WYSE Work and Volunteer Abroad

03/02/2017

Trump's executive order - a big step backwards in cultural understanding?

On Friday the 27th of January, the world watched in disbelief as President Trump took his first step towards retracting the United States from globalism by signing an executive order denying nationals of Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen travel into the US.

WYSE Travel Confederation joins the UNWTO and leading travel industry associations around the world, in their refutation of the travel ban and we maintain freedom of travel is a right, not a privilege. For the youth travel industry, the executive order goes against the very ethos of our community, it poses limitations rather than opportunity.

284 million 15 – 29 years’ olds were are on the move in 2016 – young people crossed borders to excel professionally, learn a new language, volunteer, au-pair or just to travel to immerse themselves in a different culture, gaining an experience of a life-time.

https://www.wysetc.org/2017/02/01/trumps-executive-order-a-big-step-backwards-in-cultural-understanding/

  On Friday the 27th of January, the world watched in disbelief as President Trump took his first step towards retracting the United States from globalism by signing an executive order denying nationals of Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen travel into the US. WYSE Travel Confed...

09/11/2016

POWER SHIFT AT THE WHITE HOUSE: What does the future hold for the global cultural exchange industry?

Twice in a matter of months, the ethos of our industry has been rattled by a political debacle. With a shift in power at the White House looming, it is safe to say that the majority of us are now questioning and feeling very concerned about what the future holds for the J1 Visa Exchange Visitor Program (J-1 EVP) and the impact President-elect Trump’s impending immigration policy will have on the global cultural exchange industry.

https://www.wysetc.org/2016/11/09/power-shift-at-the-white-house-what-does-the-future-hold-for-the-global-cultural-exchange-industry/

Twice in a matter of months, the ethos of our industry has been rattled by a political debacle. With a shift in power at the White House looming, it is safe to say that the majority of us are now questioning and feeling very concerned about what the future holds for the J1 Visa Exchange Visitor Prog...

30/06/2016

The Government of Canada has made it a top priority to re-establish and strengthen our relationship with one of our most important partners, Mexico. To this end, Prime Minister Trudeau today announced Canada’s intention to lift the visa requirement for Mexican visitors to Canada beginning December 1...

07/06/2016

A pre-placement requirement has been put in place as of the 2016 Summer Work & Travel season for countries in the US Visa Waiver Programme, to make sure the emphasis is on the main purpose of the J-1 visa exchange programme, cultural exchange

As of the 2016 Northern Hemisphere summer season, a pre-placement requirement is in place for all 38 countries* under the US Visa Waiver Programme (VWP), meaning that a J-1 visa can only be secured once a job has been pre-arranged before travelling to the US. Why now? Job pre-placement has been a p...

06/06/2016

The first official Irish legislation for au pairs to be proposed soon

Fianna Fail bill will establish oversight body and strict guidelines for hiring live-in workers Au pairs would have to work no more than 30 hours a week in return for lodging and pocket money under new legislation being put before the Dail by Fianna Fail in the coming weeks. The proposed legislation...

24/05/2016

WYSE Travel Confederation member Good Hope Studies launches new brand: Good Hope Volunteers

New Brand: Good Hope Volunteers Good Hope Studies has been offering language programmes in Cape Town since 1995 and volunteer programmes throughout South Africa since 2009. With the growing importance of volunteering, they have decided to take their volunteer programme into the future under its own…

20/05/2016

The Gap Year is catching on in the US, thank you Malia Obama for the exposure - We're curious to see what you will be taking on!

US president Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama recently announced (May 1) that their daughter Malia will attend Harvard University and she will take a gap year before that, not starting at Harvard until the fall of 2017. While it’s common practice elsewhere in the world, only 2.2% of incomi...

19/05/2016

Australia and Singapore establish Work and Holiday arrangement; 500 young people can go work&travel in either country soon...

Two new visa initiatives are being introduced that will enhance tourism, youth mobility and business links between Australia and Singapore. The new visa arrangements have been developed as part of the Australia-Singapore Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and the two countries have agreed to implem...

18/05/2016

It's not a done deal yet...

Assistant Treasurer Kelly O’Dwyer advised the Government is going to hold off on implementing the controversial backpacker tax, which was set to take effect on July 1. The postponement will buy the Government some time to undertake a comprehensive review with the aim to find a sustainable reform in...

13/05/2016

The first group of buyers has been confirmed for the 25th Anniversary of World Youth and Student Travel Conference (WYSTC).

Keep in mind that only 300 early bird tickets are available, so make sure you register before they run out!

13/05/2016

The decision on the Australian 'backpacker tax' has been postponed until after the elections; so uncertainty remains for all in the industry

At the recently held YHA Conference in Cairns, Alex de Waal, CEO of Tourism Tropical NQ, announced that the controversial "backpacker tax" has been put on hold for 6 months. Meaning that the proposed 32.5% tax on each dollar earned by backpackers will not go into effect from July 1, 2016. Although t...

13/05/2016

Read this research report by the World Travel & Tourism Council and the Institute of Economics and Peace (IEP) on the links between tourism and peace.

Today we released new research about the links between tourism and peace. The research quantifies for the first time the links between tourism and peace, and how important an open and sustainable tourism sector can be for the levels of peace in a country.

To read the full report: http://www.wttc.org/research/other-research/tourism-as-a-driver-of-peace/