Worldwide Passport & Visa News and Updates

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USCIS Increases Premium Processing Fee – Including for H-1B

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that the fee for premium processing has increased, as required by the Counting Appropriations Act and Other Extensions Act, Pub. L. No. 116-159, adopted on October 1, 2020. According to the new decision, the fee for Form I-907 Request for Premium Processing will increase from $1,440 to $2,500, for all persons except for those who apply for H-2B or R-1 non-immigrant status. The premium processing fee for [...]

By |2020-10-21T16:43:11+02:00October 21st, 2020|H1B Visa News Portal|
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DHS Issues Interim Final Rule for H-1B Visa Classification

The United States Department of Homeland Security’ (DHS) long-warned interim final rule has finally been brought to light, amending some of the regulations to the H-1B nonimmigrant visa program, in order to “strengthen the visa classification program”. According to the interim final rule’s changes, the “speciality occupation” definition will be amended to better align with the meaning of the term; therefore there will be added words such as “worksite” and “third-party worksite”, while the purpose of the [...]

By |2020-10-19T12:52:14+02:00October 19th, 2020|H1B Visa News Portal|
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Australia’s English Test Requirement for Visas Could Keep Families Apart

Australia’s latest decision to impose a language test as an immigration requirement for potential partner visas, starting from mid-2021, could leave couples separated. Such concerns have been raised after the parliament of Australia announced that internationals who are in a relationship with Australian citizens could be barred from entering the country if they don’t know the English language, VisaGuide.World reports. If the proposal is approved by the parliament, the English language test will become obligatory starting from [...]

By |2020-10-16T16:22:05+02:00October 16th, 2020|US Visa/Passport News|
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Survey: 70% of Travellers Plan to Holiday in 2021

A total of 99 per cent of people that participated in a survey carried in the United States and Canada are enthusiastic about travelling again, while 70 per cent have revealed that they are planning to take a holiday in the next year. According to a survey conducted by Travel Leaders Group, together with the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC),  in September, in which have participated about 3,000 frequent travellers, 45 per cent of respondents have [...]

By |2020-10-14T14:44:20+02:00October 14th, 2020|Worldwide Passport & Visa News and Updates|
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New Zealand: Border Exceptions Announced for Int’l PhD and Postgraduate Students

The government of New Zealand has initiated a new set of border exceptions for 250 international PhD and postgraduate students who will be allowed to return to the country and complete their unfinished work. According to a press release issued by New Zealand government, students who will return in New Zealand are required to respect all the measures imposed as a result of COVID-19 pandemic, among them, the 14-day quarantine at government’s facilities, VisaGuide.World reports. New Zealand’s [...]

By |2020-10-13T17:16:04+02:00October 13th, 2020|New Zealand Visa/Passport News|
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Australia to Refund Visa Fees for Temporary Visa Holders Affected by Entry Restrictions

Temporary visa holders who are ineligible to return to Australia due to the Coronavirus pandemic restrictions will be refunded or waived from the visa application charge (VAC) next time they apply for a visa, the Australian government has announced. Through the new changes applied by the Australian government, temporary skilled workers together with visitor visa holders will be allowed for a future visa application fee waiver, once travel restrictions are put to an end, VisaGuide.World reports. Acting [...]

By |2020-10-13T15:01:35+02:00October 13th, 2020|Australia Visa/Passport News|
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EU Nationals Will Have to Apply for Student Visa to Study in UK Starting From January 1, 2021

The United Kingdom has finally revealed the procedures that the nationals of the 26 out of 27 European Union Member States need to follow, after January 31, in order to be able to study in the UK. According to a guideline published by the British government, starting from January, only Irish students will be exempt from the requirement of getting a visa, in order to study at a UK higher education institution as an EU national. “From [...]

By |2020-10-13T14:51:01+02:00October 13th, 2020|UK Visa/Passport News|
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Japan to Reinforce Screening of Visa Applications to Hinder Technology Theft

Aiming to strengthen national economic security, the Japanese government has introduced more rigorous rules regarding visa applications for international students and persons seeking to carry out research at universities in Japan. Japan’s government has announced the move, expressing its commitment to work more towards issues related to economic security during the next fiscal year. The decision will enter into force during the next academic year, while the move was undertaken after concerns that students studying in Japan [...]

By |2020-10-12T17:12:47+02:00October 12th, 2020|Japan Visa/Passport News|
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IATA: Risk for COVID-19 Transmission Inflight Very Low

The incidence of contracting the Coronavirus pandemic while onboard is very low, according to a  recent report of the Air Transport Association (IATA). IATA has revealed that since the COVID-19 pandemic began to spread, there have been only 44 cases of infections associated with a flight journey, even though nearly 1.2 billion travellers have completed their planned trips, VisaGuide.World reports.  "The risk of a passenger contracting COVID-19 while onboard appears very low. With only 44 identified potential [...]

By |2020-10-11T22:00:07+02:00October 11th, 2020|Worldwide Passport & Visa News and Updates|
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IATA: Financial Aid & Testing Procedures Are Crucial for Aviation’s Survival in Southern Africa

Financial aid and the replacing of quarantine with testing are considered key priorities in order to help the aviation sector of Southern Africa to recover from the devastation caused by the Coronavirus pandemic, due to the imposed travel restrictions, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) has announced. According to IATA's statement, a total of 60 per cent of airline revenues from countries of Southern Africa has been predicted to decrease during this year, while the number of [...]

By |2020-10-11T18:03:06+02:00October 11th, 2020|Worldwide Passport & Visa News and Updates|
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