from ABIL Immigration Insider

On July 9, 2012, UKBA announced a targeted interview system for students that would concentrate on high-risk applicants. On arrival to the UK, students will be asked about their immigration and education history, study and post-study plans, and financial circumstances. The UKBA expects to interview up to 14,000 students in the next 12 months. This announcement follows an interviewing pilot carried out by the UKBA last year to tackle concerns about the legitimacy of some applicants. Under the pilot, about a fifth of the applicants were refused entry to the UK based on their interviews. One of the main concerns was the inability of applicants to display the required level of English.

The Tier 4 Sponsor License Guidance notes:

From 30 July, a Tier 4 student applying from outside the UK may be asked to undertake an interview, either in person, or on the telephone. If as a result of this interview the UK Border Agency is not satisfied that the applicant is a genuine student, or the applicant cannot speak English to the required standard (judged as set out at paragraph 245 ZV(ca) of the Immigration Rules), or the application is shown to fall for refusal under the General Grounds for Refusal, the application will be refused.

from ABIL Global Immigration Update

People who have recently lost their job, whether they resigned or were terminated, may be placed on a list of job-seekers and thereafter obtain a permit of stay while they await re-employment. The maximum validity for this permit is 12 months. After the expiration, such foreigners are entitled to remain in Italy if they can prove that they have sufficient financial resources for themselves and their family members.

from ABIL Global Immigration Update

The Ministry of Interior, Annamaria Cancellieri, announced recently that almost no new quotas are expected to be issued in 2012 due to the current economic situation. According to the Ministry, there is a very low demand for new quotas. Only quotas for seasonal workers will be issued.

from ABIL Global Immigration Update

The Ministry of External Affairs (“MEA”) in India has extended the Tourist Visa on Arrival policy to residents of France, Germany and Russia. India currently issues Visa on Arrival to 11 countries namely Japan, Indonesia, the Philippines, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Singapore, Myanmar, Finland, Luxembourg and New Zealand. After the MEA's nod, the proposal has been sent to the Union home ministry as the final tourist visa on arrival clearing authority is its Bureau of Immigration.

Read more in the Economic Times article, "Visa on Arrival List Expanded to Woo Tourists".

from ABIL Global Immigration Update

Belgium is working on implementation of the European Union (EU) Blue Card directive; there is an increasing focus on compliance; and a potential future change relates to the transfer of legislative power regarding work permits from the federal level to the regions.

Work Permits; Implementation of the EU Blue Card Directive

The Belgian work permit system is a very business-friendly model in practice. The "regular" work permit, with a resident labor test, has become very rare in the corporate immigration context. "Fast-track" work permits, without a resident labor test, can be obtained quite fast, within two to three weeks after the date of filing of the application.

The economic recession has not led to drastic changes to the Belgian work permit system. However, one protective measure, regarding Bulgarian and Romanian nationals, should be mentioned:

• In principle, European Union (EU) nationals may work in Belgium without work permits, on the basis of the right of free movement of workers.
• For Bulgaria and Romania, which joined the EU on January 1, 2007, restrictions on this right of free movement of workers were maintained during an initial transition term until the end of 2008. That was prolonged for another three years, until December 31, 2011. The Belgian government has decided to continue the restrictions until December 31, 2013. As a rationale for this decision, the government explicitly referred to the expected economic recession in 2012/2013 as well as to similar decisions of neighboring countries to maintain the restrictions.

In other developments, the Belgian Parliament and the Minister of Employment are currently working on implementation of the EU Blue Card Directive.

The available texts indicate that the Blue Card will exist alongside the current fast-track work permit B for highly skilled employees. The salary threshold for a Blue Card in 2012 will probably be €49,995, which is higher than the current threshold for a highly skilled work permit B (€37,721 for 2012).

The Belgian authorities will probably choose not to take professional experience into account to prove "higher professional qualifications," but a higher education will be required, on condition that the studies needed to acquire it lasted at least three years. Belgium will probably not apply numerical limits.

Focus on Compliance

New Code on Labour and Social Security Criminal Law. A new Code on Labour and Social Security Criminal Law took effect on July 1, 2011. It mainly codifies existing compliance rules with regard to labor and social security law-related issues, including employment of foreigners, but also creates new compliance rules.

Unauthorized/illegal employment of a foreigner who is not entitled to live in Belgium more than three months is among the infringements that are considered very serious ("type 4" infringements).

The potential penalties for such infringement include a jail term of six months to three years and/or a criminal fine between €3,600 and €36,000 per employee, with a maximum of €3,600,000 (€36,000 x 100). Furthermore, the employer may be prohibited from operating the business for a limited time, between one month and three years. The court may also order closure of the company for the same duration.

The same two accompanying penalties (prohibition from operating the business and closure of the company for a limited time, between one month and three years) may be imposed upon "HR advisors," largely defined as professionals providing advice or help to one or more employers or employees with regard to the carrying out of obligations as sanctioned by the Code, either for their own account or within an entity. According to some comments to the Code, HR consultants and payroll personnel are included in this category, but probably not lawyers or notary publics (although they may risk being an accomplice to an infringement). The courts can only impose these two accompanying penalties if they are deemed necessary to stop an infringement or to avoid repeat offending, provided that they are in proportion with overall socio-economic interests.

If the Public Prosecutor determines that this infringement does not justify criminal prosecution, an administrative fine may be imposed, ranging between €1,800 and €18,000 per employee, with a maximum of €1,800,000 (€18,000 x 100).

