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Posts with tag: 190 visa
Immigration Blog
Migrating is more than just filling in forms and submitting paperwork; its a complex process that will test even the most resilient of people. Understanding Australia & New Zealand at a grass-roots level is paramount to your immigration survival, and to give you a realistic view of both countries, its people and how we see the world, as well as updates about any current or imminent policy changes, subscribe to our regular blog posts by entering your details below.
Australian Pass Mark Increase for General Skilled Migration Visas
From 1 July 2018, applicants wishing to apply for the following visa subclasses will be required to obtain a pass mark of 65 to be eligible to receive an invitation to apply:
- Skilled-Independent (Permanent) (Class SI) Subclass 189;
- Skilled-Nominated (Permanent) (Class SN) Subclass 190; and
- Skilled-Regional Sponsored (Provisional) (Class SP) Subclass 489
This represents an increase of 5 points over the current pass mark of 60 points and applies to all general skilled migration visa applicants who have not received an invitation to apply for residence by 1 July.
The current pass mark of 60 points applies to applicants who have received an invitation to apply for residence and manage to file their general skilled visa applications before the invitation to apply for residence expires i.e. within 60 days of issue of the invitation to apply for residence.
The new pass mark has been ostensibly increased because of the high level of interest in skilled migration to Australia and the high calibre of applicants.
IMMagine clients will be individually notified if affected by the increase.
New Occupation Lists for General Skilled Migration Australia
Some major changes that were announced last year have come into effect as of the 18 March. These changes relate to the temporary and permanent employer sponsored visas and the General Skilled Migration (GSM) programme.
Under the GSM programme, there is a shiny new list called the Regional Occupations List (ROL). This is relevant to the state/territory sponsored Subclass 489 visa.
The ROL consists of occupations only available for GSM for regional areas. Some are newly added and some have been moved to the ROL from Medium to Long Term Skills Shortage List (MTSSL) or Short Term Skills Occupation List (STSOL).
The state sponsorship lists have not yet been updated to reflect any changes to occupations they will sponsor for the skilled visa.
In GSM the three lists will apply as follows:
Subclass 189- MLTSSL
Subclass 190- MLTSSL and STSOL
Subclass 489- MLTSSL and STSOL and ROL
As a consequence of the changes, the MLTSSL has lost 4 occupations and the STSOL has lost 10 occupations. All of these have been moved to the ROL. These include:
Property Manager
Real Estate Representative
Electrical Linesworker
Agricultural Technician
Wine Maker
Helicopter Pilot
Aeroplane Pilot
Flying Instructor
Sports Centre Manager
Fitness Centre Manager
Amusement Centre Manager
Post Office Manager
Medical Administrator
Project Builder
Horse Breeder
New additions include occupations such as:
Flight Attendant
Translator
Driving Instructor
Jockey
Caravan Park and Camping Ground Manager
Cinema or Theatre Manager
Market Research Analyst
They have also added back some occupations that were removed in April 2017 or July 2017, such as:
Vocational Education Teacher
Human Resource Adviser
Safety Inspector
Dental Therapist
Dental Hygienist
Temporary Skills Shortage Visa Subclass 482
The Prime Minister in April last year announced that the work visa 457 will be abolished. This has effectively just been rebadged as the subclass 482 visa.
The basis of the programme is effectively the same; i.e. businesses who cannot find talent from the local labour market can sponsor talent from overseas to fill skills shortages. However there are now a number of amendments designed to encourage employers to hire from the local labour market and make it harder to sponsor overseas workers, and to ensure that the positions that are required to be filled are in fact highly skilled.
While the ability for most medium to large businesses to sponsor an overseas employee will remain unaffected, the incentive for many workers to transition to residence after a period of time has been removed. Only those who appear on the employer sponsorship Medium to Long Term Skills Shortage List will be able to transition to residence under this programme.
Others will need to find another way to stay, such as family or GSM pathways, or be resigned to the fact that they will be in Australia for the short term.
These changes will greatly affect the number of temporary workers in Australia, however there are a number of alternatives that can now be explored, including state sponsored nomination under the GSM programme.
