Saturday, June 30, 2012

Countdown Begins ! New Australian Immigration policy implemented from tomorrow on 1st July, 2012

The new Australian Immigration policy & criteria is going to be officially implemented from 1st of July, 2012 (after 5 hours from the time of writing this blog)


Those who are interested, please visit our website www.alhamza.pk to fill up Online Assessment Form for evaluation and registration of your application. We highly recommend people to apply as soon as possible in order to save their chances this year. 


We can proudly claim best services in comparatively low consultancy charges in Pakistan. Give us a try and contact now.

Overview on Australia Job Market - Best Information for Prospective Immigrants

For professional and permanent employment, you will need to apply through the competitive General Skilled Migration (GSM) scheme. This scheme gives priority to people who have skills, qualifications and experience, and applicants are awarded points depending on how in-demand the job is.
Alternatively, you can be sponsored by an employer through the Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS), or it may be possible for a UK/EU graduate working for an international company to work in its Australian branch for a period of time.
  • Typical problems encountered: qualifying for a visa to work in Australia, restrictions on the type of work you can undertake on particular visas, unemployment due to the global economic crisis which increases competition for jobs.
  • How to improve your chances: consider undertaking a professional qualification or gaining a few years' work experience that would qualify you as a skilled migrant through the GSM scheme, be flexible with your location as there may be more vacancies and less competition in regional areas.
  • Language requirements: the main language is English and you may have difficulty securing skilled work unless you speak it fluently.

Where can I work?

  • Major industries: agriculture, mining, tourism, manufacture.
  • Recent growth areas: tourism, telecommunications, services.
  • Industries in decline: construction and mining have seen a downturn due to the global economic crisis.
  • Major companies: National Australia Bank, Australia & New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ), Telstra Corporation, Wesfarmers, Woolworths, AMP Ltd, Macquarie Group, Suncorp Group, Qantas Airways, Woodside Petroleum, Westfield Group, BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto Group, Coles Myer.
  • Search for more companies: Australian Chamber of Commerce & Industry,  Australian Yellow Page
  • Major cities: Sydney (largest), Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra (capital), Darwin.

What's it like working in Australia?

  • Average working hours: the maximum working week is 38 hours per week, generally Monday to Friday. Hours worked above the standard working week are paid at overtime rates. 
  • Holidays: all permanent employees in Australia are entitled to four weeks' paid annual leave per year and ten days paid personal/carer's leave.
  • Tax rates: as a non-resident, you will pay considerably higher tax contributions than Australian residents. During 2011-12, non-residents were taxed at a rate of 29c in every dollar earned up to A$37,000, with increasing tax rates for earnings above A$37,000. 
  • Working practices and customs: Australians are generally laid back and casual in social situations. In business contexts they value punctuality, professionalism, directness and brevity. Business attire and handshake greetings are expected in most workplaces.
We can assist your application for Australian Immigration (Skilled Worker Category). Please visit www.alhamza.pk for further information and also submit Online Assessment Form for evaluation. You can also send your updated CV via email on info@alhamza.pk or info.alhamza@gmail.com

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Friday, June 29, 2012

Temporary pause on new applications to the Canadian Federal Skilled Worker Program and Canadian Federal Immigrant Investor Program


Effective July 1st, 2012, Citizenship and Immigration Canada will place a temporary pause on new applications to the Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) and federal Immigrant Investor Program (IIP).

“We have been making lots of changes to our economic immigration system,” said Minister Kenney. “We will take the next six months to do a lot of the heavy lifting to get us closer to a fast and flexible immigration system.”

The pause will allow CIC to make important changes to its economic immigration programs before accepting more applications. This is an important step in moving towards a faster, more flexible immigration system, while immigration levels are at a historic high.
Since the launch of Canada’s Economic Action Plan 2012, Minister Kenney has announced a series of changes to CIC’s economic immigration programs. They include:
  • eliminating the backlog of old FSWP applications;
  • improving the selection of FSWs;
  • creating a new Federal Skilled Trades Program;
  • modifying the Canadian Experience Class to help transition successful skilled temporary workers to permanent residence;
  • changing business immigration programs to target more active investment in Canadian growth companies and more innovative entrepreneurs; and
  • moving towards a new application management system, to develop a pool of skilled workers who arrive in Canada ready to begin employment.
“This temporary pause on new Federal Skilled Worker applications will allow us to set the program on a new course as we intend to launch revised selection criteria soon,” said Minister Kenney. “The pause has no impact on the number of workers Canada admits into the country, as CIC continues to process applications already received. Current immigration remains at historically high levels.”