The Belgian authorities are working on implementation of the EU Illegals Employment Directive. A first proposal of an Act has been prepared but the text is not yet publicly available. The new Act may include the following:

• The basic principle is that employers cannot employ a person who is not an EU citizen, who does not enjoy the right of free movement, and who is present on the Belgian territory, without that person meeting the requirements for stay or residence in Belgium. The employer must check the residence documents of the potential employee before employment. Furthermore, the employer must keep a copy of these documents available for inspection and notify the competent authorities of the start of the employment.
• The new Act provides effective, proportionate, and dissuasive sanctions against employers who employ unauthorized third-country nationals in Belgium. These include general financial and criminal sanctions. The employer may also be liable to pay any outstanding remuneration to the employee. Finally, the employer may be required to pay taxes and social security contributions to Belgium.
• If the infringing employer is a direct subcontractor, the contractor will also be severally liable, unless the subcontractor states in writing that it does not employ unauthorized employees. If the infringing employer is an indirect subcontractor, the contractor can only be severally liable after notification by the social inspection services and only up to the salary as of the date of such notification.
• Employees may exercise their rights before the court, as may representative organizations for employers or employees and the Centre for Equal Opportunities and Opposition to Racism (an independent government agency that fights discrimination and racism and that assists victims).

Draft Act on increased coordination of inspection of illegal employment and fraud. On June 22, 2012, the Belgian federal government agreed to a draft Act that approves a cooperation agreement between the inspection departments on federal (Belgium) and regional (Brussels, Flanders, and Wallonia) levels. According to a press release on June 23, 2012, the aim is to enhance the cooperation between the inspection departments at the different levels "primarily in order to inspect the employment of foreign employees."

Potential Change: Transfer of Legislative Power From Federal to Regional Level

A potential future change relates to the transfer of legislative power regarding work permits from the federal level to the regions. At present the regions (Brussels, Flanders, and Wallonia) process work permits on the basis of federal legislation. The coalition agreement of the federal government and the general policy statement of the federal Minister of Employment both mention the transfer of legislative authority regarding economic migration to the regions.

No specific steps have been taken yet to initiate this process. It is not yet clear whether, when, and to what extent the transfer of legislative power will be implemented. This could lead to different rules for Brussels, Flanders, and Wallonia.

from ABIL Global Immigration Update

The Australian government has announced a raft of changes to visa programs effective July 1, 2012. Changes to the employer nominated permanent residence visa program were outlined in the last ABIL Global Immigration Update. Changes to the General Skilled Independent visas and Business Skills visas are outlined below.SkillSelect

As of July 1, 2012, the introduction of SkillSelect represents a significant change in how Australia manages its skilled migration program. According to the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC), the new model will allow Australia to "select the best and brightest skilled migrants from a pool of prospective migrants registered on the system."

SkillSelect will enable skilled workers and business people to submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) to migrate to Australia by recording their details in an online database. An EOI will serve as a quasi-resume for intending applicants with the information accessible by Australian employers as well as state and territory governments, which may then nominate the individual for employment or for a skilled visa. The Australian government may also invite the person to lodge (file) a Skilled Independent visa application.

The objective of the new program is to ensure that Australia's skilled migration program is based on the country's economic needs. Through SkillSelect, the Australian government will be able to manage who is able to apply for skilled migration, when they can apply, and in what numbers. This is expected to streamline the program and lead to more efficient processing of applications.

It is also designed to help address regional skill shortages by allowing intending migrants to indicate in their EOI that they are willing to live and work in certain regions of Australia.

Expression of Interest

An EOI includes basic personal information, details of the person's nominated occupation and relevant work experience, educational qualifications, level of English language ability, and the outcome of a skills assessment (by a gazetted assessing authority) in the person's nominated occupation. For business skills visa applicants, an EOI requires details of the person's business and/or investment experience.

An EOI will remain in DIAC's database for two years. During that period, it will be accessible by employers looking to fill vacancies, state and territory governments looking to attract skills, and Australian businesses.

Changes to Business Skills Visas

DIAC has also announced changes to Business Skills visas, replacing the former program with a new "Business Innovation and Investment" scheme. The new visa structure is designed to attract significant migrant investment, entrepreneurial talent, and demonstrated innovative business history and skills to the Australian market.

As part of these changes, beginning on July 1, 2012, the current 13 Business Skills visa subclasses are consolidated into the following three:

• Business Talent (permanent) subclass 132
• Business Innovation and Investment (provisional) subclass 188
• Business Innovation and Investment (permanent) subclass 888

The reforms include the following key changes:

• introducing an innovation points test for provisional visa applicants
• integrating the new Business Innovation and Investment visas with the skilled migrant selection model, SkillSelect (discussed above)
• facilitating entry of entrepreneurs that have sourced at least A$1milllion in venture capital funding in Australia from a member of the Australian Venture Capital Association Limited
• increasing asset thresholds to better align with the Australian business community

The suite of business visa reforms are intended to better align Australia's immigration policy with countries such as the United Kingdom, Canada, Singapore, and New Zealand.

from ABIL Immigration Insider

Increasing the minimum salary (SMIC) and the wage index (minimum garanti) on July 1, 2012, resulted in changes to the salary thresholds applicable to Intra-Company Transferees and other foreign workers seeking to be accompanied by family members. The SMIC has been raised to €1,425.27 per month for the work week of 35 hours. The minimum garanti is now €3.49.

Intra-Company Transferees must meet the salary threshold of 150 percent of SMIC, which will now amount to €2,137.90 per month. A foreign worker other than an Intra-Company Transferee may be accompanied by family members when he or she meets the salary threshold of 1300 times the minimum garanti, or €4,537 per month.