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    Working Abroad Expo: Dublin, 21-22 March; Cork, 26-27 March

    Friday, March 20th, 2009

    An event aimed at those considering relocating to work abroad in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Dubai and the UK will be held on 21-22 March in the RDS in Dublin and 26-27 March in the Silver Springs Moran Hotel.

    Organisers say the Working Abroad Expo will include immigration officials from Australia, New Zealand and Canada giving visa advice, relocation services, employers and recruitment consultants, and financial advisers. Information on volunteering abroad will also be available.

    For more information, see the Working Abroad Expo website.

    Related article:

    IrishExaminer.com: Destination anywhere

    Irish in Australia increasing, figures show

    Friday, November 21st, 2008

    The number of Irish nationals coming to Australia is rising substantially, according to Department of Immigration figures reported in the Irish Echo. The figures show increasing numbers of people immigrating to Australia under working holiday visas, employer-sponsored 457 visas, permanent residency visas, and through the Family Migration stream.  If current trends continue, 87,000 Irish nationals will be issued visas this year, up from 81,070 last year and 75,246 the year before.

    There were 7,332 working holiday visas issued between July 1 and October 31 this year, up 33% from the same period last year, when there were 5,535 issued. In the same period in 2006, there were 4,733 issued.

    More Irish are choosing to stay in Australia at the end of their one-year working holiday: between July and October, 1,239 applied for an extension, a quadrupling from the 371 who applied last year. Over 10% of those on working holiday visas are now applying for a second year.  Last year, there was a record total of 15,625 working holiday visas, and this number will increase for 2008/2009.

    The number of 457 visas, which are employer-sponsored and valid for up to four years has nearly doublied in two years.  For July to October, there were 1,220 visas, up from 670 in 2006. More people are immigating with partners and dependents: 900 of the 467 visas were to primary applications and 320 are secondary, up from 600 and 160 respectively last year.

    The number of Irish people offered resident visas from July through October this year has jumped 60%, from 391 in 2007 to 633 in 2008.

    Irish visitor numbers, however, are decreasing; the 16,730 who came to Australia on holiday visas between July and October represented a decline of 8%.

    See the article on the Irish Echo website.

    Benefits to New Zealand highlighted by company

    Tuesday, August 19th, 2008

    The Sunday Tribune is carrying an article on the benefits of migration to New Zealand. Much of the recent media coverage of migration to Australia and New Zealand seems to be the result of a media campaign by MigrationAbroad.com, a for-profit organisation that handles visa applications to Australia and New Zealand. They are actively promoting such visas through monthly clinics.

    The company is promoting New Zealand’s cheaper property, falling unemployment and cultural similarities with Ireland as reasons for a move.

    Read the article: “A different opportunity down under”

    Radio show advises on Australia move

    Wednesday, August 6th, 2008

    The Last Word programme on Today FM carried a feature today on how to emigrate to Australia. The marketing manager of a business called Migrationabroad.com painted a rosy view of moving to Australia, depicting it as a place with good weather, plentiful jobs, cheap housing and a good work-life balance.

    A prospective emigrant was also interviewed, who is planning on moving to Perth with his wife and children, where they will join friends. He has been working but says “with the way the economy is going, I don’t know what the future holds”. He says that his decision to move was initially a lifestyle choice rather than an economic move; they are giving it two years and then will decide whether to move there permanently.

    The Migrationabroad.com representative says that she gives clinics every month, and has found that more people are moving to Australia who have never been there before. “People are prepared to take a chance on it…The culture shock isn’t there”. She added that the schools were good, they speak English, and there is a similar system to recognise trades. She said it was the most popular destination.

    After the interview, the presenter read a text that had come in. “Now we know we’re in the 1980s, promoting emigration”. The presenter said that promoting emigration had not been his intent.

    Hear the programme.

    Agency reports increase in Australia visas

    Monday, August 20th, 2007

    A business that assists would-be migrants to Australia claims that there has been a large jump in the number of workers moving to Australia.

    Migration.ie spokesperson Barry Dowling told the Irish Independent, “We deal with about 350 applications a month and we probably deal with about half the market for Australia”. The newspaper reports that the company is dealing with an increasing number of construction workers who are looking for jobs as the industry slows down.

    He says that people are leaving for economic and lifestyle reasons. “Most people leaving for Australia are looking for a better standard of living and Australia consistently beats Ireland hands down in terms of both cost and standard of living.”

    Australia is actively encouraging immigration to deal with a skills shortage. The recruitment efforts include efforts to attract a wide range of workers, including medical professionals, cooks, hairdressers, accountants and construction workers.

    The newspaper also reports that the number of students taking up the J-1 visa has also increased substantially.

    J-1ers go west as traditional spots lose pull

    Wednesday, August 8th, 2007

    California is the big draw this summer for Irish students working in the US summer on J-1 visas, according to journalist Carole Coleman. She reports on RTÉ that there is a growing trend for students to go to the western state, as numbers fall from the traditional favourites of New York, Boston and New Jersey.

    Bernadette Cashman of Irish Outreach San Diego says that 2,500 J-1 students arrived this summer; the group contacted  employers in advance to and provided orientation for hundreds of the students.

    While many are attracted to the sunny weather and the beaches, the city’s proximity to the Mexican border is another big draw: students who are under 21 can buy drink legally in Mexico. High rents and competition from other European students in many of the traditionally Irish areas are serving as additional disincentives.

    In a similar vein, the student-run Daily Californian carries an article on the Irish students spending the summer in Berkeley. Journalist Sonja Sharp quotes an area employer as saying the city has become “In the past three or four years, Berkeley’s just become a Mecca� for Irish students  A 2005 USIT survey showed that 35% of students wound up in California.

    The RTÉ report mentions that some students are having trouble with the wait for their social security numbers. The Emerald Isle Immigration Center’s Padraig Nolan says that some students in the New York area have been forced into debt and even gone home.

    See the news stories:

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