Archive for the ‘Australia’ Category

Sydney’s World Youth Day celebrations have been marred by the disappearance of 39 Indians who used the events as a scam to gain entrance through tourist visas.

Two hundred and twenty Indians travelled to New Zealand en route to the Australian religious pilgrimage, however just 181 left Auckland, New Zealand. This has sparked a man hunt in New Zealand for these potential illegal immigrants.

Of those men who have been contacted almost all have admitted their plans to remain in New Zealand. This has sparked fears at the number of those already in Australia who have the same idea.

However these missing men claim that they were promised New Zealand residency and were shocked to find they had received short-term visas, despite this they have no plans to leave.

No matter what the truth, it is a shame that such religious events have been affected by immigration and the rise of global illegal immigration.

“It appears World Youth Day has been used as an excuse and that is really quite alarming,” said New Zealand’s Catholic Church spokesperson, Lyndsay Freer.

And there is nothing that can really be done at the moment to those who did not attend the events as they have been granted entry for three months and are legal until this time period is up.

It seems that such scams are increasing in number; this hampers such get-togethers and puts the future of events like this in jeopardy.

Australia has strict visitor visa criteria that can be viewed on www.globalvisas.com, however with such events it is difficult to determine who is a genuine visitor for purposes of the event and who is using this as an illegal route to immigration.

The question is, how can they continue to hold World Youth Day or similar such events, when a minority continuously dupe the system? It is a sad reality but a valid fear.

Skilled migrants have become an integral part of guaranteeing that Australia remains a competitive economic destination. Therefore industries throughout the country are welcoming immigrants with open arms.

The latest sector to voice the essential need for skilled workers from overseas is the mining industry in the Northern Territory province. This area is booming at the moment due to uranium and gas deposits, as reported by ABC News.

And how do they attract these immigrants? The Northern Territory government is promising high salaries that are difficult to turn down.

“This industry needs to maintain its growth and success, therefore they need more workers coming to Australia under skilled visas or working holiday visas,” says Erin Ryan of www.globalvisas.com. Therefore not just the provincial but the national government are easing visa requirements through extensions and fast-track possibilities.

Currently 33 positions up for grabs from managers, supervisors to engineers. 

Australia needs immigrants; these were the sentiments of the Australian government on Friday.

Not only do immigrants provide vital skills that are needed in sectors were shortages are rife but they also add to the cultural diversity of the country. This was the conclusion of Chris Evans, immigration minister, and other officials during a Ministerial Council on Immigration and Multicultural Affairs meeting in Perth.

Those attending this meeting therefore welcomed the expansion of visas, such as the Working Holiday visa as well as other temporary and permanent visas.

Australia has finally realised the crucial need for immigrants if Australia wants to continue booming, believes www.globalvisas.com. The success of the country is ultimately in the hands of immigrants who will come and work in the country in occupations where the countries low unemployment rates equal labour shortages.

The members of this meeting also concluded that settlement services need to be escalated as the Australian population swells through immigration. 

Australian travellers are opting for more environmentally friendly travel; this is according to research conducted by Contiki Holidays.

The world is becoming “greener”, with initiatives to become more environmentally conscious springing up all over the place. This has even filtered into the tourism industry.

Young Australians seem to be setting the standard as they realise the effects their travels can have on the environment. “The world is filled with young Australian tourists,” says Erin Ryan of www.globalvisas.com. She adds that this study shows that, “not only does their tourism benefit a country economically but they now aim to help the environment at the same time.”

According to the survey 54% of young Aussie travellers expressed a want to travel using carbon-neutral options.

These include the use of recycling bins while travelling, couch touring which is less pollutant, requesting that towels are not washed daily and travelling in tourist buses that use fish and chip oil to run. This however is only achievable by changes and developments within the tourism industry, whereby more carbon friendly practices are incorporated.

Despite the want to travel “green”, it must be noted that only 9% of those interviewed travel according to these standards. (TB)

Tourism Australia is working on an international marketing campaign to coincide with the release later this year of epic film ‘Australia’, set in the outback and starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, the film hopes to increase the countries visitor numbers as well as raise the profile of less documented areas.

