With COVID-19 present in Italy, the Italian government issued a new Decree-Law on 2 March 2020 regulating various activities and daily life as it aims to prevent the virus from spreading and extending beyond the affected areas. Aspects of the Decree-Law concern prolonging deadlines and expiration dates and suspending or curtailing some services in the public sector, this includes the division of police in charge of immigration affairs. This means there could be delays and slower processing times for immigration matters.
With COVID-19 present in Italy, the Italian government issued an urgent Decree-Law on 2 March 2020 regulating various activities and daily life as it aims to prevent the virus from spreading and extending beyond the affected areas.1
Aspects of the Decree-Law concern prolonging deadlines and expiration dates and suspending or curtailing some services in the public sector, this includes the division of police in charge of immigration affairs.
The new measures introduced by the Decree-Law are expected to have the effect of slowing down processing times for immigration applications and related work and residence permit applications, as activities at the relevant public offices/agencies are curtailed and staff either reduced or re-assigned. Foreign employees coming into or already working in Italy, their employers, and their global mobility program managers should consult with their immigration counsel as to the status of visa and work/residence permit processing and issuance.
Furthermore, they should keep abreast of developments in Italy, which are quickly unfolding, as the government takes the necessary steps to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in Italy. Quite likely they will have implications for employees moving into, out of, and around (internally) Italy.
Due to the presence of COVID-19 in some regions of Italy (Piedmont, Lombardy, Veneto, and The Marches primarily), the government issued a Decree-Law, which contains the below-noted points.
Starting from 2 March 2020, in order to be able to assign more police officers for matters related to COVID-19, the
following activities involving the administrative division of the police in charge of immigration affairs have been put on hold for 30 days (based on current information):
The prior measures contained in the Decree-Laws that came into force on 25 February 2020 (reported in GMS Flash Alert 2020-038, 25 February 2020) and 1 March 2020, are still in force. Once again, we highlight below the main points:
Public Offices/Agencies and Expectations
Based on the new and the prior measures already in force, public offices/agencies, even when they are open, cannot guarantee that they will work at full capacity or efficiently nor that they can deliver their output (work permits, resident permits, etc.) in a timely manner. Some offices continue to discourage appointments for non-urgent matters.
Summary of Relevant Matters
1 Decreto-Legge 2 marzo 2020, n. 9 Misure urgenti di sostegno per famiglie, lavoratori e imprese connesse all'emergenza epidemiologica da COVID-19. (20G00026).
New Thought Leadership from KPMG: “Coronavirus: Protect Your Staff and Your Business”
The KPMG People Services team in the People’s Republic of China has developed a booklet (“Coronavirus: Protect Your Staff and Your Business” (February 2020)) highlighting the key considerations for protecting globally-mobile staff and mitigating the impact on business operations from high level tax, legal, and immigration perspectives.
* Please note that KPMG LLP (U.S.) does not offer immigration services or labour law services. However, KPMG Law LLP in Canada can assist clients with U.S. immigration matters.
The information contained in this newsletter was submitted by the KPMG International member firm in Italy.
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