For any foreign national who wishes to visit the United States, it is mandatory for him to obtain a non-immigrant visa. Such visas are meant for people who enter the nation with a specific purpose and reside in the nation temporarily. With this visa in hand, the foreign national can travel to the US and seek the permission of the US immigration inspector to enter the country. The visitor visas include those for business which is the B-1 visa, for medical treatment or pleasures is the B-2 visa and others include a combination of the above.

At the same time, the United States has a Visa Waiver Program with some nations where in the nationals from these specific countries need not obtain a visa. However, these applicants must qualify with the visa requirements under the guidelines. With the Visa Waiver Program in place, there are thirty six nations which are participating in this program. It permits travelers from these countries to US to visit for the purpose of tourism, official or business and are permitted to reside in the nation for up to ninety days or less, that too without obtaining a visa. This program was introduced to reduce certain irrelevant hindrances pertaining to travel. With this, it was also done to promote the tourism industry. At the same time, it also allows the Department of State to concentrate the consular resources in other aspects.

On the other hand, those not belonging to these specific countries would have to apply for a tourist visa. This can be done at the US Embassy or Consulate in the specific country. An appointment for an interview can be requested for. In such a case, the applicant has to prove that he has strong ties as well as an employment which is stabilized. Also, he has to prove that he has a decent income along with a valid and a legitimate reason for his trip.

Here, it is important to note that the Consular Officer has very little time to take a decision regarding the eligibility of the applicant for the visa. So, during the interview, the visa official would question the applicant regarding his intent and purpose of making this trip. With this, questions pertaining to whether or not the applicant was involved with any violation of law or visas in the past. Above all, the applicant would be assessed for his strong ties to his native country. This would be proved by the evidence he submits.

Above all, it is has to be ensured that the documents are submitted along with the application form. More so, the right and the relevant documents which cater to the visa must be submitted. It is best to consult a visa expert in this regard who deals with US visit visas. He would be the one who would be updated with all the latest and can guide you appropriately.

According to a latest survey, it has been confirmed that Afghan and Iraqi Passports are regarded as the worst in all over the globe. As per the report, the findings prove that Arabian citizens find it extremely hard to get visas to visit international places.

Each nation is given one point per country that the people of that country can enter without the need of going for a visa beforehand. The same has been confirmed from the statistics of IATA International Air Transport Association ().

The report has further stated that that the rankings at this global level resonates the global travel freedom of the nationals of various nations as well as the kind of relations these nations share with other countries. Similarly the visa requirements also contemplate the kind of relation these countries share with each other.

As far as the list is concerned, Afghanistan is at the lowest level of the list as managed to get just 26 points. This means that the nationals of Afghan have the freedom to enter just 26 nations without the need of going for a visa beforehand. Iraq is not so far as it managed to get just 27 points.

The country which got the top most position is the United Kingdom with an unbeaten 166 points. It has been speculated that, rather immigration experts strongly believe that stringent visa requirements play a critical role in affecting the travel plans of people, hence affecting the image of the country as well.

The US government has posed certain restrictions on all its permanent residents when it comes traveling abroad. The reentry permit is an answer to these permanent residents who can enter the United States. This permit tends to identify the intentions of the immigrant whether he wanted to abandon his status or not. This program allows an individual to enter the United States after having been overseas for 2 years. This is when he has not acquired a retuning resident visa. This permit usually lasts for duration of 2 years from the date that it has been issued.

In order to apply for this permit, the applicant needs to submit the Form I-131 along with the fee. It is suggested that this form is filed way in advance to the trip, atleast 60 days in prior. Also, the candidate should be present in the United States while filing this form.

Incase, the applicant intends to reside outside the United States for less than a year, he does not need apply for this permit. Also, if the applicant has been residing overseas for less than a year, he is permitted to use his Permanent Resident Card in the form of his document for travel.

The total fee is $385 which also involves the fee for application which costs $305 along with a biometric fee of another $80. Incase the candidate would want an email notification or a text message once his application has been accepted; he needs to file the Form G-1145 E-Notification of Application/Petition Acceptance. This form should be attached with the first page of the main application.

Once the application has been submitted, within 30 days the applicant would receive the Form I-797 Receipt Notice which confirms that the application has been accepted. This would be followed by a Notice for Appointment which would need you to be present at the Local Application Support Center where in your fingerprints would be taken.

However, the application would not be approved if the applicant already has a valid reentry permit. And also, if it has been prohibited by the federal register where in a notice has been kept to not allow such a permit for travel purposes to the specific places.

China has denied Northern Commander Lt Gen B S Jaswal to visit the nation just because he has come from the core area of J&K. India has also reacted strongly in this direction. They have put on the visits expected from the Chinese military officers until the time this matter is not taken care of.

