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Immigration news

If you are a national of a Country on the US visa waiver scheme you will from 8 September 2010 have to pay a fee of $14 under the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA). From January 2009 everyone entering the US under the visa waiver scheme needs to apply under ESTA. So far there has been no fee for applying under ESTA.

The Australian Government is holding an employment expo in London on 11 and 12 September 2010 to match Australian employers with skilled workers from the UK. The Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) had the following to say:

UK Immigration will be abolishing the 'certificate of approval' scheme probably in the next six months. It is currently the case that if you are an immigrant wishing to marry or register a civil partnership you will firstly need to apply for a certificate of approval. The only exception to this is if you wish to marry in an Anglican church.

In future if your UK Naturalisation and Citizenship application is refused and you wish UKBA to reconsider their decision you will need to pay a GBP100 fee. Since 6 April 2010 the UK Government has had the power to charge fees for the reconsideration of a refused application for UK naturalization or registration as a British Citizen..

UK Prime Minister David Cameron recently led the largest UK delegation to India since the end of British rule in India. This included the chancellor, George Osborne, Foreign Secretary William Hague, Vince Cable Business Secretary and a number of top businessmen. For the first time ever the British Government has said that they will take into account the views of the Indian Government on UK immigration policy. A Downing Street spokesman had the following to say:

If you wish to join or marry your British citizen spouse or a permanent resident in the UK you will from 29 November 2010 need to pass an English language test with an approved test provider.

If you are not an EU citizen you will need to show that you can speak and understand English if you wish to apply under one of the following categories to join your spouse or partner in the UK: