A points-based immigration system or merit-based immigration system [1] is an immigration system where a noncitizen's eligibility to immigrate is (partly or wholly) determined by whether that noncitizen is able to score above a threshold number of points in a scoring system that might include such factors as education level, wealth, connection with the country, language fluency, existing job offer, or others. [2] [3] [4]
Countries that use points-based immigration systems may have other pathways for potential immigrants (such as immediate family, refugees, etc.), so that meeting the points threshold is not necessary for all immigrants. They may also have additional criteria that points-based immigrants need to satisfy, such as no criminal record or no involvement with terrorist organizations. Some countries that use points-based immigration systems are the United Kingdom (see main article), Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Germany. [4] [3] [5] Canada and Australia are the two countries with the most experience with the points-based system, and are often used as the comparison points when judging whether a country's immigration system is points-based. [1] [3] [6] : 17 [7]
Canada was the first country to introduce a points-based immigration system, doing so in 1967. [3] [2] [6] : 19 The change came as Canada was moving past an immigration system that distinguished based on race and country of origin. [3] [6] The new system favoured youth, education, experience and fluency in English or French, i.e., broad human capital as opposed to a specific job offer or job-specific skills. [3] [6] The points-based immigration system has been identified as one of the factors in the change in Canada's immigrant distribution from 85% European to 15% European and levelled the field of immigration. [6] : 20 The minimum points necessary to enter the country is 67 points, however, the number of points vary among countries. More efficient immigration and hiring is done because of this system. [8] [ failed verification ]There is some evidence that immigrants entering under the points system have experienced better outcomes in Canada. [9] In response to lower and declining labour force participation among people admitted through the points-based system relative to native Canadian workers, two reasons were identified: lack of recognition by Canadian employers of foreign educational degrees, and poor language fluency. As a result, the government changed its points-based system to weigh English and French language fluency more heavily. [6] The system was also changed so that any skilled applicant with a job offer scores higher than any applicant without. [3] The application process was again revamped due to the gap between a foreign candidate and an employer and reduced the points for job offer, they also changed the system to an invitation to immigrate method that allows an open expression of interest with the option the pool of candidates can remain a year or two in the system to meet the frequently published "lottery point" and get invited. The lack of visibility of qualified immigrant candidate profiles in the job bank for the employers and hiring agencies in reaching out with a job offer was observed to lag the process. [3]
The last major change to Canada's points-based system took place in January 2015 upon the federal government's launch of Express Entry. Up until Express Entry's introduction, Canada struggled to manage its intake of applications since it received more applications than its available immigration spots. [10] The backlogs were due to Canada processing applications in the order in which they received. In other words, Canada reviewed each application, which was a time-consuming process. [11] Canada formally moved away from this approach when it launched Express Entry. [11] Express Entry is a more dynamic application management system, since it enables the Canadian government to only process the applications of the highest-scoring candidates. This system has eliminated backlogs and reduced the application processing standard to six months or less. [12]
In 1972, the Labor Government elected in Australia decided migrants would be granted a visa based on personal attributes and ability to contribute to Australian society. [2] In 1989, Australia formalized a points-based immigration system similar to Canada's [2] [6] (The Economist gives a date of 1979 for initial rollout of the policy). [3] Like Canada, Australia switched to the points-based system as it was transitioning out of its history of race-based (Briton-focused, white-only) immigration policy. [3] [6] : 16 Australia's experience of the system is unique with smaller changes in regulations and diverse options through provincial programs. Australia shifted to an application process where people were invited to express interest if they meet a required-straight forward score and the applicants would be invited per labour market requirements within a year or two after being in the pool. [3] [13]
In 2017, Australia's points-based system was cited as an inspiration and was raised as an elegant point during discussions of immigration policy in the United Kingdom in the context of Brexit. [14] [15] [16] It has also been cited in the context of Donald Trump's interest in making the United States immigration system more merit-based and reducing its focus on extended family migration after the Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull announced putting "Australians first" through a Facebook video. [17] [18]
Prior to 1987 New Zealand almost entirely focused immigration on ethnicity. A rudimentary system of skills based immigration was legislated for in 1987 and a simplified points system came into being later in 1991. [3]
In 2022, the Singaporean government announced a points-based immigration system for skilled applicants who wish to work and live in Singapore. Known as the Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS), it was put into effect from September 2023 for foreigners intending to work in Singapore under an Employment Pass (EP). [19] [20]
Between 2008 and 2010, the United Kingdom phased in a points-based immigration system for regulating immigration from outside the European Economic Area. The Economist reports that the system did not evolve into a points-based system like that of Australia or Canada due to the numerous special exemptions carved out by various interest groups, and subsequent slashing of immigration under the Tory government. [3] However, specialty based immigration is open in the United Kingdom. Upon exiting the European Union in 2021, the UK implemented a single points based immigration system for all applicants. [21]
In 2023, the German government approved a points-based immigration system to be implemented in stages by 2024. [22]
Both Canada and Australia began with points-based systems focused more on human capital than on specific job offers, but both found through experience that this resulted in lower immigrant employment rates compared with natives or with immigrants in certain states and provinces. This led Madeleine Sumption of the Migration Observatory at Oxford University to claim that "pure" point systems "don't work." [3] Both countries modified their points-based systems to take job offers into account. [3] [6] : 19–20 This did not open window for job opportunities or an open channel for immigrant candidates and employers; additional paperwork and lack of channels have been observed resulting in low rates of immigration and many have reverted or reduced points required in these factors.