Application intake is expected to resume in January 2013, when the proposed FSW Pregulatory changes – which will be published in the Canada Gazette in the coming months – are expected to come into force.

The Immigration and Refugee Protection Act allows the Minister to issue special instructions to immigration officers to enable the Government of Canada to best attain its immigration goals. Since the 2008 Action Plan for Faster Immigration, four sets of “Ministerial Instructions” have been issued relating to Economic Class applications.

Under this fifth set of Ministerial Instructions, CIC will also introduce a pause on new federal IIP applications. This pause will remain in place until further notice, allowing the Department to make progress on processing its existing inventory.

As Minister Kenney announced earlier in April, CIC will be consulting with provinces, territories and stakeholders on ways to reform the current IIP in order to maximize the economic benefit to Canada. The Department is also consulting on whether to create a new investor program on a short-term basis, to promote growth in the Canadian economy.

Please visit www.alhamza.pk for further information

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Why Hong Kong is a Nice Place to Live (Top 10 Reasons)


#1 No Natural Disasters
First thing first, you want your home to be save. Hong Kong has a very very good record about natural disaster. We may rarely have some flooding reports, but they are only minor ones and only a few people are affected. In face, HK's sewer system is very reliable and well maintained. The only constant thread to us are typhoons (just like hurricane), but as I said, sewer system are nice and most buildings are made of concrete so we are very save.

#2 Nice Weather
You hate winter because it is too cold? In Hong Kong, the temperature rarely drops below 0 degree C, that's right, no snow in Hong Kong. Therefore, no frozen road, no horrible snow storm, no frost bite. Don't misunderstand, we do have cold winter, but it is still save and relatively pleasant to go outside. For the summer, it's humid and hot. But if you are lucky enough to live by the sea, you will enjoy the refreshing sea breeze.
.

#3 Dim Sum and Seafood
Talking about the best part, everyone loves food. I can say HK has the best food to offer. Of cause we have our very yummy Chinese Dim Sum, which are tiny, cute looking and tasty. We also have the best seafood in the world. Since HK was a fishing village before she became British's colony, we still have traditional fishing activities nowadays, this provide us fresh ingredients. Plus the style of HK cuisine cooking tends to preserved the freshness of the food by the intelligent use of seasoning, you can never expect to have seafood as good as HK elsewhere.

#4 Everyone Speaks English (Kind of...)
If you are from a English speaking country and don't speak a foreign language, you may sometimes find yourself in trouble visiting other big cities like Beijing or Tokyo. This will never happened in Hong Kong, cause Hong Kong's average education level is relatively high and most HK locals start learning english at the age of 3, we can at least communicate in simple english.

#5 Super Awesome Night Skyline
Did I mention about HK's night view at Victoria Harbor or skyline from the Peak? No? Ok, I should have let you know earlier about this HK's best attraction. For those who have been to HK, this is the view that you will never forget in your life time. This view is so unique that you cannot find in other cities. Yes, New York, London and other metropolitan may have nice night view with lots of light. But, come on, lights and 50-storey buildings right next to a harbor, where else can you find such thing?

#6 Very Efficient Public Transport
Do you know many people reside in Hong Kong WITHOUT a car? That's right, thanks to the super efficient public transport system. When you are walking the street, you can see countless buses, minibuses, taxies and trams on the road. This form a massive network that connect everywhere in Hong Kong. Worry about traffic jam? Hop on one of the world's most famous mass transport railway system which bring you from here to there within a blink of an eye. Oh, and we have ferries traveling between the two sides of the Vitoria Harbor too.

#7 Country Parks
Now, you may have one question in you mind, is Hong Kong similar to Singapore? I cannot give you an exact answer as it depends on how you see this two cities. But one thing I want you to know is, though HK is a tiny place, three-quarters of it is countryside. Yup, which means a lot of country parks. If you love nature or outdoor activities, HK has a lot to offer. Due to it's special landscape rising from sandy beaches and rocky foreshores to heights of almost 1,000 meters, HK has a huge variety of plants, insects and birds.
#8 Markets and Shopping Malls
If you are a shopping-holic like me, Hong Kong is like heaven to you. There is always a shopping mall right next to your door! And you can buy everything there, from high-end international brands to local brands. We even have japanese supermarket and Indonesian stores everywhere. I can proudly say HK is an international city, at least in term of shopping experience.

