AGO bars entry from Fujian

Division of Immigration personnel have been instructed to stop issuing entry permits to citizens or nationals of the Fujian province of the People’s Republic of China.

The order came after the Attorney General’s Office placed Fujian back on the list of excluded locations due to the rising number of fraudulent papers received from the Chinese province.

The AGO created the original list of excluded locations in January 2004, amid the agency’s inability to secure background information regarding individuals from these countries. The initial list covered 30 countries including Nepal and Fujian, which were removed in March 2004 and June 2004 respectively.

But Attorney General Pamela S. Brown said that Fujian was back on the list. “This location is added because the Division of Immigration is experiencing an increasing number of fraudulent papers emanating from this region,” Brown said in a July 7, 2005 order, which took effect immediately.

Aside from Fujian, 28 countries, mostly from the Middle East, are currently on the list of locations whose citizens or nationals are banned from entering the Commonwealth.

The excluded locations include Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Cuba, Egypt, Eritrea, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, and Morocco.

Completing the list are Myanmar, North Korea, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.

However, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka nationals are allowed to apply for a waiver of the travelers ban provided that their countries guarantee their expedited return.

A Bangladesh or Sri Lanka national seeking to enter the CNMI may get a waiver if he or she can submit a letter declaring that his country of origin will unconditionally accept his return without delay.

A waiver may also be granted to an individual coming from an excluded location who posts a $5,000 bond. This amount will be forfeited once a CNMI court finds that the person has committed a crime or violated any condition of his entry.

Furthermore, the AGO may issue a waiver if it has made a “good faith determination” that a person is a medical professional seeking to enter the CNMI for the sole purpose of rendering medical services, or is entering the CNMI pursuant to a minister of religion permit or a religious missionary permit.