Identify and overcome displacement-related barriers during the visa application process
Historically, work visas and permits have been difficult for displaced people to obtain. In recent years, a growing number of programs and policies have been developed to address the barriers that keep displaced people from migrating internationally for jobs.
In this article, you will find information about barriers that can arise for displaced people when they file visa applications. You will also learn about accommodations that NGOs, advocates and governments have developed to address these barriers. Managing organizations can ensure that employers, displaced people and governments are aware of challenges specific to displaced people – and understand some of the solutions.
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Limited communication mechanisms
Barrier: To successfully file a visa application, applicants, lawyers and employers need to communicate and coordinate across international borders. Yet telecommunications infrastructure is weak or damaged in many countries with large populations of displaced people, making international and online communication difficult. Even when infrastructure is strong, the cost of purchasing cell phone service can be prohibitive for displaced people.
“Fixes”: Where possible, NGOs and INGOs can support displaced people by providing access to computer centers and/or laptops, cell phones, or tablets for loan. To address connectivity issues, managing organizations can cover payment for cellular data, or for transit to areas with more reliable connectivity. These organizations can also play an important role in educating employers about the connectivity issues that displaced people may face. See our article on managing employer expectations for more information.
Restricted movement in host countries
Barrier: Most displaced people do not have legal residency in the countries where they currently live, which may limit their movements.
“Fixes”: If domestic travel places an applicant at risk, managing organizations can strive to make the vast majority of their services available remotely, and/or make plans to travel to the applicant in the event that in-person communication or a handoff of physical materials is needed.
Some steps in a visa application process – for example, medical examinations, biometrics collection, language testing and embassy interviews – require a candidate to appear in person. In these cases, managing organizations can set up a safety plan in advance to establish key information. Who will the applicant call in case of an issue? What resources does the managing organization have available to support someone in case of an encounter with the authorities?
Destination governments and service providers should take these issues into account when adapting their visa processes for displaced talent. For example, some governments have made it possible for applicants to take language tests online instead of requiring in-person exams.
Costs associated with visa applications and access to bank accounts
Barrier: The visa application process includes fees that can be prohibitive for displaced people. In many countries, displaced people are not permitted to open a bank account or access other financial instruments. In addition, they may have lost access to bank accounts in their countries of origin. Displaced people often have limited access to reputable loans and can be particularly vulnerable to predatory financial scams.
“Fixes”: Managing organizations can work with employers and displaced candidates to make a plan to cover the costs of migration. Employers can play a significant role in covering visa application costs, and managing organizations can help facilitate connections to appropriate lenders or in-kind support. Several pathways also specifically waive certain costs for displaced talent, in recognition of the unique barriers faced by this population.
Destination governments can also improve access to labour mobility pathways by waiving requirements for candidates to show evidence of bank accounts, and service providers can provide alternative payment options for refugees who are unbanked.
Read our article on financing migration for displaced talent for more information, along with details on organizations that can assist with solutions.
Language testing
Many visa applications require candidates to sit for standardized language tests and achieve a specific score. These requirements, and minimum required results, vary by pathway. Displaced people can face unique challenges in completing these tests and acquiring the necessary scores.
Barrier: Limited access to testing centers
For security-of-identity reasons, candidates often have to appear in person for language exams. However, some countries with large populations of displaced people do not have testing centers, or the testing centers may only be at locations that are challenging for displaced people to access.
“Fixes”: Online, identity-secure language exams, such as the Duolingo English Test, are now accepted by some governments. If remote services are not available, see above for more information on restricted movement in host countries.
Barrier: Identification requirements for registration
Language tests often require the test-taker to provide identification at the time of registration and at the time of testing, usually in the form of a valid passport. However, many displaced people either lack identification documents or have expired documents and are unable to safely access the document-issuing services of the countries they have fled.
“Fixes”: Managing organizations can play an important advocacy role when this type of administrative barrier emerges. In many cases, test providers have the discretion to use an expired passport or alternative form of identification, along with an explanation of the test-taker’s circumstances.
