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New Immigration division named Overstayer Unit

Chief Immigration Officer Tamasa Dennis Lutu has confirmed there is a newly established “Overstayer Unit” within the Immigration Office, and its purpose is to hunt down overstayers in the territory.

 

Responding to Samoa News queries, Tamasa stated that since creating this division, they've deported close to 250 people who had remained in the territory even though their 30- day visitor’s permit was up. He also told Samoa News that the Attorney General has implemented a policy whereby there will be no more extensions on the 30-day permit.

 

This was confirmed to Samoa News by Attorney General Eleasalo Ale, who said that this policy was implemented sometime last year. However the AG also explained that there are cases where he may consider extending the permit, but not without a logical reason as to why the extension is necessary.

 

According to Tamasa, the reason for non-extension of permits is to eliminate the long standing issue of having countless overstayers in the territory. He pointed out that since December, 2014, they have been conducting raids, and the Immigration officers go out to certain locations looking for the overstayers who came over on a 30-day permit.

 

Tamasa also pointed out that his office calls out to the sponsors who bring foreigners into the territory, as a reminder that these people need to leave the Territory. Asked as to the nationality of those people who have been deported, Tamasa said of the 250, a majority of those people were from Samoa, but they’ve also deported Asians, Fijians, Tongans and Filipinos.

 

He told Samoa News that Immigration has been very strict and they are requiring more documents prior to granting an entry permit for any foreigner.

 

The Chief Immigration Officer also explained that a sponsor who brings someone in who does not depart the territory on time will be fined, and he says the public has been very cooperative about this. He told Samoa News that they are paying the fines in accordance with Immigration laws.

 

Samoa News inquired about their latest raid, which was conducted in Pago Pago in the area commonly referred to as “Chinatown”.

 

Tamasa confirmed that more than ten Immigration officers participated in that raid, which took seven people into custody, and the two men and five women have since been deported.

 

Immigration officers who were not authorized to talk to the media told Samoa News that they had received complaints by the people living in the Pago Pago area about Asian girls who were utilizing the rental housings as their places of “business” for the fishermen who come into town. The immigration officer said that as a result, their officers conducted the raid last week.

 

However when Samoa News asked the Chief Immigration Officer about the raid, he denied it, noting that it was just their usual surprise raid to the area and as a result they picked up seven overstayers who have since been deported.

 

According to several immigration officers who participated in the raid, they also came across fishermen there, and among them was one of the captains from a fishing vessel that was in town at the time.