Author: Paralegal T. Munkhbat

Our law firm is pleased to announce that we are publishing a blog post on an important and useful topic for foreign investors and companies making foreign investment.

This article consists of the following sections.

1. Features and Categories of B Visa

2. Obtaining the Investor Certificate

3. Obtaining Visa Approval

4. Stamping the Visa

5. Obtaining a Residence Permit

6. Costs

7. Fines

1. Features and Categories of Class B Visas

Foreign investors, executive management of foreign-invested companies, and representatives of branches or representative offices of foreign legal entities apply for the Investor (Class B) Visa to travel to or reside long-term in Mongolia. This visa is divided into the following sub-categories:

·         B1 – Investor of foreign-invested enterprises;

·         B1-1 – Family member of an investor of foreign-invested enterprises;

·         B2 – Foreign national appointed as an investor’s representative or executive of a foreign-invested enterprise;

·      B2-1 – Family member of a foreign national appointed as an investor’s representative or executive management of a foreign-invested enterprise;

·         B3 – Foreign national working as an executive or a representative of a foreign legal entity;

·         B3-1 – Family member of a foreign national working as an executive or a representative of a foreign legal entity.

In this context, “Family member” means someone with proof of a foreign national`s husband, wife, partner, father, mother, grandfather, grandmother and children (under the age of 18).

The process of investing or being appointed as a manager of a company with foreign investment and residing in Mongolia follows the steps below, each of which will be briefly explained.

2. Obtaining the Investor Certificate

An investor can invest in Mongolia in 2 ways.

The first is to invest with money from abroad. In this case, the investor must create a bank account in Mongolia and obtain a deposit certificate confirming that the bank received the funds. If the company with foreign investment has not yet been established, the investor contacts a domestic bank to open a temporary account.

The second method is to bring goods and equipment across the border, in which case the investment is evidenced by customs registration and certificates.

After investing, the investor, or the investor's representative, must obtain the Investor Certificate through the online system at https://e-business.mn/.

3. Obtaining Visa Approval

After obtaining the Investor Certificate, the applicant applies to the Immigration Agency of Mongolia for Visa Approval.

The following documents must be submitted electronically only.

a)    Official Letter from the inviting organisation

b)    State registration certificate and Charter of the inviting organisation

c)    Tax and social insurance certificates of the inviting organisation

d)    Financial audit report (if applicable)

e)    Investor Certificate issued by the Investment and Trade Agency

f)    Power of attorney, employment ID issued by the inviting organisation to the applicant employee

g)    Address verification (if applicable, Rent agreement)

Please pay special attention to correctly stating in the official letter of the inviting organisation the duration of the foreign national's stay in Mongolia, the place of visa issuance, and the sector of work.

Regarding address verification, the following must be noted. If the investor is residing in a rented property, a Lease Agreement must be provided. The Lease Agreement must be accompanied by the real estate certificate. Additionally, if an employee or any person signs the lease on behalf of the foreign citizen or the inviting organisation, documents identifying that person and a power of attorney must be attached. It is also advisable to obtain a certificate from the local district governor confirming that the foreign national resides at that address.

After compiling the documents, submit them through the Immigration Agency of Mongolia's online system at https://isf.mn/mn/service.

4. Stamping the Visa

After obtaining the Visa Approval, it is valid for 60 days, within which the visa must be stamped.

The foreign national may have the visa stamped at:

a) a Mongolian diplomatic embassy abroad,

b) a border checkpoint, or

c) an airport.

Please note that if the location for visa stamping changes, a new Visa Approval must be applied for.

5. Obtaining a Residence Permit

Let us introduce the final step — obtaining a residence permit.

To do this, the inviting organisation must prepare the investor's photo, passport copy, and official request (which must detail the area of activity, the type of residence permit being requested for the invited national in Mongolia, and the duration of stay in Mongolia) and send them to the Immigration Agency of Mongolia via the online system.

The inviting organisation is required to submit an application for the foreign national's Residence Card within 21 calendar days of their entry into Mongolia.

The Class B visa is initially issued for a period of up to 1 year. Thereafter, extensions of up to 3 years at a time can be granted, depending on the operational stability and continuity of the inviting organization, as well as the foreign national's clean criminal record.

6. Costs

Now let us review the total costs for all of the above steps.

1)    Visa Approval service fee: $ 1

2)    Visa stamping service fee: $5 + Single-entry visa fee: $45

3)    Residence permit stamp fee: $ 35 + Service fee: $7

The above estimate is the minimum cost to bring one foreign national through regular processing (not expedited). Please note that additional costs may arise, such as notarising documents, obtaining powers of attorney, certified translations, and travel expenses.

7. Deadlines and Fines

1)    After obtaining Visa Approval, it is valid for 60 days, within which the visa must be stamped. There is no fine for this deadline, but if it expires, a new Visa Approval must be obtained.

2)   The residence permit application must be submitted within 21 calendar days of the invited national's entry into Mongolia. If the application is not submitted within 21 days, a fine of MNT 10,000 per day of delay will be imposed in accordance with the Law on Violations.

For further advice and information related to this article, please contact us at the address below.

E-mail: contact@akp.mn

Tel: 7704-1414