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President Clinton signed the bill to increase the number of US temporary work visas for the next three years. The quota of the number of H-1B visas has been raised to 195,000 to allow skilled workers with job offers from US employers to obtain the necessary permits to work in the US. The new law also increases the application fee for an H-1B visa from $610 to $1110.
The visa waiver program allows nationals of certain countries to enter the US as tourist or business visitors for three months without obtaining visas from the US Embassy. The US House of Representatives passed a bill to make the program permanent. The bill also creates a special immigration status for employees of INTELSAT, a satellite communications company that was controlled by various governments, but is now being privitized. The last point of the bill includes an extension of the Immigrant Investor Pilot Program which allows non-US citizens to invest through regional centers.
New Home Secretary David Blunkett announced that one of his priorities will be to introduce a scheme for independent migration to the UK ('Green Cards'). Although no more detail has been announced, this is expected to resemble the Australian 'points based' migration scheme. A further announcement is expected to be included in the Queen's Speech.
US employers wishing to hire an overseas worker for temporary skilled work under an H1B visa will now typically expect to pay $1110 instead of $610 (including the usual INS fee). The Senate just passed the bill to increase the costs of H1Bs yesterday. The new fees come into effect two months after the enactment of the Act. Employers who plan to apply for the H1B work visa may wish to consider applying soon to avoid paying the new fees.
Latest News - The UK government has launched a new type of visa for ‘Innovators’ – those with good ideas and business experience but little capital. Innovator visas are not covered in this guide – for further details please contact us (NB it is anticipated that only c200 innovator visas will be granted each year).
Following a large number of enquiries, we would like to point out that as of yet, there are no plans to introduce a US-style ‘Green Card’ or Australian-style ‘points system’ in the UK. The Government have introduced the idea as a demonstration of how other countries deal with the skills shortage, and have merely suggested that it is discussed. Any further developments will appear on these pages.