If you wish to know more about the changes or have a discrete 'closed' questions please don't post it below in the comments section. Here is the link to our Ask Us A Question service.
To see if you qualify for any potential residence visas, please contact kane@justimmagine.com or visit the assessment section of our page for options.
When is the right time to apply?
I had a recent consultation with someone in Singapore who wanted to immigrate to Australia for the purposes of educating his children at University but didn’t necessarily want to immigrate during the initial five-year period that an independent visa would allow (the children were quite young).
It’s not always not up to you to choose the time when you can apply for permanent residence because of the amount of change that occurs in the immigration process. It’s more likely that the time chooses you.
I’m never able to “time-the-market” when I buy a house or buy or sell equities but I can tell you that the perfect time to apply for permanent residence is the time at which you meet the eligibility requirements and if that time is now then as inconvenient is the time may be, you need to act. Often the only difference between eligibility and and missing the opportunity completely is timing.
Most applicants aren’t aware of the amount of change that occurs in the course of a relatively short period of time. Not only do applicants get older (and one’s chances of securing a visa never improves with age) but there is also a significant amount of change occurring within immigration policy.
Perhaps one of the most significant changes - certainly in terms of general skilled migration visas - is the publication of the Skilled Occupations List which occurs on 1 July of each year. This list determines which occupations will be eligible for obtaining independent permanent residence without requiring state sponsorship and represent those skills that are in medium to long-term demand in Australia.
Certain occupations have been “flagged” for possible removal in the future. Generally, occupations are flagged when there is emerging evidence of excess supply in the labour market.
The list of flagged occupations for the list to be published on one July 2017 is as follows:
- Production Manager (Mining)
- Accountant (General)
- Management Accountant
- Taxation Accountant
- Actuary
- Land Economist
- Valuer
- Ship’s Engineer
- Ship’s Master
- Ship’s Officer
- Surveyor
- Cartographer
- Other Spatial Scientist
- Chemical Engineer
- Civil Engineer
- Geotechnical Engineer
- Quantity Surveyor
- Structural Engineer
- Transport Engineer
- Electronics Engineer
- Industrial Engineer
- Mechanical Engineer
- Production or Plant Engineer
- Aeronautical Engineer
- Agricultural Engineer
- Biomedical Engineer
- Engineering Technologist
- Environmental Engineer
- Naval Architect
- Medical Laboratory Scientist
- Veterinarian
- Medical Diagnostic Radiographer
- Medical Radiation Therapist
- Occupational Therapist
- Podiatrist
- Speech Pathologist
- General Practitioner
- Anaesthetist
- Cardiologist
- Endocrinologist
- Gastroenterologist
- Intensive Care Specialist
- Paediatrician
- Obstetrician and Gynaecologist
- Medical Practitioners nec
- Barrister
- Solicitor
- Psychotherapist
- Psychologists nec
- Chef*
- Boat Builder and Repairer
- Shipwright
Not only does the Skilled Occupations List change, but so do the quotas of each particular occupation sought by the Australian Government under its skilled migration visas.
These quotas are also announced on 1 July and determine the pass marks of independent visas. Several years ago it was possible to obtain permanent residence for an Accountant scoring 60 points with no previous work experience as an accountant, however a cut in the quota of accountants have meant that these days accountants need to score 70 points.
Some applicants might need State sponsorship if their occupation appears on the Consolidated Skilled Occupations List and whilst these state sponsorship lists are reflective of the skills needed by the 8 states or Territory’s in Australia, they too change depending upon the quota of a particular occupation required in a State or Territory.
Australia is, however, quite generous as to when applicants have to commence residing in Australia.
After the visa is granted, as long as you visit within 12 months specified by the Department, you have 5 years in which to immigrate. If you cannot immigrate within the first 5 years, as long as you visit Australia once every 5 year period you can always apply for a Resident Return Visa.
So whilst one has less choice about when to apply for permanent residence one has a greater degree of choice about the date that you ultimately choose to settle in Australia.
