Labour and Residency Act 2017

Labour and Residency Act 2017
Esquarian Community
Citation	EC/2017/04
Enacted by	Council of Esquarium
Date enacted	17 October 2017
Enacted by	Esquarian Parliament
Date enacted	26 October 2017
Date commenced	26 October 2017
Status: In force

The Labour and Residency Act 2017 is an Esquarian law that concerns expands the jurisdiction of the Esquarian Common Market and creates the Unified Market for Labour and Capital, which provides for free movement of labour and capital throughout the Esquarian Community.

Text

Labour and Residency Act 2017

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Definitions

1. (The) Common Market: The Common Market of the Esquarian Community, except when used;
2. (The) Community: The Esquarian Community;
3. Common Market national: Refer to §2.2;
4. Esquarian corporation: Refer to §2.4;
5. Human person: A born, living member of the human species;
6. Member-state: Member of the Common Market of the Esquarian Community, except where specified otherwise;
7. Person: Any human or statutory person;
8. Political or humanitarian asylum: A national immigration agency's finding that the individual in question would be in real and unacceptable peril if deported to the country of their citizenship for reason of political persecution or extreme socioeconomic hardship;
9. State Party (pl. States Parties): Full member of the Esquarian Community;
10. Statutory person: Any society, corporation, joint-stock company, association or partnership that enjoys limited liability or individual standing under national or Community law;

§1 ― Changes to existing legislation

1. §2 of the Act to Integrate the Greenwich Area into the Common Market is hereby repealed and shall cease to have legal effect.
2. §3.b of the Act to Integrate the Greenwich Area into the Common Market is hereby repealed and shall cease to have legal effect.
3. §4 of the Act to Integrate the Greenwich Area into the Common Market is hereby repealed and shall cease to have legal effect.
4. For "the provisional unified border control regime established by §2 of the Act to Integrate the Greenwich Area into the Common Market" in §1.4.3 of the Comprehensive Common Market Act, substitute "the unified market in labour and capital established by the Labour and Residency Act".

§2 ― Unified Market for Labour and Capital

1. The freedom of movement across national borders shall be provided for within the framework of the Common Market of the Esquarian Community.
2. The mechanism through which the provision operates shall be known as the Unified Market for Labour and Capital.
3. All member-states of the Common Market shall concurrently hold all the privileges and responsibilities of the Unified Market for Labour and Capital.
4. The Unified Market for Labour and Capital shall guarantee four fundamental freedoms for human persons resident in member-states, namely―
   1. the freedom of cross-national movement, as enumerated in §3,
      
   2. the freedom of cross-national residency, as enumerated in §4,
      
   3. the freedom of cross-national labour, as enumerated in §5,
      
   4. the freedom of cross-national civic participation, as enumerated in §6.
      
5. The Unified Market for Labour and Capital shall likewise guarantee the freedom of cross-national incorporation, as enumerated in §7 to statutory persons resident in member-states.

§3 ― Common Market nationality

1. All Common Market nationals and Esquarian corporations shall be entitled to participate in the Unified Market for Labour and Capital.
2. A Common Market national is any individual who―
   1. holds the citizenship of the Esquarian Community under Article IV of the Treaty of the Esquarian Community,
      
   2. holds the citizenship of a non-Community member-state of the Common Market under domestic law,
      
   3. holds indefinite leave to reside and work in a member-state of the Common Market as a stateless individual or holder of political or humanitarian asylum.
      
3. The citizenship of an alien power shall not preclude an individual who otherwise meets the criteria enumerated in §2.2 of this Act from being considered a Common Market national.
4. An Esquarian corporation is any limited-liability corporation incorporated within a member-state of the Common Market.
5. A limited-liability corporation is any organisation that enjoys a functional legal identity separate from that of its owners and employees, irrespective of ownership, industry, profit motive, or lack thereof.
6. The Esquarian Secretariat shall have determination on whether organisation types provided for in the domestic laws of member-states constitute limited-liability corporations under this Act.
7. A member-state may be suspended from the United Market for Labour and Capital, with its nationals' enjoyment of the rights thereof being suspended for the duration of the suspension, by the initiative of the President of the Esquarian Community and the consent of a 2/3 majority of the Council of Esquarium in the event of extraordinary violation of Community law, Common Market principles or other binding international obligations.

