24th June 2024
Cuba has published a draft Immigration Law that is intended to update the position of Cubans, their descendants, and migrants, who travel into and out of the country, as well as that of resident foreigners, foreign investors and visitors.
The lengthy draft which is subject to comment and revision before being considered and passed by the National Assembly, updates the island’s 1976 Immigration Law, is intended to take account of the new ways in which Cuban society and the international movement of people now occurs whether for migratory or work purposes. It also codifies a new range of sanctions.
For Cubans, the new law ends the previous determination that after a stay abroad of 24 months they are deemed to have migrated. To achieve this, the draft law contains two new immigration categories of ‘Cubans Resident in the National Territory’ and ‘Cubans Resident Abroad’, making provision for those overseas who seek to invest or establish businesses and “participate in the Cuban economic model,” as allowed for by law.
The change is intended to encourage economic engagement in what the law describes as “the new Cuban economy,” by Cubans living overseas. To help achieve this, it offers Cubans living overseas treatment equivalent to that afforded to Cuban residents, except where the law establishes otherwise. It also enables Cubans abroad to inherit property if they comply with the legal and administrative procedures to register their inheritance. Among its other provisions, the new law requires that those who have renounced Cuban citizenship enter the country using a foreign passport and those with dual citizenship enter and leave on the same passport.
In the case of foreigners, in part, the draft seeks to regulate the presence of those who visit or reside in the country, and who travel under any of the immigration classifications held by non-Cubans who are resident. It also updates immigration rules that govern diplomatic or consular representation, other authorised offices, and legal entities.
In part, in the case of non-Cubans the new draft law requires:
- Every foreigner to carry, permanently an identity card, or provisional identity card, passport or equivalent document.
- Hotel administrations and non-state economic actors authorised to rent, to maintain a Registry of Foreign Guests, and to report arrivals and departures to the Immigration Authority no later than 24 hours after the rental by the foreigner.
- Resident foreigners, on entering the country and within a period of ten calendar days, to register in the Foreigners and Immigration Registry.
- Foreigners with the immigration classification of Temporary Resident, Real Estate Resident, or Humanitarian Resident, to have prior approval to carry out professional or work activities of any type
The proposed law also contains legal provisions regulating the detention, expulsion or deportation from Cuba of foreign residents and visitors.
The draft law in Spanish can be found here on the website of the National Assembly: draft law
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