Immigration news

Enrolment in Australian university computer courses has dropped to its lowest level in 15 years, and immigration critics are saying it's because too many skilled migrant visas have been issued to overseas students, making it tough for graduates to find a job.A Monash University study on employment in the technology sector, released yesterday, claims the federal Government's general skilled migration (GSM) program has been "an abject failure in public policy terms" for the IT industry.

Radio New Zealand International Online reports that the Samoan Government hopes to open its Consulate Office in American Samoa before the end of January.

Samoa's Chief Executive Officer for Immigration, Vaasatia Poloma Komiti says the US State Department gave approval for the office last month.

The office will issue entry permits for US nationals from American Samoa to visit Samoa and help citizens of Samoa who reside in American Samoa with immigration matters.

The office will also handle normal consular duties such as processing of Samoa passport applications.

As workpermit.com has already reported, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill on Dec. 16, 2005 that would affect many aspects of US immigration. The bill would criminalize the status of millions of non–U.S. citizens, mandate that lawful immigrants convicted of minor crimes be deported, require all employers in the U.S. to use a costly and unreliable electronic system to verify the employment eligibility of all workers, and fundamentally disrupt our society and economy.

A new draft immigration law in France, which was put forward by Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy and is expected to be debated by parliament soon, calls for placing new requirements on foreign workers, students and those who want to join their families in France. It requires immigrants to master the French language and foreign workers to prove that they have fixed salaries. Also in the bill, illegal immigrants will never be able to acquire a 10 year residence permit.

Most days, contractors and landscapers in Danbury, Connecticut, USA, can be seen at Kennedy Park hiring men and women who go there hoping to find work as day laborers. On Saturday, the gathering of workers was replaced by protesters who say those jobs are being given to illegal immigrants. About 50 people calling themselves the Connecticut Citizens for Immigration Control spent about two hours chanting and holding signs that read, "Speak English" and "Arrest Illegal Employers." It was one of several protests planned across the nation.

Canada's two main federal parties, running neck and neck in the latest polls, promised to cut immigration fees, hoping to attract support from newcomers ahead of a January 23 election.

Conservative Leader Stephen Harper promised Wednesday to immediately halve a 975-Canadian-dollar (849-US-dollar) immigration landing fee, then continue reducing it over the course of his government's mandate.