Australia and New Zealand Immigration News

Accountants looking to emigrate to Australia can apply under the General Skilled Migration (GSM) Program. You will need to meet the basic requirements for GSM, pass the Australian immigration Points Test and pass a skills assessment for your particular occupation to qualify for an Australian visa.

Christchurch in Canterbury, New Zealand is facing a severe shortage of chefs, prompting Hospitality New Zealand, which represents over 2,400 hospitality businesses in New Zealand to push the government to add chefs to the Canterbury Skills Shortage list. Restaurants re-opening after the quakes are desperate for high level staff, but many chefs were forced to leave the city after the February earthquake for jobs overseas or in other New Zealand cities.

Beginning 1 July 2012, Australian immigration will be introducing huge changes to their skilled migration program. This represents the most dramatic change to the Australian immigration system in many, many years. It is expected that under the Australian immigration system fewer people will qualify and processing times will be longer. If you wish to come under the current skilled immigration programme you should apply for a skills assessment as soon as possible.

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.

The Australian Defence Force is trying to recruit laid-off soldiers, sailors and air crew from the UK in order to fill their quota of new recruits. Those chosen will gain preferential treatment when it comes to Australian Immigration and Citizenship. The Australian Navy has sent a delegation to the UK to recruit some of the 5,000 Royal Navy staff due to lose their jobs over the next four years.