Immigration newsletter 29 Feb 2012

Again we remind you that from 1 July 2012 you will have to submit an expression of interest before submitting your Australian skilled immigration application. If you wish to come under the current skilled immigration programme you should apply for a skills assessment as soon as possible.  

There is currently considerable demand in Australia for Office Managers. Eligible applicants can apply under the General Skilled Migration Program. In order to receive a visa, applicants will need to meet the basic requirements for the program, pass the Australian immigration Points Test and pass an occupation skills assessment to qualify for an Australian visa.

A US immigration official announced this week that the US is looking at ways to keep more foreign-born high-tech entrepreneurs in the country. Members of California's Silicon Valley start-up community met with US Citizenship and Immigration Services for an informational meeting to officially launch the "Entrepreneurs in Residence" program. Under the new program, the US immigration department hopes to become more responsive to the needs of tech start-ups.

Canada's government has announced a new pilot program to support new immigrants working in its provinces. The three-year pilot project, known as the Foreign Credential Recognition Loans Pilot, will make it easier for internationally trained professionals to have their credentials recognized and find jobs in their fields.

In 2011, the UK welcomed more visitors than ever from the Middle East, according to VisitBritain, the UK's national tourist authority. Thanks to the Olympics and the Queens Diamond Jubilee taking place in the UK this year, the UK expects to welcome even more tourists from the Middle East on UK visitor visas in 2012.

If you wish to travel to the UK for the 2012 London Olympics you should apply right away for your Visitor visa.

Alberta’s Premier Alison Redford is in the US this week to look for US workers to immigrate to Canada to fill labour shortages. If you wish to work in Alberta you can apply for a work visa under Canada's Temporary Foreign Worker Program which allows Canadian companies to hire foreign workers temporarily to help deal with labour shortages.

The UK has seen an increase in the number of MBA applicants from outside the UK in 2011, according to figures released by The Graduate Management Admissions Council, administrator of the GMAT test. Thanks to this increase the UK is now second in the world after the US as the country of choice for MBA applicants. If you are an International student you will need to apply for a Tier 4 student visa in order to live and study in the UK.

Australian universities have announced that there has been an increase in the number of Indian students applying for admission to its universities in the 2011 academic year. It is believed the increase is due to easier visa rules. There is also a new streamlined student visa processing system that will allow certain students to be treated as low-risk applicants when applying for student visas.