Immigration news

US Senator Mark Warner vowed to look into the "disproportionate number" of H-1B visas being denied in India. There have also been concerns over the increase in certain categories of visa fees.Senator Warner, who recently visited India, met with Indian officials and corporate leaders who expressed their concern over the increase in US visa fees and the number of US H-1B visa applications being refused.

From 1 January 2012, five states in the US have implemented new laws requiring employers to register for and use the federal E-Verify system to confirm that their immigrant employees are legally allowed to work in the US.Most of the new laws were passed following the US Supreme Court's May 2011 decision to uphold Arizona's right to make the use of the online employment authorization tool, E-Verify compulsory for Arizona based employers. The tool allows employers to make sure immigrants have the proper work visa to work in the US.

The "Down Under Live" and "Canada Live" expos will be held next month in the UK providing detailed information of immigration and employment opportunities for Australia, New Zealand and Canada and will take place in three different cities across the UK. If you are interested in immigration to Australia, New Zealand, and Canada you should seriously consider visiting an Immigration Expo.

With this month marking the two year anniversary of Haiti's massive earthquake, members of the US Congress along with Haitian-American community leaders are urging the Obama administration to expedite visas for more Haitians to live and work in the US.Specifically, they are asking to fast-track visas for tens of thousands of Haitians whose applications have already been approved but could take many more years for a visa to be issued. This is due to a cap on the number of visas that the US grants each year.

Many Greeks are now immigrating abroad to find work in places like Australia; Greece is facing an uncertain economic future. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, short-term arrivals of Greek citizens are up 21 percent to about 4,000 people in the six month period from May to November 2011, compared with the same period two years ago.Currently Greece has a 17 percent unemployment rate, while Australia is experiencing skills shortages with many unfilled positions available for skilled workers.

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) is encouraging Filipinos to apply for available job opportunities for nurses and for other skilled worker positions in Australia this year. POEA Administrator Carlos Cao Jr. said Filipinos should take advantage of the shortage of Australian workers in the nursing, mining, and manufacturing sectors.