Currently, the requirement to provide a copy of documents certifying education or experience is not required in cases where a foreigner is invited to work in simple professions (in the 9th Basic Group of the Classifier of Occupations). Consequently, inviters often artificially demoted the post groups to avoid this requirement. At the same time, EM emphasized that in the request for approval of the invitation the inviter already indicates information regarding the education of the foreigner.
In future, the employer will no longer have to submit a copy of the document certifying the education of the foreigner to the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs, if it is intended to employ the foreigner in a profession that is not subject to specific regulations in Latvia.
This document will be replaced by a self-certification that a job interview has been conducted with the foreigner regarding the necessary competence for the performance of the intended work or, if none, a commitment that the employer will ensure the training of the foreigner.
This will also reduce the administrative burden for institutions reviewing employers' requests for foreigners – the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs and Latvian diplomatic and consular missions abroad.
“Currently, the institutions involved must request these documents and carry out time-consuming checks to authenticate them, as the authorities face filing of false documents, which extends the total time for examination of the application,” the EM said.
The changes approved by the Cabinet of Ministers in the procedures for approval of invitations and drawing up of invitations are part of the package of changes to the common regulatory framework, the aim of which is to reduce administrative burden for businesses and simplify the process of attracting foreign labor, the Ministry noted.