Australia, which has a budget of £63m, is expected to draw a phenomenally large audience. Talking about the films imminent release the Australian tourism minister, said “the film would bring to life little-known aspects of Australia’s extraordinary natural environment, history and indigenous culture”.

The period film takes place during the bombing of Darwin in the Northern Territory and like many of its Australian predecessors, such as Crocodile Dundee it is hoped that the film will act as an exceptional opportunity for positive promotion.

Australia is already seeing a current influx in immigration particularly from the UK and with this forthcoming film being another masterpiece of the Moulin Rouge director and Aussie prodigy Baz Luhrman, surely interest from all over the world will be huge. (CN)

The Australian government has proposed that all foreigners on a study visa will be able to stay in the country for as long as another year.

This will not only be a great opportunity for these young students but due to their temporary status and lack of work experience manual industries such as the hospitality industry is bound to benefit.

Many international students come to Australia to gain from the top class educational system. While studying many often opt for jobs in restaurants and bars to subsidise there expenses, with an extra year this will continue.

This new policy will allow these students to continue to enjoy all that Australia has to offer in terms of travel, adventure and beauty while earning some money.

These changes should begin in December this year. So watch this space for more details. (TB)

Australia is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world and with World Youth Day approaching it is becoming even more popular.

The annual World Youth day will be celebrated in Sydney this year and with it will come an expected 125 000 youth coming to join in the festivities. The foreign youth will get together with about 100 000 Australian youngsters on this day and celebrate their Roman Catholic faith.  

There is such a demand for people wanting to come to Australia for this event that an extra 36 flight from around the world have had to be added.

If you are interested in going to this year’s event book your flight now and contact www.globalvisas.com to arrange your Australian tourist visa.

A renowned London based university has taken a further step in the plan for improved relations amongst international students.

Yesterday UCL (University College London) announced plans to open an overseas campus in Australia. The announcement will see UCL become the first British university to open a subsequent campus in Australia, a move which is in tune with the UK’s planned initiatives for multi-national study.

It has been reported that UCL sealed a deal with the government of Australia to open a School of Energy and Resources in Adelaide. The school which is scheduled for opening next year is to specialise in global energy use and is expected to teach on average 60 masters students.

The news will be seen as a positive addition to the already well established university and will open up a wealth of opportunities for cross cultural study, particularly between Australian and UK students.

Should the school be viewed as a successful working campus, we may see an up rise in universities basing additional campuses throughout the world.

CN

It’s that time of year again and swarms of youngsters from across the globe are making plans in order to attend this years World Youth Day , planned to be held between the 15th and 20th July in Australia.

However many may find that their plans may not run as smoothly as they had previously hoped, with the Australian Government having announced that they can no longer guarrantee immediate decisions for visa applications in the current months leading up to the World Youth Event.

The Australian Embassy has warned all potential visitors and participants that a visa will be required in order to gain entry into the country. However, applications which are lodged after June 1st will not be guaranteed to be processed in time.

World Youth Day is a youth orientated Roman Catholic Church event aimed at young people. The event carries symbolic values of gathering together, putting trust in the young and meeting the international world on a human level.

This year the event in Australia is scheduled to be held in Randwick, Sydney, it is thought that the occasion will attract hundreds of thousands of youths from almost every country on the planet.

We thought the number of people emigrating last year was high but this year it has gone through the roof.  That was before Chris Evans the Australian Immigration Minister stated Australia is opening its doors to a further 300,000 people this year.  It is the biggest number of Skilled workers required by Australia since the 1940’s.  UK workers are taking full advantage of the offer.

The Australian economy needs the influx of skills due to an aging population and growing economy.  Even with a world class training and educational system the young people just can’t fill all the gaps in their growing and healthy economy.

It is amazing to have such a grand stand seat watching the UK’s best of UK workers walk away with not a word to say about the UK into the arms of Australia.