2023 is coming to an end, and it is destined to be a turbulent year for the post-pandemic immigration industry.
Some countries have stepped up their efforts to continue to welcome migrants, while others have raised the threshold to restrict migrants;Some countries only welcome talent and technical immigrants, while others can immigrate if they have money.
This year, the immigration industry has undergone a lot of earth-shaking changes, and we have witnessed the closure and reopening of many immigration programs.
As 2023 comes to an end, let's take stock together.
Europe
Since the outbreak of the European debt crisis in Europe in 2009, many European countries have launched home purchase immigration programs to encourage foreigners to obtain residency by buying houses.
As soon as the project was launched, it immediately became popular, and according to statistics, in the ten years from 2013 to 2022, it has been exceeded100,000 peopleObtained the right of abode in the EU countries, and the new citizens who got the nationality are even more breakthroughs6000 people
However, since the beginning of this year, the European Union has issued a draft calling on member states to phase out all immigration programs that do not comply with EU law.
On 14 February, Ireland announced that it was officially closing its Immigrant Investor Programme (IIP) and no further applications were being accepted.
On October 6, the Portuguese Parliament officially closed the home purchase immigration program, which means that the project, which has been in existence for 11 years, is completely over.
At the beginning of December, the European Parliament issued a formal proposal to shut down all immigration policies for home purchases in 2025
It seems that the era of immigrating to Europe with no language, education, or work experience requirements, and with money, is really coming to an end.
However, there is still one year left in the window period, while it is in timeGreece, Spain, Malta, TurkeyOther countries have not officially closed down the house purchase immigration program, and those who are interested in friends must seize the opportunity.
Singapore
As one of the most livable countries in the world, Singapore has a stable security and beautiful environment, which attracts many high-net-worth individuals to immigrate.
However, the influx of a large number of immigrants has directly led to a sharp rise in local housing prices and rents, and in order to calm the dissatisfaction of the people and society, Singapore has raised the immigration threshold several times this year.
On March 15, Singapore significantly raised the GIP investment immigration threshold, from the previous minimum2.5 millionSingapore dollar, raised to at least10 millionYuan.
On 5 July, the application threshold for family offices in Singapore was announced to be raised, with the previous size being:10 millionSingapore and gradually increase to over two years20 millionS$20 million, the new policy requires S$20 million to be received in the first year.
On 1 September, Singapore EP applications will be subject to a points-based system, which requires applicants to achieve at least 40 points in this framework to be eligible to apply for EP.
In fact, in addition to the "Global Business Investor Program" and "Family Office" for high-net-worth immigrants, the Immigration Department of Singapore has also opened up immigration channels for the general middle class.
Singapore Entrepreneur Self-Employed ImmigrationImmigrate to Singapore in the form of starting a company, suitable for large, medium and small entrepreneurs or middle and senior managers who want to start a business and do business in Singapore.
Singapore Tech Pass ImmigrationIt is suitable for talents in the field of science and technology who want to develop and move to Singapore, and they do not need to work in Singapore in advance, and can apply for immigration through technology professionals.
Top Talent Pass Immigration in Singapore: It is suitable for talents with outstanding achievements in business, arts, culture, sports, science and technology, academics and other fields, there is no quota or nationality restrictions, and you can directly get Singapore permanent status after the application is approved.
It is not difficult to see that the threshold for Singapore immigration will only rise in the future, and friends who are willing should plan as soon as possible.
Hong Kong
On December 19, Hong Kong officially announced the "Capital Investment Entrant Scheme", resuming investment immigration that had been suspended for eight years.
Amount Requirements:The application threshold for Hong Kong investment immigration has been raised from HK$10 million to HK$30 million.
Investment Requirements:Of this amount, HK$27 million was used for permissible financial assets and non-residential real estate such as **, bonds, certificates of deposit, subordinated debts, collective investment schemes, limited partnerships**, etc., and the remaining HK$3 million was invested in the newly established Capital Investment Entrant Scheme portfolio.
