Australia and New Zealand Immigration News

Michaelia Cash, Australia's Assistant Immigration Minister, has announced an investigation into the 457 temporary work visa. She has established a public inquiry which will look into the level of 'rorting' or abuse of the 457 visa.

It will investigate whether the requirement for 'labour market testing' (LMT) should be scrapped. LMT was introduced by the last Australian Labor government to prevent abuse of the 457 visa.

The Australian immigration minister, Scott Morrison, and the trade minister Andrew Robb have announced that business visas for Chinese applicants will now last for three years. They will be multiple entry visas allowing applicants to enter and leave the country as many times as they wish.

The intention of the change is to boost trade between the two nations. Until now, business visas have only lasted for one year. Australia has also increased the number of flights between Australia and China in an attempt to boost trade.

The Australian immigration minister Julie Bishop has announced that Ukrainians in Australia will be able to extend their visas; the political instability in their home Country means that it may be unsafe to go home.

Ms Bishop was speaking on 5th March 20014 as the crisis in the Ukraine intensified. She issued a statement saying that Ukrainians currently in the country may apply to have their visas extended if they expire.

More than 74,000 international students applied for Australian student visas in the three months to September 2013, according to Australian immigration. This is the highest figure for four years and seems to show that Australia has recovered as a favoured destination for international students after a three year slump in popularity.

Australia became extremely popular as a destination for international students during the first decade of the 21st century. In 2002, 274,000 international students began study in Australia.

The New Zealand working holiday visa scheme has been expanded to include the Philippines. From 5th February 2014, 100 young Filipinos aged between 18 and 30 have been able to spend a year working and holidaying in New Zealand each year. The agreement is a reciprocal one so 100 New Zealanders will be able to spend a year in the Philippines as well.

Australia and New Zealand will jointly host the cricket world cup in 2015. After negotiations between the prime ministers of the two countries, Tony Abbott of Australia and John Key of New Zealand, it has been announced that cricket fans will be able travel to New Zealand for matches during the tournament using an Australian visa.