Content Group 6 of Timor-Leste

Visa Requirements

Timor-Leste's visa policy differentiates between several different groups of passengers and arrival points. According to the terms of a bilateral agreement between Timor-Leste and Portugal, Portuguese nationals of good health and character who present a Portuguese passport on arrival and who seek to enter for tourism are exempted from having to obtain a Class 1 visa on arrival. In accordance with the law, citizens of all countries except Cape Verde and the Schengen Area must obtain a visa upon arrival or prior to arrival. A visa application may also be submitted to any diplomatic mission or consular office of Timor-Leste. Only Indonesian or Portuguese may obtain a visa or entry clearance on arrival at a land border. All other nationalities are required to apply for a 'visa application authorisation' prior to entering at a land border crossing.

Stay Requirements

Visitors may apply for a visa on arrival at the Presidente Nicolau Lobato International Airport or at the Dili Sea Port. Travellers of any nationality may obtain a tourist and business visa on arrival if arriving at Dili International Airport or Dili Seaport. Visas on arrival are granted for 30 days' stay, single entry. Permitted travellers may stay in the country for up to 90 days from the date of arrival (applies to multiple entry visas). The stay period may be extended up to a further 90 days after arrival on application to the Department of Immigration, where that further stay is justified on exceptional grounds. To demonstrate sufficient funds for a stay in Timor-Leste, each foreigner must have access to funds equivalent to:

• USD100 for each entry
• USD50 for each day expected to remain in the country

Localisation

Some individual investment agreements and government contracts specify local content requirements. One such contract mandated 30% local employment, but the specific requirements vary depending on the agreement.

Work Permits

Timor-Leste’s current immigration laws are not onerous and permit workers to apply for work permits in-country after entry on a 30-day visa acquired upon arrival. Timor-Leste has passed a new immigration and asylum law, which will change the visa structure and may streamline the process.

Residence Permits

There are two main avenues for foreigners wishing to obtain a Temporary or Permanent Resident permit. The first involves initially applying for and obtaining a Visa to Establish Residence. The other is via family reunification. Foreigners are unable to apply for and be granted a Resident Permit unless they have first been granted the Visa to Establish Residence visa, or are granted family reunification as immediate family of a person granted a Resident permit. Foreigners who have been granted the Visa to Establish Residence and entered the country on this basis, may then apply to the Immigration Service in Dili for a Residence Permit. The residence permit cannot be processed on arrival as this service is only available at the offices of the Immigration Service in Dili to those who are in the country.

To obtain a residence permit, the applicant must:

• Possess a visa to establish residence (where applying for the first resident permit)
• Demonstrate that (s)he does not have a criminal or police record of residence
• Be physically present in the country

Additional criteria for granting of Permanent Residence:

• Must have been a legal resident in the country for at least 12 consecutive years
• Must not have been sentenced for criminal offences to a prison term that, separately or cumulatively, exceeds one year, during the residence period

Residence permits are valid for 2 years from the date of issue, renewable for the same period. There is no time limit for permanent time residence, but a permit card must be renewed every 5 years.

Sources: National sources, Fitch Solutions