Official opinion of the State Migration Service on some controversial provisions indicated in the Migration Code

As there are no exact regulations in some of the provisions of the Migration Code of Azerbaijan Republic, there is a necessity to clarify the issues that those norms regulate. These issues were clarified by the official response of the State Migration Service of Azerbaijan.

Thus, according to Article 45.0.3 of the Migration Code, if a foreigner or stateless person possess real estate which is worth at least 100 000 manats on the territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan, this case is the basis for a permit for temporary residence. However, this article does not specify the limit for the number of ownership or whether the joint ownership of at least 100,000 real property is valid or not. According to the response provided by the State Migration Service, this case has been determined in relation to one person. In addition, there are disputes in practice about organizations that have been approved for measuring the real market value of real estate purchased in the territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The State Migration Service has stated that legal entities and natural persons may engage in evaluation activities in accordance with the legislation of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Also, according to Article 45.0.3 of the Migration Code, if foreigners or stateless persons have funds in the amount of at least 100,000 manats in banks of the Republic of Azerbaijan, this is also considered as the basis for granting temporary residence permits. At practice, there are debates about at which specific banks should the funds be deposited. According to the response from the State Migration Service, these funds may be deposited at any bank in the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The purpose of the visit (visa type) that will be announced during the entry of foreigners or stateless persons is one of the controversial issues in practice. According to the official position of the State Migration Service, the person should enter to the country with a labor visa if he/she is the head and deputy head of the branch office and representative office of the foreign legal entity in Azerbaijan. However, if a foreigner or stateless person is both the founder and head or deputy head of a legal entity established in the Republic of Azerbaijan, it is advisable to enter the country with a business visa.

In addition, one of the controversial issues in practice related to the citizens of the countries where polygamy or same-sex marriage is legal. The issue is that, if a person is in marriage with more than 1 person in his country or had same-sex marriage, will all those people who are in a legal marriage with him be considered a member of his family? According to Article 45.0.5 of the Migration Code, being a member of the family of a foreigner or a stateless person temporarily or permanently residing in the territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan is a basis for issuing that person permit for temporary residence. According to the official position of the State Migration Code, as the legislation of the Republic of Azerbaijan does not recognize same-sex marriages and polygamy, in that case, these persons will not be considered family members.

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