Rules).

IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman defended the IRS’s approach to FATCA compliance in a speech last week before the Financial Accounting Foundation in New York “As we devised the regulations which would enumerate the details of the implementation, we tried very hard to listen to those concerns. I met with CEOs and CFOs of foreign financial institutions on multiple occasions,” he said. “After nearly two years of back and forth, last week we put out detailed regulations for implementation of FATCA—with the goal of achieving the policy goals of the legislation by focusing on the accounts with the highest risk of non-compliance, and trying to minimize burden. For instance, we piggy-backed on know-your-customer rules for most of the due diligence that needs to be performed on existing accounts, delayed difficult withholding provisions for a minimum of five years while implementing the core withholding provisions sooner, and allowed global financial institutions to avoid withholding even if all their affiliates could not meet the strict requirements of participation from day one.”

Shulman added that while the IRS runs the risk of criticism whenever it uses its administrative authority, the IRS needs to listen to affected stakeholders and refine its policies over time as it learns more. “My colleagues and I have an obligation to call it as we see it and make the best principled decision based on the information available,” he said. “So while not everyone will always agree with our decisions, our job is to implement the statute with an eye towards the best policy. In this case, we tried to maximize offshore tax compliance, while minimizing burden on market participants. And a transparent, open process led us to a better ultimate product.”

However, banks overseas are already closing legitimate bank accounts of American living abroad in order to avoid the potential penalties of this onerous and complicated legislation, the ACA pointed out. “It is impossible for Americans living and working overseas to survive without normal banking relationships, and fewer Americans overseas means less U.S. exports and fewer American jobs,” said the group.

Link:
Expats Press Capitol Hill for Tax Reforms

INLSA

KZN premier Zweli Mkhize leads King Goodwill Zwelithini into the Pietermaritzburg Royal Show Grounds for the opening of the KwaZulu-Natal legislature. Picture: Zandile Nsuntsha

Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini on Monday criticised Congolese expatriates for their protest march to the National Assembly last week, saying their actions undermined the South African government.

Hundreds of Cape Town-based Congolese expatriates marched to Parliament, protesting against SA’s recognition of President Joseph Kabila following the recent fiercely contested elections in that country.

Officially opening the KwaZulu-Natal legislature in Pietermaritzburg on Monday, the king said that he was disappointed by the protest.

He added that SA was home to many African expatriates who had left their home countries for various reasons and that the SA government’s gesture in accommodating the refugees should be seen as commendable.

However, he said, the march by the Congolese “cast” the SA government in a bad light.

“Now that they have been accommodated here, they have turned into radical political activists and their behaviour reflects badly on the image of South Africa,” Zwelithini said.

“I do not accept anything that seeks to undermine the image of South Africa.

“Their behaviour,” he said, “is unacceptable.

“We respect our leaders and we discourage people who protest and criticise our government and president,” said the king.

Leonard Mulunda, spokesman for the Union for Democracy and Social Progress, which organised the march, said yesterday that their aim was not to undermine the SA government but to highlight their feelings about affairs in the DRC.

Respect

“We respect the South African government and President Jacob Zuma,” he said.

“But when we feel that South Africa is not playing a good role in the African continent, we need to raise our voice and tell South Africa that what you did is not what the Congolese people were expecting from you,” Mulunda said.

“We want (DRC president) Joseph Kabila to get out so that all Congolese people can return to their country.

“We always thank South African people for the way they live with us.

“They are good people,” said Mulunda.

Last month, Zwelithini came in for criticism after remarks of his were interpreted as being homophobic.

However, the royal house and government officials later said the king had been misquoted.

Addressing the provincial government yesterday, Zwelithini said all that politicians should ensure that this year became the year of peace, harmony and co-operation in bringing about service delivery.

The king also condemned corruption, saying that it was a major contributor to the government’s inability to deliver service at a faster pace.

He called for a war against the poaching of rhinos, saying that syndicates had killed more than 800 rhinos for their horns during the last three years.

“Without any preventative measures, these numbers are set to increase,” he said.

“It is true that war is immoral, but a war against the poaching of rhinos is worth it,” Zwelithini added. - The Mercury

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Zwelithini lashes out at expats