Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 2, February 2024
1.00
Authority
1.01 The Arkansas
Secretary of State's authority for promulgating this rule is pursuant to Ark.
Code Ann. §
6-18-1705.
1.02 This rule shall be known as the rule for
the Registration of International Student Exchange Visitor Placement
Organizations
2.00
Purpose
2.01 The purpose of this
rule is to provide a procedure to implement Act 966 of 2009 also known as the
"International Student Exchange Visitor Placement Organization Registration
Act"
3.00
Definitions
3.01 Terms defined
in A.C.A.
6-18-1703 shall apply
in this rule.
3.02 "Act" means the
Arkansas International Student Exchange Visitor Placement Organization Act -
Act 966 of 2009
3.03 "Foreign
Entity" means any corporation, limited liability company, or other business
entity whether for profit or not-for-profit organized under laws other than the
laws of the State of Arkansas.
3.04
"Host family" means the family residing in the State of Arkansas with whom the
international student exchange visitor resides during his or her period of
academic study.
3.05 "International
student exchange visitor" or 'student" means any foreign national who:
(a) Is eighteen years of age or under, or up
to the age of twenty-one; and
(b)
Is engaged in full-time participation in a prescribed course of study in this
state conducted by any secondary public or private institution of learning;
and
(c) Has been selected to
participate in an exchange visitor program sponsored by an international
student exchange visitor placement organization; and
(d) Enters the state of Arkansas with a
nonimmigrant visa.
3.06
"Local representative" means a natural person who is responsible on behalf of
an international student exchange visitor placement organization for:
(A) The selection of a suitable host family
for the placement of a foreign exchange student;
(B) The enrollment of a foreign exchange
student in a local public or private school; and
(C) The periodic monitoring of the foreign
exchange student and his or her living conditions and educational
progress
3.07 "Local
representative address" means the physical street address of the local
representative.
3.08 'Secretary of
State" means the Arkansas Secretary of State or any employee of the Secretary
of State acting under the authority of the Secretary of State.
3.09 "Nonimmigrant visa" means a visa
category used by nonresident aliens whose primary purpose for visiting the
United States is to study full time at an approved institution.
4.00
General
4.01 Every organization required by the
provisions of the Arkansas International Student Exchange Visitor Placement
Organization Registration Act of 2009 (Arkansas Code
6-18-1001
et. seq.) shall, prior to placing a foreign exchange student with a host family
or in a public or private school in this state, obtain a valid certificate of
registration from the Arkansas Secretary of State.
4.02 Registration shall not be considered or
be represented as an endorsement of the organization by the Secretary of State
or the State of Arkansas.
5.00
Place of Filing.
The addresses to be used for delivery and receipt of mail
are:
5.01 Mailing Address shall be the
mailing address of the Business and Commercial Services Division of the
Arkansas Secretary of State.
5.02
Physical Address shall be the physical address of the Business and Commercial
Services Division of the Arkansas Secretary of State.
5.03 The telephone numbers to be used for
inquiries relating to this Act and to be disclosed by the organization as
required by the Act are: (501) 682-3409 or 1-888-233 -0325.
6.00
Time of Registration
and Renewal
6.01 The initial
registration and annual renewals shall be filed with the Secretary of State by
January 1 immediately preceding the next regular school year in which the
organization proposes to place a foreign exchange student.
6.02 The Secretary of State shall issue a
certificate of registration to the organization by February 1 if the
application is in order.
7.00
Service of Process and Service of
Notices
7.01 The organization shall be
required for the purpose of service of process and service of notices to
provide the name, address, and telephone number of an officer or employee of
the organization authorized to receive and accept service of process and
service of notices.
7.02 In
addition the organization shall provide a statement indicating that if service
of process and service of notices cannot be reasonably given to the officer as
provided by the organization, service of process and service of notices shall
be effected by service upon the Secretary of State. Service of process or
service of notice to the Secretary of State shall be delivered to "Attention:
Legal Division" at the address indicated above.
8.00
Application for
Registration
8.01 All registration
applications shall be submitted in the manner and on the form(s) prescribed by
the Secretary of State.
8.02 The
application for registration as an international student exchange visitor
placement organization shall include the following information:
(1) The name, address, and telephone number
of the organization, its chief executive officer, and the person within the
organization who has primary responsibility for supervising placements within
the state;
(2) Evidence of the
organization's most recent listing with the Council on Standards for
International Educational Travel, by submitting a copy of the CSIET's Approval
for Listing Letter showing current registration.
(3) Evidence of the organization's federal
income tax exemption status, if applicable, by submitting the appropriate
letter from the Internal Revenue Service;
(4) A statement of compliance declaring that
all monetary and nonmonetary compensation paid to employees who are residents
of Arkansas has been reported in accordance with current state income tax law.
if the organization has paid employees;
(5) A list of the organization's placements
in Arkansas for the previous academic year, including the number of students
placed, their home countries, the school districts in which they were placed if
placed in a public school or the private school in which they were placed, and
the length of time of their placements;
(6) The organization's most recent brochure
describing its programs;
(7)
Evidence that students participating in the exchange program has health and
accident insurance from the time of departure from home to the time the student
returns to his or her home country, by providing evidence of the agreement or
contract between the organization and the insurance carrier(s).
