UK Immigration has announced that the Ministry of Justice will be introducing fee charges for some asylum and immigration appeals beginning 19 December 2011.

Immigrants or asylum seekers who want to appeal against a decision notice dated 19 December 2011 or later will need to pay a fee. The appeal fee will apply to most categories of UK visas and decisions. This will not affect any decision notices that are dated before 19 December.

Appeals may be made in some types of visa application if you think that UK immigration officials have made an error in refusing your visa application.

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Immigration Minister Jonathan Coleman announced a significant government investment in Immigration New Zealand’s IT system will help attract more skilled immigrants and boost security.

Coleman said the New Zealand government would be contributing NZ$75 million towards the new IT system.

“The existing IT system is over 15 years old and is reaching the end of its technological lifespan. The cost of even simple changes is high and cannot be maintained over the long term. It’s also significantly impairing our ability to provide standards of service and security comparable to other nations,” said Coleman.

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The British Columbia government in Canada is setting up a task force aimed at boosting the number of skilled workers and investors immigrating to the province. Premier Christy Clark announced this week the creation of a new task force to review how skilled immigrants and foreign investors come to the province and how to better attract skilled workers looking to emigrate.

The task force will review the effectiveness of all of B.C.’s current immigration programs and make recommendations on how to improve the federal government’s responsiveness to immigration needs for skilled workers throughout Western Canada. John Yap, head of the task force, said skilled people all over the world want to come to B.C. The aim of the task force is to make it easier for skilled workers to emigrate.

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Hospitality and tourism industry leaders are pressing the British government to reform the UK visa system, claiming that the slow processing of Visitor Visa applications and government red tape are negatively affecting the growth of the hospitality industry and discouraging visitors from coming to the UK.

The British Hospitality Association (BHA) has written to the prime minister about the future of the tourism sector. In the letter, BHA chief executive, Ufi Ibrahim, said that government action is required to create the necessary conditions in which new jobs can be created in the hospitality industry in order to help improve the economy,

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Hillary Clinton has ordered a review of the J-1 Summer Work Travel Visa, which, it has been claimed, has been abused by criminals and business looking for cheap labour.

The Secretary of State said she wants an “extensive and thorough review” of the programme in order to prevent it being used for people trafficking. The move follows the revelation that a federal indictment accused mafia members of smuggling women from Eastern Europe to work in the sex industry, by using the visa class.

The J-1 visa was launched in 1963 with the intention of allowing college students to visit the US over their summer breaks to travel and work. The programme now allows more than 100,000 young people into the country each year. However, far from being a positive experience, many young US visa holders find they end up working in poor conditions with minimal pay, according to a report by the Associated Press.

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US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced they are in the post-development testing phase of a new online application system that will eventually change the paper-based agency into an electronic, online organisation.

The new Electronic Immigration System (ELIS) will reduce the US immigration department’s reliance on paper and make it easier to access information for benefit requests. The tool is designed to digitize the current paper documentation review by allowing US visa applicants to submit and track their applications online.

“This is an unprecedented step for the world’s largest and most complex immigration system,” said the USCIS . “Past efforts to transform our agency have not reached the point where we are today: the testing phase of a system that has been developed.”

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The Australian government has announced this week that more international students will be eligible for the Post-Study work visa as part of the Australian government’s response to the Knight Review of the student visa program.

Australian Immigration announced on November 30 the new Post-Study work visa program would be available for Bachelor or higher degree graduates starting in 2013, according to a joint press release from Chris Evans, Australian Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills, Jobs and Workplace Relations and Chris Bowen, Australian Minister for Immigration and Citizenship.

“These changes bring Australia into line with arrangements in other countries and enable education providers to offer a more competitive package to international students who are seeking good quality and long-term study in Australia, regardless of their field of interest,”said Evans.

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The first applications for the Parent and Grandparent Super Visa will be accepted today, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced.

The Parent and Grandparent Super Visa is one element of Phase I of the Action Plan for Faster Family Reunification, announced in November. The Super Visa will allow applicants to remain in Canada for up to 24 months at a time without having to renew their status.

To be eligible, the applicant must:
•Be a parent or grandparent of a Canadian citizen or permanent resident;
•Provide a written commitment of financial support from their child or grandchild in Canada, including proof that the child or grandchild meets the minimum necessary income (Low Income Cut-Off);
•Undergo the Immigration Medical Examination;
•Submit proof that they have purchased comprehensive Canadian medical insurance, valid for at least one year; and
•Satisfy the Canadian visa officer that they meet all other standard admissibility criteria.

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Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Kenney announced last week that federal funding of immigrant settlement services in most Canadian provinces and territories will be increased for the 2012-2013 fiscal year. The funding goes towards services that help new immigrants settle in Canada.

Some of the largest immigration settlement funding increases will be for Prince Edward Island, Yukon and Saskatchewan; Ontario is the only province to receive a decrease in funding. Quebec is not included in these figures as they handle their own immigration program.

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US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced they have received enough petitions for graduate level skilled workers under the H-1B visa program to meet the cap of 65,000 for fiscal year 2012. This is the earliest the visa cap has been reached in the past three years, signifying renewed demand for this visa program.

Each year on April 1 the USCIS begins accepting H-1B petitions for the new fiscal year; USCIS announced the cap for H-1B visa applications was officially reached on 22 November, two months ahead of last year.

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