§4 ― Cross-national movement

1. Common Market nationals shall have the right to travel to any other member-state of the Common Market.
2. Common Market nationals shall have the right to unfetted access to all regions and areas of member-states that are publicly accessible to citizens thereof.
3. All domestic laws and regulations that place an unreasonable and discriminatory burden on the ability of Common Market nationals to move across and within member-states, as judged by the Esquarian Court of Human Rights, are null and void.
4. National immigration authorities shall have the authority to revoke the standing of a Common Market national to travel into and within their jurisdiction in the event of severe infraction.
5. Severe infractions for the purposes of this section are―
   1. prior or current conviction for a criminal offence in any nation of a violent, fiduciary, immigration-related or drug-related nature,
      
   2. individual presence or membership in an organisation present on the Terrorist Organisations and Individuals List,
      
   3. extant prohibition of entry issued by national immigration authorities prior to accession to the Common Market.
      
6. A member-state may not deny standing to a citizen thereof who lawfully also holds the citizenship of a foreign power.
7. A member-state may not require Common Market nationals to secure pre-approval or a visa for entry.
8. A member-state may not impose foreign exchange controls or expatriation taxes on non-citizen Common Market nationals.
9. Member-states' ability to require non-citizens to register with law enforcement upon entry shall not be restricted.
10. Member-states' ability to require individuals to present and carry a valid passport or identification document shall not be restricted.
11. Member-states' ability to restrict individuals' ability to bring prohibited items across national or subnational borders shall not be limited.
12. Member-states' ability to impose internal and external restrictions on movement that do not discriminate between domestic and Common Market nationals shall not be restricted in cases of extraordinary national emergency.

§5 ― Cross-national residency

1. Common Market nationals shall have the right to indefinitely reside in any other member-state of the Common Market.
2. All domestic laws and regulations that place an unreasonable and discriminatory burden on the ability of Common Market nationals to make residence in member-states, as judged by the Esquarian Court of Human Rights, are null and void.
3. National immigration authorities shall have the authority to revoke the standing of a Common Market national to reside within their jurisdiction in the event of an inability to prove ability to reside.
4. A Common Market national is deemed to be unable to prove their ability to reside when―
   1. they are unable to maintain a fixed address within the nation for the duration of their residency,
      
   2. they are unable to sustain themselves without recourse to social security or welfare,
      
   3. they have been denied standing for entry into the nation under §3 of this Act.
      
5. Nothing in this section entitles Common Market nationals to receive housing if they are unable to afford such property on the free market.
6. Member-states' ability to restrict participation in public housing programs to domestic citizens shall not be limited.
7. Member-states' ability to impose capital gains or investment taxes on acquisitions and sales of housing by foreign nationals shall not be limited.

§6 ― Cross-national labour

1. Common Market nationals shall have the right to work in any lawful profession in any other member-state of the Common Market.
2. Common Market nationals shall have the right to study at any accredited institute of learning in any other member-state of the Common Market.
3. All domestic laws and regulations that place an unreasonable and discriminatory burden on the ability of Common Market nationals to work and study in member-states, as judged by the Esquarian Court of Human Rights, are null and void.
4. Common Market nationals shall have the right to receive substantially similar benefits and employment security protections to domestic nationals while employed in any member-state of the Common Market.
5. Common Market nationals shall have the right to be protected by all health, safety and well-being regulations applicable to domestic nationals while employed in any member-state of the Common Market, including maternity leave, paid holidays and protection from unlawful discrimination of any sort.
6. Common Market nationals shall have the right to undertake industrial action in industries not deemed essential for national security by national authorities.
7. Upon the event that a Common Market national's residence is revoked under §4 of this Act, their right to work or study in that nation shall likewise be revoked.
8. A member-state may not require Common Market nationals to secure a work or study permit.
9. The ability of member-states to tax foreign nationals' income within their borders shall not be limited, even when such an event would result in double taxation.
10. The ability of member-states to impose licencing or educational requirements for professions shall not be limited.
11. Nothing in this section creates an obligation for public or private employers to employ foreign nationals.
12. Nothing in this section creates an obligation for schools, universities and institutes to enroll foreign nationals.