The sources have confirmed that the time of travel for General-rank officer who was scheduled to visit China was decided somewhere in the month of January and it was decided that he would visit the nation in the month of July.

When the final word to send its delegate to the country was provided to China, the latter said Lt Gen Jaswal comes from J&K (India). In addition to that, people coming from this piece of the globe are required to have different visas. Hence, the country made suggestions that India should not bar the visit, rather send some other official from some other part of the country.

Vishnu Prakashm who is the spokes person from the External Affairs Ministry has confirmed that the travel has been cancelled due to some reasons, although he didn’t give any elaboration on it.

Also, annoyed with this act of China, India too has suspended the visit of two Chinese defence officials who were due to visit the country for the purpose of taking a course at the National Defence College.

This case would further hamper the bilateral relationships between the two countries.

When I got ready to write this piece, a very particular and touching message sent by a dear friend stuck my mind. It goes like this…’why a few from all classmates get closer to you; out of so many colors only few are counted as favorites…(some more similar lines)…because only a few things and people are destined to reach the strings of heart and make life beautiful’. Indeed, true, this is!

Forget about friends (they are altogether a different realm), this thing can be proved from a very simple example of our day-to-day life. Whenever you step out of your home, you meet some 10-12 people (of course, you get to see many hundreds people), with whom you actually interact. Are you able to remember all of those strangers whom you meet or travel together? No, not possible. But, have you ever wondered that you are awestruck by only a few particular strangers, who in fact, belong to that group of strangers whom you travel along in a public transport vehicle or work in a same locality.

Think of it for a second…it’s quite interesting to realize this thing! You might not be able to recall the instances when you got to know them, but it would surely bring a smile on your face acknowledging the way it has been! You know nothing how it has developed, but know for sure that a cordial relationship exists between you and those few strangers!

The connection is innocent and instant! You did not need some meetings…the connection developed over the eye contact and few gazes. You tend to trust them, no matter how often you meet or for how long you have known them. So, what it is and why it happens that you strike a cord with only a few strangers out of the hundreds?

Today, I experienced something of this sort. Over the months of traveling from the place where I put up to my workplace, I have seen this lady very often. We see each other quite often, as we come to the same place every morning for office, though we do not travel in the same bus always(of course, we got to see each other for the first time while traveling in the same bus). We have never talked directly, but I did not know why the lady used to give some friendly gazes. I might be that friendly stranger for her. She would always look at me and pass a sweet smile. I could never figure out why she acted like this. Eventually, I too develop a warm connection with her gazes, a result of her sweet gestures. Still, I was unaware of the reasons as to why people get along with some particular strangers.

When I got to read the book, “Click: The Magic of Instant Connections” (By Rom Brafman, Ori Brafman), I realize something! The book revealed five factors responsible for developing camaraderie between strangers. They are Similarity; Vulnerability; Resonance; Proximity; and Environment.

No matter what are the factors behind such camaraderie, it always feels good to have strangers-turned-friends. And yes, sometimes this genre of friends reaches the strings of our heart that no one else had ever reached! Cheers to my ‘Strangers-turned-Friends’

In order to hire international long haul trucking drivers under the Saskatchewan Immigration Nominee Program, Saskatchewan trucking firms are required to meet some eligibility criteria. Let us have a look at them:

• The trucking firms must have been in operation in the province of Saskatchewan for a minimum period of 5 years.
• The carriers run by the firms must have acceptable safety rating, confirmed by the Highway Traffic Board.
• The firms must be engaged in long-distance shipping. In other words, they must be in operation which requires them to travel inter-provincially, as well as internationally.
• A trucking recruitment and settlement plan must be submitted by the firms, which should include the recruitment and screening international truck; providing training for the nominated ones; and settlement aids for international drivers and their families.
• The firms must meet various requirements as set by the Service Canada.

The Service Canada also requires all trucking firms to fulfill the following:

• The firms must provide the proof of on going efforts to recruit local Canadians workers at the time of filing applications with the Saskatchewan Immigration nominee Program.
• They must also demonstrate that they have tried to fill the positions with unemployed Canadians through provincial employment programs and Human Resources and Skills Development Canada.
• The firms must consult the province’s local union and make sure if the position is covered under a collective agreement.
• The firms must come into an employer-employee agreement, which must contain wages, duties, as well as conditions pertaining the transportation, accommodation, and occupational safety of the international truck drivers.

There are other requirements as well, which the Service Canada requires trucking firms to meet. To know more, contact an Immigration and Visa consultant!

