Immigration news

A former Australian immigration department official came out this week claiming that the country's immigration system is subject to widespread fraud, with hundreds of people apparently lying about their nationality to gain a visa.

On 3 May, the UK Border Agency's main UK visa processing system crashed, forcing hundreds of people to be turned away.Applicants were already queueing at the UKBA's public inquiry office in Croydon, applying to extend or renew biometric residence permits, when they were told to go home on Thursday because the computer system had crashed. Although the system is now available again, it has imposed significant delays on biometric appointments.

Australian immigration has announced that so far this year, India is the top source country for skilled permanent migrants coming to Australia, surpassing China and the UK."Most of the Indian migration is skilled, both independent and sponsored. Independent migrants clear the points test and come over and look for work. Sponsored migration is when an employer sponsors someone. We encourage that. It's better for them, it's better for us," said Australian immigration minister Chris Bowen.

The number of young people wishing to travel and work in Australia on the Working Holiday visa has increased by three percent in 2011, according to figures released by Destination NSW at the Australian Youth Tourism Exchange at the Sunshine Coast.The Australian Youth Tourism Exchange announced that the numbers of working holiday visa holders traveling to New South Wales alone grew by 2.1 percent for the same period. NSW saw 72.5 percent of the total 241,000 working tourists coming to Australia.

This week the US has launched their first-ever marketing campaign aimed at increasing tourism to the country. The campaign includes print, web and video ads created by Brand USA, which is a group consisting of government agencies and private companies.

A US visa programme the E-3 visa set up to allow Australian professionals to live and work in America and which can be renewed indefinitely is struggling to make up the numbers with just a quarter of the 10,500 E-3 visas annually available to Australians being used.The special E-3 visa was created under the Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement in 2005. Under the visa, Australians can stay in the U.S. for two years initially; The visa can then be renewed indefinitely in two-year increments.