Want something special? Why not go for a treasure hunt in the market? Sometimes if you are tired of those shopping malls or if you want to find a special gift to someone special. You may (if you are lucky) find beautiful handmade crafts or vintage collectables in the market.


#9 24/7 Convenient Stores and Restaurants Everywhere
Hong Kong never sleeps, you can try going our 4 in the morning and still there are people in the streets. Not every one are drinking all night long, but as a metropolitan there are many who work around the clock. That's why we need and we have a 24/7 convenient store right across the corner. If you are so unlucky that you need to work and spend your whole night in the office, as least you can get supply (a.k.a. food) when you need them. Tired of stuff from convenient stores, there are still some 24/7 restaurants waiting for you, ranging from fast-food like burgers to Chinese food like noodles.


#10 Experience Chinese Culture Without Overwhelming
How many of you think Chinese Culture is mysterious and interesting? How many of you are afraid to go to China due to cultural shock and political reasons? Why not go to Hong Kong and have a look first? Hong Kong is like 101 to Chinese Culture. Like I said (in #4) many HK locals speak English and, influence by the British, HK people understand western culture more than other Chinese do. More to that, Hong Kong was already an important place 100 years ago (Sun Yat-sen, the Founding Father of Republican China, studied here) and has a lot of culture preserved. For those of you who are interested in Chinese culture and Chinese history, it is definitely a place where you should be.

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Australian updated Skilled Occupation List (SOL)


The Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) on June 13, 2012 published the updated Skilled Occupation List (SOL) which features 4 new occupations and 4 occupations to be removed.

The updated SOL is based on expert advice from the independent body, Skills Australia. The updated SOL comprises 192 high value occupations in Australia, with 4 new occupations to be added and 4 occupations to be removed. The additions to the SOL include 
  1. Production Manager (Mining)
  2. Metallurgist,
  3. Optometrist
  4. Computer Network and Systems Engineer
4 occupations that are removed are: 
  1. Chemist
  2. Audiologist
  3. Bricklayer
  4. Wall and Floor Tiler
Some of the 192 occupations are listed below (please contact us if your occupation is not listed here)
  1. Construction Project Managers
  2. Engineering Managers
  3. Accountants (General, Management, Taxation)
  4. Auditors (Internal / External)
  5. Chemical Engineers
  6. Electronic Engineers
  7. Electrical Engineers
  8. Mechanical Engineers
  9. Industrial Engineers
  10. Civil Engineers
  11. Biomedical Engineers
  12. Petroleum Engineers
  13. Pre-primary Teachers
  14. Secondary Teachers
  15. IT Business Analyst 
  16. Software Engineers
  17. Computer Network & Systems Engineers
  18. Systems Analysts
  19. IT Programmers
  20. Telecom Engineers / Telecom Network Engineers
  21. And many more
The updated SOL will be effective on July 1, 2012. It will apply to all new independent (unsponsored) and family sponsored skilled visa applications lodged on or after 1 July 2012 unless they are from applicants eligible for transitional arrangements. DIAC will continue to process applications lodged before July 1, 2012 with a nominated occupation that is no longer on the SOL in effect from July 1, 2012. Priority processing arrangements may however change for certain applicants according to the Ministerial Direction on priority processing.

The SOL determines which occupations are eligible for independent or unsponsored skilled migration. The SOL is reviewed by Skills Australia on an annual basis in order to ensure that it meets the needs of the Australian labour market, and to make sure the migration program is responsive to economic conditions and skills needs.

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Sunday, June 24, 2012

More Asians are Immigrating to Australia

There has been an overall increase in Australia's population due to a resources boom and growing immigration.

Figures from the 2011 census showed that Mandarin is now the second most popular language spoken after English. Until recently Italian was the second most popular language. Additionally, data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) revealed that Western Australia and Queensland both recorded double-digit population growth over the past five years, much higher than the national average of 8.3 percent.

Asians accounted for the biggest increase in immigration to Australia in terms of ethnicity, with Indian and Chinese the fastest-growing groups. The census showed that around one in four of the 21.5 million people surveyed in the census last year were born outside Australia, compared with 22 percent a decade ago.


