The Bureau of Professional Immigration is instructing (via Circular of August 3, 2012) certain regional authorities to create a single desk (guichet unique) to follow the immigration process for new arriving foreign workers in the following categories:
- Intra-Company Transferees
- Skills and Talents
- European Union Blue Card
The Prefectures concerned are Haute-Garonne (31), Hauts-de-Seine (92), Isère (38), Nord (59), Paris (75), Puy-de-Dôme (63), Rhône (69), and Yvelines (78). The single desk will be created by the OFII (Office Français de l’Immigration et de l’Intégration) located in each of the Prefectures, with the objective of processing the applications faster. The government is aiming to process work permits for Intra-Company Transferees and EU Blue Card applicants within 4 to 6 weeks.
The efficiency of this government incentive is uncertain. The single-desk process is already in place in the Paris area for Intra-Company Transferees, where overall processing time has increased. This being said, the medical examination and delivery of the residency permit are occurring at the same appearance at the OFII. This is a definite improvement over the past.