Immigration news: Canada launches new Digital Nomad strategy; South Korea seeks 30,000 skilled workers

Under current immigration rules, if you are a Digital nomad, then you only need a Canadian Visitor Visa to relocate to Canada and can stay for up to six months while doing your work.

South Korea to issue record number of visas to skilled workers: South Korea has announced a 15-fold increase in total annual quota of skilled workers visas to 30,000, to overcome severe labour shortages in the country. In 2022, the annual quota for this visa category was only 2,000.

Known as E-7-4, the skilled worker visa allows a South Korean company to hire workers from other countries.

Earlier this year, the government had announced plans to bring nearly 110,000 migrant workers to the country to meet the labour demands in farms and factories.

US temporarily halts Green Card for nurses: The United States has temporarily paused Green Card for nurses stating that it will not accept any more EB-3 visa petitions for international nurses this year as a result of an administrative backlog. Only those applicants who submitted their requests by June 1, 2022, would be eligible for visa interviews.

The EB-3 (Third Priority Worker) visa permits three types of foreign workers to travel to the United States permanently and work there: skilled workers, professionals, and unskilled workers who have less than two years of work experience or training. The EB-3 visas are limited in number, comprising 28.6% (40,040) of the total annual 140,000 immigrant visas issued for the employment category.

USCIS launches online rescheduling of biometrics appointments: The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has launched a new self-service tool allowing benefit requestors to reschedule most biometric services appointments before the date of the appointment. Previously, benefit requestors and accredited representatives could only request to reschedule a biometric services appointment by calling the USCIS Contact Centre. With this new tool, those individuals who have or create a USCIS online account can reschedule most requests for biometric services appointments without having to call the Contact Centre.

The sufficient reasons for rescheduling may include, but are not limited to:

· Illness, medical appointment, or hospitalization;

· Previously planned travel;

· Significant life events such as a wedding, funeral, or graduation ceremony;

· Inability to obtain transportation to the appointment location;

· Inability to obtain leave from employment or caregiver responsibilities; and

· Late delivered or undelivered biometric services appointment notice.

The new tool, however, cannot be used to reschedule an appointment that has already been rescheduled two or more times, is within 12 hours, or that has already passed.

New Zealand to reimburse costs to 2021 Resident visa applicants: Immigration New Zealand will offer reimbursements to 2021 Resident Visa applicants for the costs of new health screenings – including medical checks and chest X-rays – that they requested but were not required. The 1,049 affected Resident visa applicants can submit a request for reimbursement by September 30, 2023, and must provide evidence of payment such as either a:

· Receipt from their medical practice

· Letter or email of confirmation from the medical practice, or

· Copy of the bank statement showing the relevant transactions.

Vietnam extends duration of tourist e-visa: Effective August 15, 2023, the duration of tourist e-visa will be extended from the current 30 days to 90 days. An e-visa holder will now be allowed multiple entry/exits during the 90-day period.

Under the revised immigration rules, the permitted visa-free stay for citizens of the 25 countries has also been extended from 15 days to 45 days for most countries.

Germany introduces Nursing Studies Strengthening Act: Germany has introduced the Nursing Studies Strengthening Act that aims to close loopholes in training allowances and encourage more people to pursue a career in nursing and also simplify the recognition of international degrees by establishing guidelines for the scope and documents that are required to be submitted in an effort to reduce staff shortages in this profession.

The new legislation will make it easier for nurses with degrees from foreign institutions to transition to the profession in Germany. The Act proposes to replace comprehensive equivalence examinations with knowledge assessments or adaption course.

German Academic Exchange Service launches 30 Digital Scholarships: In a first of its kind, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) is launching 30 digital scholarships for students who want to obtain a master’s degree and can’t do so due to health concerns and family commitments, among others.

Students will be able to attend their master’s classes online or in hybrid format – attending both online and in-person classes. Students from all disciplines (except those interested in attaining art and architecture degrees) can obtain a master’s degree at a foreign university under this program.

DAAD will award 30 digital scholarships each year and the program is open to all students, regardless of their country of origin.

As of 2022, there were 440,564 international students in Germany including 33,753 students from India and 40,055 from China, according to Erudera, a global higher education search platform.