Privacy Statement

PRIVACY STATEMENT

With this privacy notice we explain how Permits Foundation handles your personal data and how we comply with the requirements set by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Permits Foundation (hereafter called the Foundation) is responsible for data processing, including on this website.

In handling your personal data, the Foundation:

• clearly states the purposes for which we process personal data;
• restrict our processing of personal data to only the personal data necessary for those purposes;
• will first ask for permission to process your personal data in cases where your permission is required;
• takes appropriate security measures to protect your personal data and also require this from third parties that process personal data on our behalf;
• respects your right to provide, correct or delete your personal data on your request.

Activities where the Foundation processes your personal data:

By using this website www.permitsfoundation.com you share information with us via cookies. You may also submit personal data yourself to the Foundation, for example when you email us, sign-up to the Foundation’s e- newsletter. We only keep and use the personal data provided, within the framework of the activities you request from the Foundation (for example receiving our e-newsletters). The primary lawful bases we rely on for processing this information are legitimate interest and your consent. You have the right to withdraw your consent at any time (see Your rights section below).

Below we provide further detail for each activity on the type of personal data we process, why we process it and for how long we retain it.

Emails

If you send the Foundation an e-mail, the personal data you send will be kept for as long as is required to answer and process the email content. If we consider that your e-mail contains information that might contribute to the purpose of the Foundation or our research and knowledge databank, we retain the email longer term and until it is no longer relevant to the goals of the Foundation. It is then deleted. You can also ask for your data to be deleted (see Your rights section below).

Newsletter

We distribute our e-newsletter to inform interested parties about our global advocacy work. You will only be added to the list of subscribers with your prior consent, you provide your name, email address and company/organisation. Your data remains on this list unless you ask for it to be removed. Each newsletter contains a means in the footer by which you can unsubscribe at any time.

Survey

Where the Foundation runs feedback polls/surveys, responses will be treated confidentially. No individuals will be identified in the reporting of the survey data we do not ask for participants names. In completing the survey, participants may choose to provide personal data including their work title or company/department but there are no mandatory fields, participation in all sections is voluntary. We use a third party platform (Alchemer) to host our survey. The platform is GDPR compliant and data is not stored outside the EU. Survey data will be deleted from the survey platform within 12 weeks after the close of the survey question(s). Survey data is then anonymised and stored securely on our system indefinitely as statistical data as an evidence base for our work (see Security section below).

Conference

On 5 June 2024, the Foundation will host our “Partnering for Progress” Conference (hereafter “the Conference”) in London, UK. To register, we require attendees to provide their name, company/other professional affiliation and email address. This information is sent to the Foundation by the attendee via an online registration form completed through Alchemer (a third party, GDPR compliant platform) or via email to Permits Foundation. Information stored on the Alchemer platform will be deleted within four months of the Conference Date. Data received from Alchemer or via email will be stored on the Foundation’s database so that participants can receive further instructions in preparation of attending the Conference. Personal data held within the Foundation’s database will be deleted within four months of the Conference date unless we have received permission from participants to keep their data for longer.

Where participants or other interested parties have provided the Foundation with recorded (video and audio) messages in advance of the Conference, we ensure that they have first given consent. Personal data contained in, or submitted in writing along with pre-Conference recordings (audio, visual, name, company/professional affiliation, title, nationality, and/or professional background) will be held on the Foundation’s database and then deleted within four months of the Conference Date unless participants have given permission to keep their data for longer or have further consented to its publication on the Foundation’s website.

Photos may be taken on the day of the Conference. Participants will be informed in advance. Participants can request at any time for photos taken at Conference to be deleted.

Cookies

When you visit the Permits Foundation website, you are asked to manage cookie consent. Cookies help us make the website function properly, make it more secure and provide better user experience. They help us to understand how the website performs, to analyse what works and where improvement is needed. Our website uses first-party and third-party cookies. First-party cookies are mostly necessary for the website to function the right way. They do not collect any of your personally identifiable data. The third-party cookies used on our website are mainly for understanding how the website performs, how you interact with our website, and keeping our services secure.

What type of cookies do we use?

Necessary: Some cookies are essential for you to be able to experience the full functionality of our site. They allow us to maintain user sessions and prevent any security threats. They do not collect or store any personal information.

Functional: These are the cookies that help certain non-essential functionalities on our website. These functionalities include embedding content like videos or sharing content of the website on social media platforms.

Analytics: These cookies store information like the number of visitors to the website, the number of unique visitors, which pages of the website have been visited, the source of the visit, etc. These data help us understand and analyse how well the website performs and where it needs improvement.

When you land on our website there will be a pop up bar where you can manage cookie consent. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL of the cookies listed. However, you may visit “Cookie Settings” to provide controlled consent. Once you have made your choice, you can manage your cookie consent at any time. Look for the “Manage Consent” pop-up.

Google Analytics 4

We use Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to keep track of how visitors use our website. We use this knowledge to optimise our website for our visitors. The IP-address of the visitor is anonymised.

Security

We have taken appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data against unlawful processing. For example, we have taken the following measures:

• All persons who have access to your data on behalf of the Foundation are bound by a confidentiality agreement in our employment contract.
• We require multi-factor authentication to access our systems.
• Our employees have been informed about GDPR compliance and the importance of the protection of personal data.

The Foundation’s website

We have compiled the country information and associated links on our website for general information purposes only. We cannot guarantee that it is accurate or up to date e.g. as immigration regulations change frequently. Permits Foundation accepts no responsibility for any (personal) loss resulting from reliance on any information on this site or any other sites to which it is linked. If you require specific advice about working in a particular country please contact the relevant immigration authorities or an immigration lawyer.

Third party websites

This privacy statement does not apply to websites of third parties that are connected to our website by means of links. We cannot guarantee that these third parties handle your personal data in a reliable or secure manner. We encourage you to read the privacy statement of these websites before using these websites.

Changes to this privacy statement

Because we do not exclude that our activities will change in the future, this privacy statement could also change. We advise you to consult this privacy statement regularly so that you are aware of these changes. This privacy statement was last updated on 17 January 2025.

Your rights concerning your data protection are outlined in Chapter three of the GDPR and can be summarised as follows.

• Your right to information on and access to personal data – You have the right to ask us for copies of your personal information.
• Your right to rectification – You have the right to ask us to rectify personal information you think is inaccurate. You also have the right to ask us to complete information you think is incomplete.
• Your right to erasure – You have the right to ask us to erase your personal information in certain circumstances.
• Your right to restriction of processing – You have the right to ask us to restrict the processing of your personal information in certain circumstances.
• Your right to object to processing – You have the right to object to the processing of your personal information in certain circumstances.
• Your right to data portability – You have the right to ask that we transfer the personal information you gave us to another organisation, or to you, in certain circumstances.
• Your right to request that decisions based on automated processing concerning you or significantly affecting you and based on your personal data are made by natural persons, not only by computers. You also have the right in this case to express your point of view and to contest the decision.

To get in contact with us regarding your rights or with questions about how your personal data is handled by the Foundation, please email contact@permitsfoundation.com. We will respond to your request within one month.

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