Furthermore, the number of European immigrants coming to Australia has decreased from more than half of arrivals a decade ago to 40 percent last year.


"We're in the midst of a huge mining boom and we have many young people come here to study to go to university," said Andrew Henderson, executive director of the ABS. "These [factors] are giving us a lot more exposure in Asia."


Despite the increase in immigration numbers, Australia is still struggling to attract enough workers for its booming mining industry.


"The population and service implications of resource and mineral activities is really quite profound but this hasn't really been reflected in the census data," said Henderson. "Building a mine can require between four to five times as many people as operating it."


If you would like to apply for an Australian visa, Al-Hamza Consulting can help. Please feel free to
contact us for further details.

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Australian Permanent Residents Benefits



Australian permanent residents are residents of Australia who hold permanent residency visas but are not citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia.

Holders of permanent residency visas may remain in Australia indefinitely. A 5-year initial visa, which corresponds to the underlying migration scheme, is granted alongside the permanent residency. Until the initial visa expires, the visa holder may leave and re-enter Australia freely. A notable feature of the permanent residency visa is that, even after the initial visa expires, the holder is entitled to stay in Australia indefinitely without breaching immigration regulations.

Permanent residency may be revoked at the discretion of the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship. However this does not normally happen other than in cases of criminal misconduct.
There are multiple programs under which an applicant may obtain permanent residency. The "General Skilled Migration Program" is mainly for skilled migrants, and has made available 168,700 visas for year 2010-2011.

Most permanent residents are eligible to become citizens after a waiting period. When the waiting period is complete, the process of sitting the citizenship test and attending the ceremony will add an additional three to twelve months.

Permanent residents enjoy many of the rights and privileges of citizens, including access to free or subsidised legal and health services and education. They do not have the right to vote in federal elections, but some states allow permanent residents from Commonwealth of Nations countries to vote in State and local government elections.


BENEFITS:
Benefits of permanent resident status include:
  • Few limitations on employment in Australia. Some job opportunities, largely state or federal governmental work, require citizenship as opposed to permanent residence.
  • The right to apply for Australian citizenship after fulfilling some criteria.
  • The right to apply for a Commonwealth supported place at approved higher education institutions.
  • For permanent residents accepted under the humanitarian program and enrolled in a Commonwealth supported place, the right to defer payment of their student contribution under the HECS-HELP scheme.
  • The right to sponsor relatives for permanent residence, subject to fulfilling residence criteria and assurance of support requirements.
  • Children born inside Australia will be Australian citizens by birth.
  • The right to access medical and social security benefits, though there is a 2-year waiting period for some benefits.
  • The right to travel to New Zealand without applying for a New Zealand visa. (This right is granted by the New Zealand government.)
  • Unrestricted rights to live, work and study in New Zealand. (This right is granted by the New Zealand government.)
Al-Hamza Cosnulting has been serving people to apply Australian Immigration under General Skilled Migration Categories for Skilled Workers / Professionals since 1998. Please visit www.alhamza.pk and fill up Online Assessment Form for evaluation. 

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Computer Network Engineers added in Australian Immigration Occupation List


Computer Network Engineers are added in the New Occupation List of Australia and are now eligible to apply for Australian Immigration, effective from July 2012. Start preparing your application and apply now through Al-Hamza Consulting.

Other IT professionals are also eligible for Australian Immigration.

Please email us your updated CV for evaluation / assessment. Our email address is info@alhamza.pk or info.alhamza@gmail.com

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Sunday, June 10, 2012

Hong Kong Immigration - Occupations list

Sector: Architecture, Surveying, Engineering and Construction

Sector: Broadcasting and Entertainment

Sector: Information Technology and Telecommunications

Sector: Human Health and Veterinary Services

Sector: Financial and Accounting Services

Sector: Commerce and Trade

Sector: Catering and Tourism

Sector: Business Support and Human Resources

Sector: Academic Research and Education

Sector: Arts and Culture

Sector: Legal Services

Sector: Logistics and Transportation

Sector: Manufacturing Industries

Sector: Sports

If your occupation falls under any of the above sector, you can be fortunate to apply for Hong Kong Immigration under Skilled Workers Category. Please email your updated CV on info@alhamza.pk or info.alhamza@gmail.com for assessment. Also visit www.alhamza.pk for further details.

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