(8) The names, addresses, and telephone
numbers of the organization's local representatives for Arkansas; and
(9) A sample copy of an actual informational
document which must be provided to each student, host family, and school
principal of the school in which the student is being placed as required by the
Act.
8.03 If any of
these requirements do not apply to the organization, an explanation concerning
the requirement shall be provided.
8.04 The application must be signed by the
chief executive officer of the organization and the person within the
organization who has primary responsibility for supervising placements within
the state of Arkansas.
9.00
Change of Information on
Application
Organizations that have registered shall inform the Secretary of
State of any changes in the information required by the Act within thirty (30)
days of the change.
10.00
Annual Renewal of Registration
10.01 No later than January 1 immediately
preceding the next regular school year in which the organization proposes to
place a foreign exchange student, the organization shall file a renewal of
registration with the Secretary of State, by completing the registration
requirements. Such renewal of registration shall be effective for one calendar
year. If an organization registers with the Secretary of State after January 1
of the calendar year, the effective date of the registration will be the date
that the registration is approved by the Secretary of State, and the
registration will expire at the end of the same year.
10.02 Organizations may file an application
for renewal up to 90 days prior to the expiration period. Failure of the
Secretary of State to notify the organization of renewal does not relieve the
organization's obligation to file renewal documents. Organizations that do not
have an approved and filed registration may not place students in the upcoming
school year.
11.00
Fees for Registration
11.01
Organizations required to register under this Act shall pay an initial
registration fee of one hundred fifty dollars ($150).
11.02 Organizations required to file renewal
of registration under this Act shall pay an annual renewal fee of fifty dollars
($50).
11.03 A notification of
change of information required under this Act shall be accepted without fee so
long as the organization has current registration status.
12.00
Public Records
12.01 The information provided the Secretary
of State under this Act is a public record and shall be open to inspection and
copying by any citizen of the State of Arkansas during the regular business
hours of the Secretary of State's office.
12.02 Such inspections shall at all times be
subject to the control and supervision of an employee of the Office of the
Secretary of State. Federal Identification, social security numbers and
student's personal information are not subject to inspection or
release.
13.00
United States Department of State
An international student exchange visitor placement organization
shall submit evidence that the organization has been approved by the United
States Department of State for the placement of foreign exchange
students.
14.00
Local Representative
An international student exchange visitor placement organization
shall submit a statement of compliance stating it will have a local
representative who lives within one hundred twenty miles of the host families
of his or her assigned students.
15.00
List of Registered
Organizations
Each year following the end of the registration deadline, the
Secretary of State shall publish a list of international student exchange
visitor placement organizations registered to place foreign exchange students
in host homes. The list will be published on the Secretary of State's web site
and will be also be available in a printed format.
16.00
Registration
Applications.
Any application received by the Secretary of State which is not
on the prescribed form, is incomplete, unsigned, illegible, or does not include
all required fees, information and documents, as required by the Act, shall not
be accepted for filing. Upon successful filing the Secretary of State shall
send a copy of the filed certificate of registration with a receipt for the
fees to the organization.
17.00
Informational Document
International student exchange visitor placement organizations
that provide services to place students in this state shall provide prior to
arrival to each student, host family, and school principal of the school in
which the student is being placed, an informational document in English that
shall include the items required by the Act.
18.00
Termination and
Expiration
18.01 Registrations of
organizations shall be terminated when any of the following circumstances set
forth occur:
(a) Voluntary termination. An
organization may voluntarily terminate its registration by notifying the
Secretary of State of such intent. The organization's registration shall
terminate upon such notification.
(b) Failure to apply for renewal of
registration. Failure to apply for renewal of registration will result in the
automatic expiration of the organization's registration. If expired, the
organization must apply for a new registration. The effective date of the new
registration will be the date that the registration is approved by the
Secretary of State, and the registration will again expire at the end of the
same calendar year.
18.02 An organization that fails to register
as required or that submits false or incorrect information to the Secretary of
State in filing statements required, whether or not the statement or report is
verified, shall be prohibited from placing students in this state during the
following academic year.
19.00
Foreign Entities.
Any foreign corporation, foreign limited liability company or
other foreign entity applying for registration under this Act shall be
registered to transact business in this state and be in "good standing."
20.00
Sole Proprietorships
and Partnerships
Any sole proprietorship or partnership applying for registration
under this Act, using a dba, fictitious, assumed or designated name shall
provide evidence of the filing of that name with the appropriate county
clerk.
21.00
Requests by Secretary of State.
Organizations shall furnish all information, reports, documents,
books, files and other records requested by the Secretary of State on all
matters related to the registration of the international student exchange
visitor placement organization.
22.00
Effective Date
The effective date of this rule shall be December 31,
2009
