Immigration news

In the build up to the US presidential election on November 8, 2016, US immigration has been one of the key issues thrust into the spotlight by both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. Republican, Trump who claims to be a billionairehas made his anti-immigration stance one of the cornerstones of his campaign.

Democrat Hillary Clinton, who is now in the clear after an investigation of her use of a personal email server for government emails is the front runner and projects a pro-immigration stance, particularly when it comes to illegal immigrants.

Recent revelations confirm Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's hypocritical behaviour concerning immigration in the United States.  It was reported by BuzzFeed News on Wednesday 27 July that Trump's Mar-a-Lago Club in Palm Beach and the nearby Trump National Golf Club, in Jupiter, just north of Palm Beach, are looking to hire 78 foreign workers on H-2B visas. 

Warrigal, a care provider for the elderly based in Illawarra, Australia, has been criticised by the region’s Health Services Union [HSU] for unveiling plans to recruit 50 foreign workers on 457 visas. Gerard Hayes, secretary for the Health Services Union in New South Wales [NSW], described Warrigal’s decision as an ‘act of betrayal against local workers.’

Australia’s High Court has ruled that foreign offshore workers, on vessels operating in the lucrative offshore resources industry, are required to have an Australian work visa such as a 457 visa and must receive minimum pay and conditions. The ruling comes as an embarrassing blow to Australia’s Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull.

Employers applying for L-1 visas to fill managerial and specialist knowledge job vacancies under ‘blanket’ approval are now required to complete a new, longer form that further probes the employment history of potential workers. The new form was introduced on August 29, 2016.

A new online appointment system introduced by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service had been pulled offline after experiencing high volume traffic levels. The new system, which went live on Thursday, 8 September, 2016, aims to end the long queues, which occur at the immigration registration office on Burgh Quay, Dublin.  We understand that it is now operational.