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New legislation, if enacted, will make obtaining a work visa in the US much easier for immigrant entrepreneurs.
The StartUp Visa Act of 2011 would allow an immigrant entrepreneur to receive a two year visa as long as he or she can show that a qualified U.S. investor is willing to invest in the immigrant's venture or can show that the business has generated at least $100,000 in annual sales from the US.
"Implementing the radical changes planned for the System in 2011-12 will enable the Agency to reconsider its priorities and improve customer service and its assurance over control systems," said Amyas Morse, head of NAO.
Skilled immigration to the UK, Canada and Australia has become increasingly difficult in recent years. Singapore and Hong Kong already have large Indian communities. More and more Indians are looking at Singapore and Hong Kong as immigration destinations.
The UK government has announced that it will remove 8 occupations from Shortage Occupation List (SOL). If an occupation is on the shortage occupation list it is easier for an employer to employ a migrant under Tier 2 of the UK's points based immigration system.
On 30 April 2011, the transitional Worker Registration Scheme (WRS) for workers from the eight countries that joined the EU in 2004 will end. Currently, workers from these countries must register under the scheme to work in the UK.
The 'A8' countries are as follows:
The Migration Advisory Committee set up by the previous UK Government in 2007 to advise on immigration issues has recommended that eight job titles be removed from the Shortage Occupation List (SOL). This is relevant for applications under the Tier 2 visa for Skilled Workers, the UK's employer-sponsored immigration visa.