Conservators and NAFTA

The Education and Training Committee of the American Institute for
Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC) has been asked to
advise the Board on the inclusion of the conservation profession
into Chapter 16 of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
Among the objectives of NAFTA is the elimination or reduction of
barriers to trade and to make the movement of services across
boarders easier between the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Specifically, Chapter 16 addresses the easing of boarder crossing
requirements for professionals included in Chapter 16 of NAFTA.  At
the moment 63 professions are listed.  Each of these professions
enjoys an ease of boarder crossing through the agreement structure
which requires only the following of a professional from one of the
party countries wishing to cross a boarder of the other two party
countries:

    1.  Proof of citizenship of a Party (at the moment: US, Canada
    or Mexico).

    2.  Documentation of the offer for contract or short-term work
        in the country which the professional wishes to enter.

    3.  Documentation that the professional meet the minimum
        education or alternative credentials outlined for each
        profession in Appendix 1603.D.1 of NAFTA.  The professional
        wishing to enter under this agreement must also meet all
        other immigration stipulations.  At the moment the majority
        (55 of the 63 professions) listed require a baccalaureate or
        licenciatura degree or licence. The inclusion of the
        conservation profession in NAFTA must be proposed by
        representatives of the specific profession from the three
        countries involved.  Prior to this, the representatives
        initiating the proposal must agree upon common definitions,
        criteria and interpretations,  specifically the minimum
        education requirements and alternative credentials.

In order to better understand the impact of this proposal upon US
conservators, and before it begins its work on looking at the
education and alternative credentials issue, the Education and
Training Committee is seeking general input from the field regarding
the following:

    1.  If you are a conservator who regularly crosses the boarders
        of one of the three NAFTA countries for short-term contract
        work (one year or less), what has been your experience with
        the immigration process? Has it been restrictive?  Overly
        complicated?  Has it made your work more difficult or
        impossible?  Has it not been a concern?  Have you had the
        assistance of any formal government agency, legal agency or
        institution in the host country or in your own country?

    2.  What is your opinion of easing passage across boarders for
        conservators to carry out short-term or contract work?

Please forward your comments and experiences to:

    Jerry Podany
    Chair , Education and Training Committee
    c/o J. Paul Getty Museum
    P.O. Box 2112
    Santa Monica, CA  90407
    JPodany<-a t->Getty< . >edu

Please include the country in which you have carried out short-term
contracts and your country of residence.

                                  ***
                  Conservation DistList Instance 10:61
                 Distributed: Tuesday, January 7, 1997
                       Message Id: cdl-10-61-001
                                  ***