Immigration News

• The US is to, once again, raise the cap on H1 visa by May of this year. Despite the backlogs at many regional service centers, the government is expected to increase the cap to 150,000 per year for the next three years. [April 2000]
• International students and International Student Officers in many campuses across the US oppose the new fees imposed on all current foreign students.
  The new law that came to effect recently requiring all universities in the US to collect fee from international students to eventually be collected by the government is angering many students. While the government is insisting that the money will be used to finance its improvement of services, many see this as one of a series of steps being taken to monitor the activity of international students in the US. While the US has for long maintained a welcoming and encouraging atmosphere, this latest move by the government to keep a regularly updated database of all incoming international students and has raised many questions. Some had even suggested that such kind of steps could discourage some international students from even considering coming to the US. With Europe, Canada and Australia pursuing an increasingly attractive and welcoming atmosphere and relaxed procedures, this move, according to observers, may help further erode the 30% market share the US has in international studies. [April 2000][Contributed by Edulix editorial staff]