Australia's president is the latest world leader raising the bar for citizenship into his country.
We've heard the Trump administration float the idea of a merit-based immigration system, now officials down under are adding an “Australian values” test which raises the standard for knowing the English language.
“Australia is not alone,” says Ira Mehlman at the Federation for American Immigration Reform. “Canada for instance, gives points for people who speak English or French because those are the two languages of the country.”
Mehlman says Australia is just the latest in a worldwide trend to gain a handle on immigrants.
“What we're seeing here in the United States, what we're seeing across Europe is the sense on the part of a lot people that the immigration policies of their country do not serve the interests of the citizen,” he says.
Questions about ideology also becoming more common in effort to stop the spread of Islamic terrorism.
“Its not based on the desire to exclude people per se, but it is based on a sense that like any other public policy, it ought to serve the greater good of the country.”