§7 ― Cross-national civic participation

1. Common Market nationals shall have the right to partake in the civic and cultural life in any other member-state of the Common Market in which they hold residence.
2. Common Market nationals who have maintained residence for five (5) of the past six (6) months in a member-state shall have the right to register for and vote in all Community elections.
3. Upon electoral registration in a member-state other than that of their citizenship, a Common Market national shall lose the right to elect members to the Esquarian Parliament within the country of their citizenship.
4. Common Market nationals who are registered to vote in a State Party of the Esquarian Community shall have the right to stand for the Esquarian Parliament in the constituency of their registration.
5. The ability of member-states to disenfranchise past or extant prisoners or persons under the domestic voting age shall not be limited by this Act.
6. The ability of member-states to remove individuals from their electoral roll for failure to maintain residency for at least 180 days in a calendar year shall not be limited.
7. The ability of member-states to prosecute individuals who maintain voting registrations in two nations where they are able to vote in Esquarian Parliament elections, whether deliberately or due to a failure to cancel a previous registration, shall not be limited.

§8 ― Cross-national incorporation

1. Esquarian corporations shall have the right to do legal business in all member-states of the Common Market.
2. Esquarian corporations shall have the right to incorporate subsidiaries in all member-states of the Common Market.
3. Esquarian corporations shall have the right to acquire or merge with domestic limited-liability corporations, unless prohibited by non-discriminatory competition law.
4. Esquarian corporations shall have the right to be party to contracts and litigation in all-member-states of the Common Market where they do business.
5. Esquarian corporations shall have the right to bid and receive fair consideration on public contract tenders in member-states in all fields except those critical to national security.
6. The ability of member-states to practice discriminatory regulation in economic activities of intangible cultural heritage, as recognised by the Esquarian Secretariat, shall not be limited.
7. The ability of member-states to levy corporate income and capital gains taxes shall not be limited, even when such an event would result in double taxation.
8. Airlines of all member-states shall be considered domestic across the Common Market for the purposes of overflight, landing, takeoff, and air rights.

§9 ― Cross-national law enforcement

1. Member-states shall extradite any individual wanted for criminal activities in another member-state if a request for that purpose is filed by the national justice ministry through the Esquarian Secretariat, unless the individual is likely to be treated in a manner inconsistent with Community or international law.
2. Member-states shall enforce the injunctions and judgements of the courts of other member-states in civil disputes, except if litigation between the parties is also occurring in its own courts or if the injunction or judgement is inconsistent with domestic law.
3. Member-states' courts shall enforce the doctrine of forum non conveniens and avoid accepting civil litigation identical or substantially similar to active or concluded litigation in other member-states.
4. Member-states are subject to the jurisdictional arbitrage of the Esquarian Court of Human Rights.
5. Member-states shall honour and protect all trademarks registered in other member-states, unless the mark would be considered ineligible for trademark by the national authority.
6. Member-states shall honour and protect all copyrights registered in other member-states for a term equal to the latter's own copyright terms, but not exceeding the author's life plus fifty (50) years.
7. Member-states shall honour and protect all patents registered in other member-states for a term equal to the latter's own copyright terms, but not exceeding twenty (20) years.
8. Member-states shall work towards a unified Common Market patent and copyright regime, but disputed registrations across national borders shall in the meantime be ruled upon by the Esquarian Secretariat.

§10 ― Entry-exit regimes

1. Land borders between members of the Common Market shall not be subject to passport or identification control, save in the event of extraordinary national emergency.
2. Passport and customs controls are required at all aerial and marine ports of entry and exit, except when provided for by Community law.
3. Enclosed and secure freight containers clearly marked as slated for internal transportation within the Common Market are exempt from customs control.
4. The Esquarian Secretariat shall have the authority to designate separate, secure airport terminals as Esquarian Community terminals.
5. Esquarian Community terminals are to be airport terminals exclusively used for nonstop flights originating and terminating within a member-state of the Unified Market in Labour and Capital.
6. Common Market nationals shall only require a government-issued photo identification card of any sort to board a flight originating in an Esquarian Community terminal and shall not be subject to passport control upon landing.
7. Luggage transferred between domestic flights and those originating in Esquarian Community terminals are exempt from customs control.

§11 ― Enactment

1. This Act may be cited as the Labour and Residency Act of 2017.
2. This Act shall come into force upon its enactment by the Esquarian Parliament.
3. Limited-liability corporations incorporated within the Republics of Pisdara and Freylinghale are not considered to be Esquarian corporations.