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Immigration news

The Australian government will consider extending visas for Egyptians in Australia whose visas are about to expire; This is due to the political situation in Egypt.

Egyptian citizens within Australia under temporary visas are urged to contact the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) to discuss their options.

"DIAC would take the circumstances in Egypt into account when dealing with requests for visa extensions," said Immigration Minister Chris Bowen.

For some non-EU citizens who wish to study in the UK, applying now for a student visa may be advisable. The UK Government concluded a consultation on stricter student immigration rules on 31 January 2011. Immigration Minister Damien Green has said recently that stricter regulations are "in the best interest of legitimate students".

According to the UK Border Agency, the eight-week consultation received over 30,000 responses. The consultation proposed a number of measures for curbing UK student immigration, including:

The Australian Capital Territory maintained a high level of immigration during the 2009-10 fiscal year. Each year in the last two years more than 1850 people have chosen to emigrate to Canberra.

The Australian Capital Territory, home of Australia's capital city, is the nation's smallest state/territory.

The numbers are above the average annual level over the last ten years but did not reach the record of 1942 immigrant arrivals in 2008-09.

Students from countries such as Saudi Arabia, India, and Vietnam are contributing to huge growth in New Zealand's education industry.

The New Zealand education industry brought in $664 million more in student fee income than it did in the previous year. According to the Department of Labour's migration trends report, this included a 10 percent overall growth in revenue from international students.

The Australian government will make it easier for employers to bring in temporary overseas workers to help with the reconstruction efforts in Queensland.

Queensland was devastated by flooding in December and January which resulted in thousands of people being forced to evacuate. The economic damage is is estimated at about $10 billion.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard promised to fast-track visa applications for employer-sponsored temporary skilled migrants who join the rebuilding effort.

Non Canadian family members of Canadians in the education and health sector will be able to start work on arrival in Ontario; Instead of waiting in some cases for a year there will be immediate work rights on arrival for the non-Canadian spouses, common law partners, and dependent children of Canadian citizens under a new pilot project.

"It's a reverse brain drain," said Immigration Minister Jason Kenney. "We're making it easier for Canadians abroad to bring their skills home and contribute to the Canada of tomorrow."