Demetrios Papademetriou of the Migration Policy Institute argued, based on the frequent tweaking of criteria used by Canada and Australia, that points-based systems require frequent tweaking in order to be successful. [1] Given the slow pace of United States immigration legislation, he argued that this required a greater level of planning for the bureaucracy than seen in the United States immigration system, so to gain autonomy for the implementation of a points-based system would be a challenge for the United States. [1]
The Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013, which passed the U.S. Senate but not the House of Representatives, would have instituted a points-based immigration system.
In the United States, former President Donald Trump and his administration, as well as some Republicans, supported the RAISE Act, which proposed legislation to steeply cut legal immigration to the United States. In addition to substantially reducing legal immigration to the United States, and reducing family-based immigration, the bill would also replace the current employment-based U.S. visa with a points system, as exists in some other democracies like Australia and Canada. [23] Under the legislation, a maximum of 140,000 points-based immigrant visas would be issued per fiscal year, with spouses and minor children of the principal applicant being counted against the 140,000 cap. [23] The legislation would eliminate the current demand-driven, employer-led model, in which employment-based visas are directly responsive to the needs of the labour market, and would move to a model in which potential migrants would be primarily valued by human capital factors. [23] The points system proposed in the act would prioritize "individuals who are already U.S.-educated, trained in STEM fields, highly-compensated, English-fluent, and young" while disadvantaging "women, people who work in the informal economy (including those who do unpaid work), individuals with family ties to U.S. citizens but without formal education and employment history, middle-aged and older adults, and applicants from less-developed countries." [23]
A green card, known officially as a permanent resident card, is an identity document which shows that a person has permanent residency in the United States. Green card holders are formally known as lawful permanent residents (LPRs). As of 2023, there are an estimated 12.7 million green card holders, of whom 9 million are eligible to become United States citizens. Approximately 18,700 of them serve in the U.S. Armed Forces.
The H-1B is a visa in the United States under the Immigration and Nationality Act, section 101(a)(15)(H), that allows U.S. employers to employ foreign workers in specialty occupations. It is the largest visa category in the United States in terms of guest worker numbers. A specialty occupation requires the application of specialized knowledge and a bachelor's degree or the equivalent of work experience. The duration of stay is three years, extendable to six years, after which the visa holder can reapply. Laws limit the number of H-1B visas that are issued each year. There exist congressionally mandated caps limiting the number of H-1B visas that can be issued each fiscal year, which is 65,000 visas, and an additional 20,000 set aside for those graduating with master’s degrees or higher from a U.S. college or university. An employer must sponsor individuals for the visa. USCIS estimates there are 583,420 foreign nationals on H-1B visas as of September 30, 2019. The number of issued H-1B visas have quadrupled since the first year these visas were issued in 1991. There were 206,002 initial and continuing H-1B visas issued in 2022.
TN status is a special non-immigrant classification of foreign nationals in the United States, which offers expedited work authorization to a citizen of Canada or a national of Mexico. It was created as a result of provisions of the North American Free Trade Agreement that mandated simplified entry and employment permission for certain professionals from each of the three NAFTA member states in the other member states. The provisions of NAFTA relevant to TN status were then carried over almost verbatim to the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement that replaced NAFTA in 2020.
Priority date is a United States immigration concept – it is the date when a principal applicant first reveals his or her intent of immigration to the US government. For family-sponsored applicants, the priority date is the date an immigration petition, filed on behalf of him or her, is received by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). For employment-based immigration beneficiaries, the priority date is the date an immigration petition is filed at USCIS, under categories where a labor certification is not required, or when the United States Department of Labor receives a labor certification application, under categories where a labor certification is required. In all cases, the priority dates are not established until USCIS approves the immigration petition. The date establishes one's place in the queue for a family-sponsored or employment-based or permanent residency permit application.
Permanent Labor Certification is a process step required by some categories of employment-based immigration to the United States of America. Its stated goal is to "protect U.S. workers and the U.S. labor market by ensuring that foreign workers seeking immigrant visa classifications are not displacing equally qualified U.S. workers". U.S. workers are U.S. citizens, nationals or U.S. lawful permanent residents.
Immigration law includes the national statutes, regulations, and legal precedents governing immigration into and deportation from a country. Strictly speaking, it is distinct from other matters such as naturalization and citizenship, although they are sometimes conflated. Countries frequently maintain laws that regulate both the rights of entry and exit as well as internal rights, such as the duration of stay, freedom of movement, and the right to participate in commerce or government.
Visitors to the United States must obtain a visa from one of the U.S. diplomatic missions unless they are citizens of one of the visa-exempt or Visa Waiver Program countries.
