Immigration newsletter 10 Feb 2010

On 8 February 2010 the Immigration Minister Chris Evans announced a number of major changes to the Australian immigration system. This will affect applicants applying for General Skilled Migration.

Immigration Minister Chris Evans announced the outcome of a review of the Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL). This has resulted in MODL being revoked with immediate effect; This has been replaced by a more targeted skilled occupations list which it is hoped will better meet the demands of Australia’s labour market.

The Immigration Minister also announced that the current Skilled Occupation List (SOL) will be replaced in the second half of 2010. There will be a new list of targeted occupations to be determined by an independent organisation ‘Skills Australia’.

Immigration Minister Chris Evans had the following to say:

The Australian Rudd Government is reforming Australian skilled immigration so that the immigration system will better deal with the needs of industry and employers now and in the future.

The Australian Government has said that immigration should be demand rather than supply driven.  It should meet the needs of the economy in where there are shortages of highly skilled workers currently in healthcare, engineering and mining.

Home Secretary Alan Johnson has announced immediate changes to UK student visas that will mean that students will need to have better English; Also, those on shorter courses will only be allowed to work a smaller number of hours in the UK. It is interesting to note that only a week ago UKBA announced a temporary ban on student visa applications from Northern India, Bangladesh and Nepal.

The Indian Government has stated that educational cooperation is an "important facet" of Indo-UK ties. They will be in contact with the British High Commission to "better understand the reasons" for the temporary freeze on UK student visa applications by those based in Northern India. 

The Indian Government is trying to help genuine students planning to study in the UK who have been affected by the temporary ban on student visa applications made at UK Visa application centres in New Delhi, Chandigarh and Jalandhar from 1 February 2010. An Indian official said, "Student exchanges form a vital component of this cooperation. We would remain in touch with the BHC (British High Commission) on this matter."

On Friday 5 February Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) took part in a French information session for the Haitian community in Vancouver. CIC provided people with information on special immigration measures and on how Canadians can sponsor members of their immediate family to Canada. Canadian Immigration is just one of a number of organizations who presented information at the information session.