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Australia implemented major changes to its General Skilled Migration program on 1 July 2011. The pass mark for various visa subclasses is now 65 points. The age limit has also been raised from 45 years of age to 50. Nominated occupations no longer earn points, but applicants are still required to nominate an occupation. Points are scored for experience in an occupation. Experience within Australia and overseas in a nominated occupation can be combined to earn points of up to 20 points.

There have been significant changes to the UK Tier 4 student visa category recently. The Tier 4 student visa changes include the following: 1. You will only be allowed to work in the UK if you are a student sponsored by higher education institutions (HEIs) and publicly funded further education colleges. You will be able to work part-time during term time and full-time during holidays. 2. You...

Australia is processing the highest number of temporary 457 visa applications since 2008, as business demand for overseas workers continues to increase. The Australian economy took a dip like most Countries after the global financial crisis; However, Australia was not as badly affected as many other Countries and it's economy is recovering more rapidly than in other Countries due to heavy demand in the mining industry and related industries.

Western Australia (WA) is sending a delegation to the United Kingdom and Ireland in a bid to lure British and Irish workers to migrate to the Australian state. A plan to head off a shortfall of 150,000 skilled workers by 2017 was announced by Training and Workforce Development Minister Peter Collier. The resources industry will be particularly badly affected by skills shortages as a number of mining projects get underway in the near future.

MPs are warning that recent...

Australian immigration minister Chris Bowen has announced that Perth, Western Australia will have a sponsored migration scheme which will make it easier for employers to hire overseas workers. Bowen said that Perth will come under the government's Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme, a move sure to please Australian employers desperate to hire overseas workers. If you wish to immigrate to Australia, you may be eligible to apply for immigration under a Regional Sponsored Migration scheme specific to Perth, Western Australia. We are able to offer sponsorships for occupations which are not on the state migration plan list, meaning you may be eligible for immigration to Australia under a 475 visa with experience in an occupation that is not on the occupation list.

A Northern Ireland MP, Jim Shannon, has called for immigration changes that would allow Filipino fisherman to keep on working in Northern Ireland. Under current immigration rules, approximately...

A parliamentary committee has taken the UK Government to task over its recent tightening of student immigration rules, saying that the new restrictions could cost the UK economy £3.6 billion over the next four years. UK universities depend heavily on fees from non-EU students who pay up to three times as much as students from Britain and the EU. The Home Affairs Select Committee of the House of Commons accused Home Secretary Theresa May of recklessly implementing the new rules without regard to the economic consequences. The committee noted that the Government did not properly consider all the relevant factors when formulating student visa policy.

Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Kenney says that his government recognises the importance of nominee programs to help provinces and territories obtain the skilled migrants they need to fill labor shortages. "That is why we plan to admit about 40,000 immigrants in the provincial nominee...