Under the Long Haul Truck Drivers, the Saskatchewan Immigration Nominee Program enables Saskatchewan to hire truck drivers that the province’s trucking firms require for in order to meet the requirement of truck drivers. In order words, the trucking firms of the Canadian province make use of this category to bring truckers they need. The category is administered by the Service Canada’s Temporary Foreign Worker policy. Basically, these occupations require foreign applicants to have a high school diploma, else on-the-job training.

The category of Long Haul Truck Drivers Project is a joint venture of the Saskatchewan Trucking Association; Service Canada; and Citizenship and Immigration Canada. The project aims at attracting foreign long-haul truck drivers to the province to meet the shortages of skilled truck drivers in Saskatchewan.

Below are a few eligibility criteria for the applicants of the Long Haul Truck Drivers:

• Applicants must have a temporary job offer from a trucking firm based in Saskatchewan.
• Applicants must posses a Canadian work permit.
• Applicants must also possess a valid trucking license equivalent to a Class 1A driver’s license in Saskatchewan.
• Applicants must have minimum 2 years of truck driving experience.
• Applicants must be able to travel to the United States, if they are required to travel by the employer.
• Applicants must have some level of proficiency in English language.

For more information on the Long Haul Truck Drivers category, contact an Immigration and Visa Consultant!

Commencing September 8 onwards, visitors intending to travel to US would have to pay $19 fee which would go towards covering the costs of other assets linked with human resources and computers.

Similar is the story Kao Zi Chong, who is an undergraduate and intending to enroll in an American University on September 16. Under the rules of the newly launched fee structure, he would have to pay US$14 (S$19) before gaining entry in the country.

The US Embassy has confirmed that the fee structure would come into action from September 8 onwards. Also, the fee has been collected as a part of the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). When it comes to Singapore, applicants going to the US from this country for the purpose of work or vacation have been on the VWP since the year 1999.

The fee would be taken from the visitors when they will get the clearance from the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (Esta). The same is a system which takes care of the people who are eligible to visit the country without having visa with them.

Kao Zi Chong also stated that the amount is not that big but it has been hoped that it would fasten up the Immigration process even further.

Those who have applied for the US visa before the mentioned date don’t have to pay this additional amount of money. Also, visitors from nations (under the VWP) who are intending to visit US for work or vacation, for as long as 90 days, are not required to have a visa either.

The new visa requirements for Mexicans intending to visit Canada have been made tougher. This has directly left an impact on the number of tourists arriving in Canada, thanks to the stringent visa requirements.

For instance, daughter of a teacher (who was working on work permit and was employed in Houston, Tax) was intending to mark her visit to Montreal with her siblings and meet their parents. But when she applied for the visa, the officials informed her that she has to visit Los Angeles or Washington, D.C. in order to get the visas which are granted to residents of Mexico intending to visit Canada.

Therefore, the daughter had to cancel her plans and the parents had to fly back to Houston to meet their kids. It has been more than a year now that the daughter now managed to get her Travel Visa to enter the country while she was on her vacation back to her homeland.

This is the dilemma faced by all the Mexicans who are intending to visit Canada. They have to go through rigid visa regulations and travel here and there in order to get their visas. And above all, there is no surety as to how much time would be taken to get the visas.

If this is the case of known Mexican residents, imagine the case of unknown Mexican residents intending to visit their parents or relatives in Canada. How much they would have to suffer when they would be asked to show their documents and travel here and there in an attempt to get their visas.

Best would be to take advise from an expert Immigration and Visa expert (www.abhinav.com) and go about the process.

Canada welcomes thousands of immigrants every year. As far as the statistics from Citizenship and Immigration Canada is concerned, year 2008 saw the immigration of 250,000 applicants, which included 87,000 who chose Toronto as their immigration destination whereas 37,500 immigrated to the beautiful place Vancouver.

Canada has always welcomed people from all over the world with open hands. In addition, the country never leaves any stone unturned when it comes to providing assistance to these new comers and helping them settle down in life.

In another attempt to provide assistance to new Canadians, the federal government has come out with plenty of programs to offer assistance on vital aspects of life in the country. For instance, knowledge regarding aspects of banking and economic factors is provided by the Immigrant Settlement and Adaption program. It also provides valuable information on employment and education related queries which the new Canadians suffer on a regular basis.

In another instance, all the loan related queries are solved by the Immigration Loans Programs. Other documents linked with medical examination and travel related costs and papers required for the same are guided by the same body.

In addition, new comers would be granted financial help from the banks in Canada. For instance, necessary devices and products would be given to the new comers by the BMO Bank of Montreal under their newly implemented package.

For more information in immigrating to Canada, contact an Immigration and visa expert (www.abhinav.com).