Barrier: Limited access to foreign language training or test preparation
Many displaced people have the technical skills to fill international jobs but do not have the language proficiency required by a destination government or employer. Language training programs can be expensive and time-consuming. Even when applicants have a high level of proficiency in a foreign language, they may not have experience taking standardized tests and may not have access to expensive training programs.
“Fixes”: Visit our article on improving language skills for more information on how managing organizations can support people to not only improve their overall language skills, but also to prepare for standardized language tests.
Passports and travel documents
Barrier: Displaced people may be unable or unwilling to avail themselves of the passport services of their country of origin. They may not be entitled to passports if they are stateless, their countries of origin may be unable or unwilling to issue travel documents, or consular services may not be available in the country where they are currently based. Renewing a passport can also be prohibitively expensive for displaced people, especially in the case of a large family. Travel documents serve two purposes:
- To establish the identity of the candidate; and
- To facilitate international travel. Often, where candidates can prove their identity, States are able to issue travel documents for a specific trip.
“Fixes”: Some visa programs designed for displaced people accept alternate forms of identification: an expired passport, for example, or confirmation from UNHCR, which might be supported by a written statement explaining why the applicant was unable to obtain a valid passport. See the article on financing migration for options to cover costs.
Educational and credential assessments
Barrier: Many labour visas require applicants to prove that they meet a minimum required level of education. To do so, applicants often must submit documentation to a third-party evaluator identified by the destination government. Yet many displaced people do not have copies of transcripts or diplomas with them, and sometimes applicants are not able to contact universities or degree-granting institutions in their home countries. Some displaced people have had their education interrupted due to conflict and were therefore unable to graduate. The cost of education assessment can also be prohibitively expensive for people living in displacement.
“Fixes”: Visa programs may be adapted to allow alternative forms of evidence rather than relying on traditional credential assessments. Partners such as World Education Services have programs to help support credential assessments that have been specifically designed for displaced talent.
Alternatively, employers may have a mechanism to test and verify a candidate’s skills, often by administering a test or a skills-based assignment (for example, a coding test for a software engineer, or a cooking demonstration for a chef). The employer may then certify the skills they have verified to support the candidate’s migration.
Professional licensing requirements
Barrier: Some occupations require licensing or registration with a professional body in order to practice. This is particularly the case for occupations that potentially entail risks to the general population, such as health care, engineering, and certain skilled trades. The professional bodies charged with responsibility for registrations and professional licenses often rely on documentary evidence of qualifications, language, work experience and identity. As outlined above, each of these areas can involve barriers for refugees.
“Fixes”: It is important to try to overcome barriers to entry if professional licensing is required for immigration purposes – for example, for medical professionals. One option is to create a pathway that leads from entry to registration. For example, a Health Care Assistant can become a Registered Nurse, or a Teaching Assistant can become a Registered Teacher. Once in the country of migration, professional registration and licensing bodies can put policies and flexibility measures in place to accommodate the needs of refugee applicants. For example, the Nursing and Midwifery Council in the UK has a specific policy for displaced talent and refugees applying for nursing registration, including provisions for alternative documents and additional support for refugee applicants.
Proof of work
Barrier: Many labour visas require that applicants provide proof of their former employment. Specifically, applicants may be asked to provide employment reference letters, pay slips, contracts, income tax documents, and other documents in order to verify their previous employment. Displaced people face unique barriers to securing these documents. Many displaced people have recent but informal work experience, sometimes without authorization or documentation because of prohibitions on legal work in their countries of residence. As a result, their previous employers may be unwilling to attest to their employment, and may not have provided any formal documentation.
“Fixes”: Visa programs can be adapted to allow alternative proof of employment, such as sworn affidavits or statements from coworkers or supervisors. Governments may also waive requirements for displaced talent and allow employers themselves to attest to the skill of a candidate.
