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People wishing to come to the United Kingdom as skilled immigrants from India may no longer use the HSMP scheme. Tier 1 must now be used for skilled migration. Everyone else in the world will be required to use Tier 1 from some time beginning this summer.

A new report by Australia's Department of Immigration and Citizenship shows that immigration accounted for 56% of population growth last year. The report, Population Flows: Immigration Aspects, said that record numbers of skilled immigrants were a major factor. Emigration from Australia is at its highest point ever, with 72,000 people leaving the country permanently during 2006-07. Australia lost 35,196 skilled workers during this period, but gained 49,523.

Skilled migrtion accounts for 60% of population growth in Western Australia. More than 2/3's of overseas migrants to Western Australia come from the United Kingdom. 32.1% of Western Australia's labor force is foreign born...

New rules coming into effect for UK Tier 1 applicants from India revise the Maintenance requirement. The Maintenance requirement is intended to prove that immigrants have enough funds to support themselves and their dependents when arriving in the United Kingdom. Applicants from India must be able to document GBP 2800 or more in funds for 90 days prior to submitting their application. At no time during this period may their funds be below this level.

Tier 1 for General Highly Skilled Migrants to the United Kingdom is now active for applications made from India. People wishing to come to Britain as skilled immigrants from India may no longer use the HSMP scheme. Along with India, applications made within the UK are subject to the new Tier 1 rules as well. The rest of the world may still apply under HSMP until "sometime later this year."

In November and...

workpermit.com has opened an office in New Delhi, India. Please feel free to make an appointment now and discuss how we may help you with work permits, residency and other immigration-related issues. Visit the " Contact Us " section of our website for details.

The United Kingdom's new "Tiered" immigration system covers all employment, study, and training-based immigration into the country. Tier 1 for General Highly Skilled Migrants specifically replaces the old Highly Skilled Migrant Programme (HSMP). Tier 1 has already come into effect for people already in Britain and people applying from India. During the second half of this year the UK will finish implementing Tier 1. Once fully implemented, eight previously existing immigration categories will be removed. Transitional arrangements are being put into place for immigrants already in the UK under these schemes.

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services...

Major British political opposition parties are voicing their support of a High Court ruling two weeks ago in favor of HSMP visa holders. In December 2006, the government changed the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme (HSMP), making it more difficult for some people to score enough points to renew their visa. Retroactive application of these changes caused extensive controversy. The High Court ruling overturned the retrospective application of the changes, finding the actions of the government to be in violation of the law.

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has completed the selection process on nearly 200,000 H-1B petitions received this month. More than 31,000 of the petitions received were for the Advanced Degree Exemption, reserved for graduates of U.S. universities at a Masters degree or higher. Everyone selected should receive notification by June 2nd and will eligible to begin work on 01 October, the first day of...

A new report out by a non-profit organization, The Work Foundation, analyses the impact of recent immigration trends in the United Kingdom. Findings generally show that Britain has benefitted from the high levels of immigration over the last ten years. Inflation and interest rates have been lower than expected as a result of increased migration, according to the report. Labor shortages have been alleviated and the economy has been growing steadily. The report also welcomes the UK's new points-based immigration system , but cautions that the Tier system would benefit from greater flexibility.

A new survey by a global employment services company finds that 31% of employers across the world are having a difficult time finding employees. The report found the top three occupation categories most in demand are skilled manual trades, sales representatives, and technicians in the areas of production/operations, engineering, and maintenance. The authors of...