IPIM | Temporary residents reminded to communicate ‘change in status’

The Macau Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) has maintained that it reminds temporary residents of the need to communicate any changes in their legal status while holding a Macau form of identification.
Foreign families who have applied for residency through IPIM have reported difficulties in renewing their temporary residency when there’s a “change in status,” particularly in a change of employer of job category.
According to Macau’s administrative decree 3/2005, a residence permit may be canceled if there are changes to the applicant’s initial status. To avoid losing residency status, applicants are required to communicate changes in their status to IPIM within 30 days. However, applicants have pointed out that the law fails to clarify which types of changes should be communicated.
IPIM clarified that “changes with reference to the applicant and/or accompanying family dependents are defined as changes of legal status. For example, alternation of job, position, salary or breach of employment contract is regarded as the change of legal status for management and/or technical personnel applicants.”
“We have reminded our applicants through different channels, such as by mail and SMS, that they should comply with the aforementioned regulation and inform IPIM in writing of any changes of status within 30 days stipulated, for further analysis [of their case],” IPIM said in a statement to The Times.
A recently released court ruling suspended the decision of the Secretary for Economy and Finance, which had revoked the residence permits of an Australian family. The court took into account “irreparable damages” to the family’s children, who would have to abruptly change schools in Macau.
According to the verdict, the applicant had lost his temporary residency status for not communicating a change of employer to IPIM within the required timeframe.
The applicant appealed to the court seeking the suspension of such a decision so that the judicial review of his case could be taken without his family being forced to relocate.
In a written reply to The Times, IPIM clarified that applicants “should pledge that they will maintain the legal status after the application and/or during possessing of temporary residency status. In cases of termination or changes in the legal status, the temporary residency approval should be cancelled, with the exception of any new legal status established by the applicant being accepted by the concerned authorities, within a stipulated period set out by IPIM.”
“The applicant should notify IPIM within 30 days [counting] from the first day of any change in the situation, otherwise, cancellation of the temporary residency permit is likely,” IPIM stressed.
The Times reported this week that some temporary residents have faced challenges to maintain or renew their permits. One applicant, whose children had to relocate and study abroad, pointed out an apparent lack of assessment criteria other than the main applicant’s economic contributions to Macau society.
According to statistics released on its website, IPIM received 98 temporary residency applications through the Management and/or Technical Personnel Scheme during last year’s third quarter. Forty-two cases were approved involving a total of 79 people who were granted temporary residency. A total of 1,067 renewal applications were lodged through IPIM, with the institute approving 1,120 in the third quarter of last year.
IPIM handles temporary residency applications for management and or technical personnel, as well as for people who wish to place major investments or have an investment plan for Macau. It used to handle residency applications through investment in local real estate, but applications through this scheme were cancelled in 2007. Some applications lodged before 2007 remain under analysis.