The Security Through Regularized Immigration and a Vibrant Economy Act of 2007 or STRIVE Act of 2007 is proposed United States legislation designed to address the problem of illegal immigration, introduced into the United States House of Representatives. Its supporters claim it would toughen border security, increase enforcement of and criminal penalties for illegal immigration, and establish an employment verification system to identify illegal aliens working in the United States. It would also establish new programs for both illegal aliens and new immigrant workers to achieve legal citizenship. Critics allege that the bill would turn law enforcement agencies into social welfare agencies as it would not allow CBP to detain illegal immigrants that are eligible for Z-visas and would grant amnesty to millions of illegal aliens with very few restrictions.
The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007 was a bill discussed in the 110th United States Congress that would have provided legal status and a path to citizenship for the approximately 12 million undocumented immigrants residing in the United States. The bill was portrayed as a compromise between providing a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants and increased border enforcement: it included funding for 300 miles (480 km) of vehicle barriers, 105 camera and radar towers, and 20,000 more Border Patrol agents, while simultaneously restructuring visa criteria around high-skilled workers. The bill also received heated criticism from both sides of the immigration debate.
A work permit or work visa is the permission to take a job within a foreign country. The foreign country where someone seeks to obtain a work permit for is also known as the "country of work", as opposed to the "country of origin" where someone holds citizenship or nationality.
The UK Work Permit scheme was an immigration category used to encourage skilled workers to enter the United Kingdom (UK) until November 2008, when it was replaced by the points-based immigration system. It provided an opportunity for overseas citizens seeking to gain valuable international work experience in the UK and was often used to enable UK employers to transfer key personnel to the UK from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) region.
The EB-1 visa is a preference category for United States employment-based permanent residency. It is intended for "priority workers". Those are foreign nationals who either have "extraordinary abilities", or are "outstanding professors or researchers", and also includes "some executives and managers of foreign companies who are transferred to the US". It allows them to remain permanently in the US.
EB-2 is an immigrant visa preference category for United States employment-based permanent residency, created by the Immigration Act of 1990. The category includes "members of the professions holding advanced degrees or their equivalent", and "individuals who because of their exceptional ability in the sciences, arts, or business will substantially benefit prospectively the national economy, cultural or educational interests, or welfare of the United States, and whose services in the sciences, arts, professions, or business are sought by an employer in the United States". Applicants must generally have an approved Permanent Labor Certification, a job offer, and their employer must have filed an Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker with the USCIS.
The Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) is a set of Canadian immigration programs operated by the Government of Canada in partnership with individual provinces, each of which having its own requirements and 'streams'. In a program stream, provinces and territories may, for example, target: business people, students, skilled workers, or semi-skilled workers.
EB-3 is a visa preference category for United States employment-based permanent residency. It is intended for "skilled workers", "professionals", and "other workers". Those are prospective immigrants who don't qualify for the EB-1 or EB-2 preferences. The EB-3 requirements are less stringent, but the backlog may be longer. Unlike persons with extraordinary abilities in the EB-1 category, EB-3 applicants require a sponsoring employer. There is no "self-petition" category.
The American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act (AC21) was an act passed by the government of the United States in October 2000, pertaining to immigration to the United States. It was a complement to the American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement Act that had been passed in 1998. The focus of AC21 was to change rules related to portability and caps for the H-1B visa to increase the effective number of visas available and make it easier for workers on those visas to switch jobs. Although the language of the Act references the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), the INS would soon be restructured and the functions of the INS referenced in AC21 would be handled by United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker is a form submitted to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services used by employers or prospective employers to obtain a worker on a nonimmigrant visa status. Form I-129 is used to either file for a new status or a change of status, such as new, continuing or changed employer or title; or an amendment to the original application. Approval of the form makes the worker eligible to start or continue working at the job if already in the United States. If the worker is not already in the United States, an approved Form I-129 may be used to submit a visa application associated with that status. The form is 36 pages long and the instructions for the form are 29 pages long. It is one of the many USCIS immigration forms.
Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker is a form submitted to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) by a prospective employer to petition an alien to work in the US on a permanent basis. This is done in the case when the worker is deemed extraordinary in some sense or when qualified workers do not exist in the US. The employer who files is called the petitioner, and the alien employee is called the beneficiary; these two can coincide in the case of a self-petitioner. The form is 6 pages long with a separate 10-page instructions document as of 2016. It is one of the USCIS immigration forms.
Express Entry is a system used by the Canadian government to manage Canadian permanent residence applications for filling labour gaps through certain economic immigration programs. Launched on 1 January 2015, this immigration system is used to select and communicate with skilled and qualified applicants, it also manages a pool of immigration ready skilled workers. Express Entry is designed to facilitate express immigration of skilled workers to Canada "who are most likely to succeed economically." The system is identified to be efficient in processing times, with 80% of applications processed in 6 months or less compared to an existing one.
Immigration policies of the United Kingdom are the areas of modern British policy concerned with the immigration system of the United Kingdom—primarily, who has the right to visit or stay in the UK. British immigration policy is under the purview of UK Visas and Immigration.