Saipan Pinoys qualify for 'permanent residency'?

CAPITOL HILL, Saipan – Almost 6,000 Filipinos who have worked and lived legally in the US Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands for at least five consecutive years could be eligible for permanent residency under the CNMI immigration bill drafted by the US Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. But by the time the bill passes, the number of eligible Filipino workers could still increase. Thousands more of Filipino workers have yet to reach a five-year stay in the CNMI. On Thursday, the CNMI government said there are 7,944 guest workers who have been employed in the CNMI for five to nine consecutive years. Of this number, most or 5,726 are from the Philippines as of May 16, 2007. The draft bill has a one-time grandfather provision for long-term nonresident workers in the CNMI. It provides five-year nonimmigrant visa to nonresidents who have been legally employed in the CNMI for at least five years. This status is up renewal every 10 years. “Pag me permanent residency na, ang mga katulad nating guest workers eh hindi na laging kakabahan na hindi na mare-renew pa ang contract. Me job security na," Mar Madreo, who has been on Saipan for almost 11 years, told GMANews.TV. “Noong pumunta ako ng Saipan, ang $1 eh katumbas lang ng P21, hanggang sa umabot ng P55 at ngayon, mga P46…I love what I do so I would want to stay here for more years," the 46-year-old worker said. In addition to the 5,726 long-term workers from the Philippines, there are also 1,266 from China, 339 from Thailand, 150 from Japan, 146 from South Korea, 118 from Bangladesh and 102 from Nepal. The 97 others are of different citizenships. Local officials, however, warned that not all foreign workers who have stayed legally in the CNMI would automatically qualify for permanent residency. To be eligible, an applicant should also pass a criminal and terrorism background check, pass a medical examination, and is not ineligible on the basis of moral turpitude, criminal record or public charge. The CNMI Office of the Governor is also concerned that many of the workers might opt to leave the CNMI once given the opportunity to freely travel and work in other U.S. jurisdictions, thus creating uncertainty in the local economy. Foreign workers who do not meet the five-year requirement, they can still work in the commonwealth under either the CNMI-only guest worker program or the federal Immigration and Nationality Act’s provisions for foreign workers. - Haidee V. Eugenio, GMANews.TV