Visas - Expat Magazine
On 3 September, Australia increased its permanent migration cap for the first time in 10 years. This financial year (June 2022-June 2023), the country will welcome 195,000 instead of 160,000 new permanent residents. This measure aims to solve the acute labor and skills shortage that Australia has been facing since it closed its borders during the pandemic.
On 22 August, the British Home Office announced a new scale-up visa to attract foreign workers with sought-after skills. This visa, which is different from the existing Skilled Worker Visa, allows approved “scale-up businesses” to recruit professionals from anywhere around the world. These professionals will get a 6-month job offer. At the end of this period, they can switch to another job without any sponsorship.
New Zealand has recently increased the number of working holiday visas for the year 2022/2023 as a temporary measure to deal with its skills and labor shortage. Since Covid, some sectors like tourism and construction have struggled to recover their workforce. An additional 12,000 working holiday visas will allow foreigners to fill the labor gap in these sectors, at least in the short term. The terms of the Accredited Employer Work Visa have also been relaxed to attract foreign labor.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is continuing its extensive immigration reform. After the introduction of new categories for the Golden Visa, the relaxation of residency rules for expats, the extension of the grace period after a visa's expiration date, and the creation of unemployment benefits for locals and expats, the UAE has just announced new immigration reforms applying to tourists and expats. But not any of them. The UAE is targeting international talent and wealthy foreigners. What are the new visas offered and their benefits?
On Thursday, August 4, 2022, Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa issued a new "legal framework of entry, permanence, exit and removal of foreigners into and out of the national territory." How will these changes affect expatriates and people who are looking to relocate to Portugal? How will this affect immigration to Portugal?
CIC News, a leading website on immigration to Canada, reports that the country's new Super Visa for the parents and grandparents of permanent residents has come into effect on 4 July 2022. This new visa has increased the length of stay of parents and grandparents from two consecutive years to five, with the possibility of renewing for an additional two years, bringing the maximum length of stay to 7 years.
Australia is a trendy expat destination considered one of the best places to live because of its high standard of living. Currently, the country faces a labor shortage as its skills crisis is worsening, with businesses struggling to fill nearly half a million jobs amid a mismatch between people's expertise and the work available. With that, the country is looking for work migration, and it's easing some Australian visa classes.
Although it might sound like an ambitious promise, Indonesia proposes a remote working visa for freelancers across the globe with no taxes for five years, and that would apply to its islands as Bali. Also known as the “Land of the Gods”, Bali appeals through its sheer natural beauty, and it's usually a place for tourism and celebrations such as honeymoons. But how about working remotely from there?
Unlike other European countries that recently reviewed their controversial golden visa programs, Portugal stands firm. Severely affected by the pandemic, followed by the economic crisis, the war in Ukraine, and rising inflation (8% last month), the Portuguese economy heavily relies on foreign investment. This is probably why the government refuses to end its golden visa program despite warnings.
Since June 10, Japan has reopened its borders to tourist groups. For the moment, the government doesn't want to take any risks, considering the rising number of Covid cases abroad. Its latest measure was making visas compulsory for travelers from the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA), even for short stays. So it seems that the total reopening, which should include expats, will not be anytime soon.
Last Wednesday, the Portuguese government launched a new visa for job seekers. This is one of Portugal's latest measures to attract foreign workers as the Portuguese labor market gradually recovers from the consequences of Covid. However, rising inflation (more than 8%) and labor shortage remain major issues.
In the process of reopening its borders, New Zealand faces a shortage of labor. Although the country will permit international travelers only on July 31 and visas in October this year, it has announced major reforms to immigration settings, 'the green list', to "increase the available pool of labor, while also speeding up our tourism recovery", said the Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern earlier this month.
Launched to attract investors and revive economies, Golden Visas are residence visas granted to wealthy foreigners who are keen on investing in real estate. Still, the type of property, the minimum investment amount and the conditions vary from one country to another.
The United Kingdom, a dreamland for many international students, is introducing a new visa to bring talented graduates to the country. On the other hand, the new policy targets mostly expats from high-level universities in the north of the globe.
Ireland is very international as it has 650,000 foreigners in a country of 5 million people. In general, expats going to Irish lands are looking for good quality of life and job opportunities and are attracted by its open culture to immigrants. That has been highlighted recently after the Covid-19 recovery as the country has expanded eligibility criteria for multiple-entry visas.
After two years of crisis and uncertainty, many countries have reopened their borders and started welcoming visitors and expatriates. Since remote working has become the new norm in pandemic times, governments are considering making entry more flexible for digital nomads. Italy has also announced the introduction of a digital nomad visa to attract foreigners.
Students and workers as expats are constantly searching for working visa information online, with experts and in social media groups to try to connect with others with common experiences. But, the working visa process that was already complicated during the pandemic has been worsened.
In 2021, the expat population in Saudi Arabia is 13.49 million and is very diverse, with various ethnic and linguistic groups from Asia, Europe, and America. Yet, while trying to retain the highest talents, the country remains very selective when it comes to immigration.
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