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Please be advised that although the application form for the Workers Registration Scheme has an expiry date of January 31 2005, applications on this form will continue to be accepted until February 28 2005.
See our section on the Workers Registration Scheme for more details.
As from 1 February 2005, the rules for overseas nationals wishing to marry in the UK have changed. All overseas nationals who wish to marry in the UK (apart from EEA nationals) will now need a Government certificate of approval to marry. The main changes are outlined below:
President George Bush has repeated his calls for new US immigration policies, including a "guest worker" scheme that would legalize the status of millions of people who are currently working illegally in the US, the Washington Times reports.
This suggests that he intends to keep his promise to make immigration reform a priority in his second term. The cornerstone of the administration's plans is a scheme to permit up to 12 million illegal aliens (immigrants) to apply for renewable three-year work visas to do jobs that Americans don't want to do.
The man whose accusations forced Canada's immigration minister to resign will be deported from the country, the Globe and Mail newspaper reports.
Immigration Minister Judy Sgro resigned from the cabinet on January 14 after Harjit Singh, a Toronto pizza shop owner, said the politician had offered to help him beat the deportation order against him in exchange for free food and campaign assistance. However, on February 1 a Federal Court Judge ordered that Mr. Singh should leave Canada February 2 Canadian time.
Prime Minister Tony Blair has said that the UK's cooperation with the European Union on immigration and asylum issues is justified, the Scotsman newspaper reports.
OnJanuary 31 a spokesman for Mr. Blair said that agreements onimmigration and asylum made with the EU over the past few years wereintended to stop "asylum shopping" and ensure that applicants are dealtwith in the first European country they enter. According to thespokesman, this could only be done through a combination of measures,including collaboration with neighbouring European states.
The Sectors Based Scheme is still the subject of an ongoing review. The current sectors based work permit scheme will continue under its existing quota system and criteria until the review is complete and the findings are published.
Therefore at the moment there is still the 20% limit on the number of SBS permits issued to a single nationality for each of the sectors, and so there will be no further hospitality permits issued to Bangladeshi nationals.