Identity Requirements:Applicants must be foreign nationals over the age of 18, Chinese nationals who have obtained permanent resident status in a foreign country, residents of the Macao Special Administrative Region, and Chinese residents of Taiwan, China.
After the approval of the applicant, the applicant can stay in Hong Kong for 2 years, after the expiration of which he can apply for an extension of 3 years, and when the 3 years expire, he can apply for another 3 years, that is, a total of "2+3+3", if the applicant and his dependants have resided in Hong Kong for not less than seven consecutive years, they can apply to become Hong Kong permanent residents in accordance with the law.
Judging from the above requirements, the requirements for Hong Kong investment immigration are still relatively high, especially for mainland applicants.
First, the amount of investment immigration is high, and the amount of EB-5 investment immigration in the United States is 800,000 US dollars, or about 6.25 million Hong Kong dollars. The cost of applying for a Hong Kong immigrant investor is almost equivalent to 5 US EB-5 immigrant investors.
Second, the threshold requirements are high, in order to apply for Hong Kong investment immigration, mainland applicants must first obtain permanent residence status in other countries, which not only adds an additional process, but also takes a long time.
It is not difficult to see that Hong Kong investment immigration is suitable for ultra-high-net-worth individuals, and it is not surprising that the conditions are set so strictly.
For the majority of middle-class families, it can actually be passedQuality Migrant Scheme, Professional Fellowship Scheme and Top Talent Pass Scheme, quickly get the Hong Kong identity.
Australia
In the 2022-23 financial year, Australia's net migration reached a record high of more than 500,000 people, more than half of whom were international students.
According to a survey published by the local government in Australia, 62% of Australians believe that the country has too many immigrants.
On December 11, Australia announced that it would tighten visa rules for international students and low-skilled workers, cutting immigration arrivals in half over the next two years.
The new policy has two major features of the visa tightening for international students: higher English test scores and stricter scrutiny of second visa applications for extension of stay.
First of all, the IELTS score required to apply for a student visa is from:5.5 pointsAdjusted upwards to6.0 points, IELTS score required to apply for a graduate visa from6.0 pointsAdjusted upwards to6.5 points
Secondly, there will be a greater scrutiny of those applying for a second visa, including the adoption of tests for students to demonstrate their reasons for further education in Australia.
Under the new policy, overseas students will not be allowed to move from one immigration application to another, which will prevent many people from extending their stay in Australia in this way.
In addition to restricting visas for international students and graduates, Australia's visa quota for low-skilled workers, such as craftsmen, machine operators and drivers, will also be reduced.
Next,Australia will introduce a new talent, innovation and technology migration visaPsychologists, childcare workers, IT programmers, accountants, data scientists, engineers, construction workers, and more can all be approved quickly.
Canada
While other countries have tightened their immigration policies, only Canada is still frantically grabbing people.
On June 16, 2023, Canada's population reached 40 million for the first time, but there is still a shortage of labor in this vast country, especially the demand for high-tech talents, which has been increasing.
According to the "2023-2025 Immigration Plan" released by Immigration Canada, 1.45 million new immigrants will be accepted in the next three years. Among them,It will accept 465,000 newcomers in 2023, 485,000 newcomers in 2024, and 500,000 newcomers in 2025
Specifically, the top 3 quotas for each immigration category in Canada in 2023 are:
Provincial Nominee Program: 105,500
Express Entry EE: 82,880 people
Spouses, partners and children reunified: 78,000
In terms of the number of quotas, the Canadian provincial nomination quota in 2023 will increase by about 23,000 people compared with Express Entry, which means that the provincial nomination has gradually begun to replace Express Entry as the main immigration route in Canada.
In the next three years, Canada will increase the quota of economic immigrants, and impose restrictions on those international students who only want to come to Canada to buy luxury cars and houses and enjoy Canadian benefits, but do not work or start a business.
