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The Home Office issued a statement of changes in Immigration Rules outlining key changes to the Skilled Worker route, as well as important updates to the electronic travel authorization (ETA) program and EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS). Key Points: The statement of
European Union officials published a revised timeline for the implementation of the Entry/Exit System (EES) and the European Travel Information and Authorization System (ETIAS). Key Points: On March 5, EU Home Affairs ministers endorsed a revised timeline for the EES to become operational in October 2025,
The South Korean government is expected to launch a new top-tier visa to attract outstanding foreign professionals in advanced industries such as artificial intelligence and semiconductors. Key Points: A government committee on policy toward foreign nationals announced an initiative to streamline the visa system to stimulate
The Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration, Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC), gave notice that record deletion from the Foreign Labor Application Gateway (FLAG) system starts at midnight on March 20. Key Points: The deletion of records within FLAG
The April Visa Bulletin shows a major retrogression of more than two years in the EB-5 unreserved visa category preference for both China and India. Key Points: China retrogressed from July 15, 2016, to Jan. 22, 2014. India retrogressed from Jan. 1, 2022, to Nov. 1,
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced a new “alien registration” process as part of implementation of an executive order issued by President Trump in January. The interim final rule (IFR) was published in the Federal Register on March 12 and
Singaporean officials announced significant updates to the Work Permit and S Pass that will take effect between July 1 and Sept. 1. Key Points: The Ministry of Manpower’s (MOM) Dr. Tan See Leng announced that the ministry will remove the maximum period of employment restrictions for
The New Zealand government announced additional changes to the Active Investor Plus Visa to simplify the investment process. Key Points: As BAL reported, the government previously announced changes to the Active Investor Plus Visa beginning April 1, including two simplified investment
The State Department announced that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provided updated guidance to panel physicians removing the requirement that immigrant visa applicants receive the COVID-19 vaccination, effective March 11. Key Points: Panel physicians will no longer determine that an immigrant visa applicant is
The Australian government updated their visa processing times webpage to highlight the median processing times for key programs. Key Points: The government stated that in most instances they have reduced the time it takes to finalize visa applications and that visa processing times have already improved
The Canadian government announced an extension of the temporary refusal policy that applies to certain Labor Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) applications for low-wage positions in Montréal and Laval. Key Points: In September 2024, the government announced the suspension of receipt of LMIA applications under the Temporary
The U.S. State Department released the April Visa Bulletin. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced filings for employment-based visa preference categories must use the Final Action Dates chart, which shows advancement across all EB-2 and EB-3 visa categories. Final Action Dates:
On Monday, the U.S. Senate confirmed Lori Chavez-DeRemer as the new U.S. Secretary of Labor. Key Points: The Senate confirmed Chavez-DeRemer with a majority vote of 67–32. In 2022, Chavez-DeRemer was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives for Oregon’s 5th Congressional District and served on
The Labor Department has posted updated processing times for permanent labor certification (PERM) applications and prevailing wage determination (PWD) requests. PERM Processing Times: As of March 1, the department was still adjudicating PERM applications filed in November 2023 and earlier and reviewing appeals for reconsideration filed
Hong Kong immigration authorities announced a new fee structure for visa applications under specified schemes. Key Points: Effective Feb. 26, principal applicants under specified admission schemes and their dependents are now required to pay an application fee and a corresponding visa issuance fee according to a
The 2025 federal election in Germany was highly anticipated, as individuals and governing bodies around the world recognized the potential implications of the outcome. BAL shared a synopsis of the election outcome in our 2025 Global Election Hub, but the following provides more context around how Germany’s government is