Police or security records
Barrier: Some visa applications require that applicants obtain police checks from the countries where they have lived. These certifications can usually be obtained by application to the police authorities in the relevant country. However, displaced people may face difficulties in securing these documents, particularly if they do not have legal residence in the country where they live and are not registered in official records. Some countries require individuals to be physically present in order to obtain a police check. Refugees are often unable to obtain police checks from their countries of origin, given that they have fled these locations, or from transit countries.
“Fixes”: Some visa programs for displaced talent allow police check requirements to be waived in certain circumstances. Others allow alternative documentation, such as sworn statements of good character, or letters from people of good standing in the community (for example, public servants or religious leaders). Biometrics may also be captured as an integrity measure.
Proof of Marriage
Barrier: When people are migrating with a spouse, they have to provide proof of marriage, usually in the form of an official wedding certificate. This certificate can be difficult for displaced people to obtain, particularly if they were married in a country that is now affected by conflict, or if they do not have legal status in their country of current residence, making it impossible to officially register a marriage. Processes around marriage can also vary between countries given different religions, administrative systems, and cultural norms. These differences can create confusion when applicants fill out standardized questions about a marriage on a visa application.
“Fixes”: When marriage certificates are unavailable or the circumstances of marriage are atypical by the destination country’s standards, sworn affidavits and letters of explanation can support an application. Some countries may accept UNHCR registration, where relevant, as one form of evidence of family ties. Legal representatives might assist with other solutions on a case-by-case basis.
Proof of parentage and custody
Barrier: When people are migrating with children, they must provide proof of parentage and/or legal guardianship. In cases where only one parent is migrating, consent from the other parent must be provided. When children are born in displacement and/or in isolated or underserved areas, parents may struggle to secure documentation of their birth. Further, displacement can cause family separation and other major disruptions, leading to complex child custody issues that must be resolved before a visa application can be successfully filed.
“Fixes”: Many countries have systems that examine family ties and parental lineage, not only for humanitarian visa processes but also for complex family immigration applications. These processes typically require DNA tests to be undertaken to prove relationships. In situations where there are complex child custody issues, a UNHCR country office may be able to support by conducting a Best Interest Assessment.
Family structure
Barrier: Work visas typically allow a person to migrate with “dependent family members,” who are typically defined narrowly as a spouse and biological children. This definition of family can create a major barrier to migration. “Family,” for a displaced person, may include children who are married or over 18; non-biological children for whom displaced people are socially if not formally responsible; elderly family members; and siblings. Displaced women often shoulder higher levels of responsibility for extended family members, and can be prevented from pursuing migration opportunities as a result.
“Fixes”: Managing organizations should provide clear information about eligible family members during the informed decision making process so that displaced people are aware of the family implications before beginning a visa application. In very exceptional circumstances, applicants may be able to claim that additional family members beyond their spouse and children are dependent upon them. An exceptional claim like this is never guaranteed to succeed and is best attempted by legal professionals who can make the strongest possible case on the applicant’s behalf.
Statelessness
Barrier: Stateless people often face extreme challenges to securing formal documentation of their identity, rendering many of the steps in the visa application process nearly impossible to complete.
“Fixes”: Stateless applicants in particular can benefit from concerted advocacy on their behalf by their employer, managing organizations, and experts in statelessness. These external advocates can support applicants’ efforts to register for required testing, secure identity documents from their country of current residence, and offer comprehensive explanations as a part of their visa application process. In cases where the destination government has a program developed specifically for displaced talent, the destination government may also be an important resource in waiving standard identification requirements, providing notary services, or issuing travel documents. Legal representatives can additionally assist with solutions on a case-by-case basis.
Documenting and escalating barriers
Managing organizations have a critical role to play in identifying and documenting the barriers that displaced people face in moving for work. Because these organizations often support numerous displaced people, they are well-positioned to identify trends and patterns of exclusion. By documenting these patterns and then sharing them with relevant stakeholders, managing organizations can help further break down the barriers that disproportionately affect displaced people when they seek to migrate internationally for work.
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