Canada's immigration minister, Marc Miller, also said that the cost of living for foreigners who are required to study in Canada will be doubled from the current amount.
Starting January 1, 2024, each applicant will need to demonstrate that they need to have $20,000 in living expenses in addition to their first year's tuition and travel. Currently, this fee is only $10,000 CAD.
This is a clear signal that Canada's quota for international students will continue. In September this year, the number of applications accepted to study abroad in Canada decreased by 1550,000 copies, a year-on-year increase of 20%.
In the case of restrictions on student immigration, economic immigration includes:SUV Entrepreneur Immigration, Federal Self-Employed Immigration, Skilled Immigration Express Entry (EE), Provincial Nomineeand other ways, which will become the main way for domestic applicants to immigrate to Canada.
United States
Due to the impact of the previous epidemic, the United States family-based immigration category was suspended across the board, and the extra quota was transferred to employment-based immigration.
As a result, the Occupation Category Green Card quota for Fiscal Year 2023 (October 1, 2022 to September 30, 2023) was reached197,000 sheets, which includes the unused family-based immigration in the previous fiscal year57,000 sheetsGreen card.
These green card slots transferred from other immigration categories will be allocated in priority within the employment-based immigration category
EB-1 will receive additional quota first, and EB-1 will be allocated to EB-2 if it is not used up, and EB-2 will be allocated to EB-3 if it is not used up.
However, the unused EB-3 will not be allocated to EB-4 and EB-5, but the unused EB-4 and EB-5 will be given to EB-1.
That's why the EB-1A has the shortest backlog and the fastest processing time of all employment-based immigrants, because there are always more green card slots.
Since the data for the fourth quarter has not yet been counted, USCIS only released the number of immigration applications for Q1-Q3 of fiscal year 2023:
Of the 11,319 EB-1A immigration applications, 7,362 were approved, 2,978 were denied, and 6,794 were awaiting processing
Of the 27,445 NIW immigration applications, 24,228 were approved, 5,247 were denied, and 15,591 were awaiting processing
Of the 43,897 EB-3 immigration applications, 42,406 were approved, 2,227 were denied, and 13,105 were awaiting processing.
In terms of approval rate: EB-3 NIW EB-1A;From the perspective of the backlog, EB-1A is about one and a half years, NIW is about three years, and EB-3 is four to seven years.
If you are an excellent talent in the industry, choose EB-1A, which has sufficient quotas, fast speed, short waiting time, low cost, no need to apply for labor certification, take the expedited channel, and can be approved in 15 days.
If you are a highly educated talent, choose NIW, you do not need to provide a labor certification, do not need to be sponsored by an employer, are not restricted by industry, language and age, you can apply from all walks of life, one person can apply, and the whole family can get a green card.
If you are an ordinary middle-class family, choose EB-3, the threshold is relatively low, which means that as long as you can find a suitable sponsoring employer, you can get a U.S. green card.
If you have a budget and want to get your green card as soon as possible without a backlog, choose EB-5.
According to the latest bill, USCIS has set aside 3,200 visa quotas for infrastructure projects, rural projects, and projects in high-unemployment areas
USCIS allows onshore EB-5 applicants to file I526** and I485** at the same time as filing for change of status, or submit an I-765 EAD and I-131 re-entry permit to receive a two-in-one COMBO card.
This COMBO card is equivalent to a quasi-green card, and before the green card is approved, the applicant can freely study, reside, and live in the United States, which is equivalent to locking in the benefits of the green card in advance.
Double Submission is a major benefit for international students in the U.S. to avoid the restrictions on finding a job within the OPT time limit and the H-1B lottery.
In addition to being suitable for international students, the EB-5 visa reservation program is also ideal for those who want to get a U.S. green card quickly and have some financial resources.
In 2023, the policies of the major mainstream immigrants have undergone a lot of changes, and if you want to find an immigration program that suits you, you must evaluate your own conditions and advantages, and choose the immigration path that suits you more carefully and wisely.
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