Immigration news

UK Home Secretary Charles Clarke has said the Government's recently announced five-year plan will give the Country an immigration system "fit for the 21st century," the website politics.co.uk reports.

In a statement on March 21, Mr. Clarke said the immigration system must be seen to be properly run and enforced, with clear rules governing who is allowed to enter the Country and settle. However, he acknowledged that migration is important and said that genuine refugees would continue to find a safe haven in the UK.

Nova Scotia in Eastern Canada is pioneering a new way to attract skilled immigrants and business immigrants, the Toronto Star newspaper reports.

Under Canadian law, provinces can set their own immigration rules under "provincial nomination programs." Using this approach, Nova Scotia, one of the so-called Maritime provinces, introduced an immigration program last year for immigrants to stimulate its economy and compensate for a declining birth rate.

There have been no significant changes to processing times for WorkPermits UK. Customers can expect the following waiting times:

The Dutch Government will look at introducing new restrictions on social security benefits to immigrants, the website expatica.com reports.

The Netherlands' Social Affairs State Secretary Henk van Hoof said on March 9 that there would be particular emphasis on restricting access to unemployment benefits and old age pensions. Under the scheme, immigrants to the Netherlands will be asked to pay a lump sum prior to entering the country, with those not doing so being refused access to the Netherlands pension scheme.

Labour force analysts say Australia must find workers from industrialized Countries to meet its need for skilled immigrants, the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper reports.

In a press release dated March 8, 2005, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) stated that the additional 20,000 H-1B petitions, created under the Omnibus Appropriations Act, will be available to all qualified H-1B nonimmigrant aliens and will not be limited to those aliens holding a master's degree or a higher degree from a US institution of higher learning for the current Fiscal Year 2005.