This year's Australian budget (2022-2023) includes some immigration-related announcements for Australian permanent visa classes. There is good news for skilled migrants wishing to apply for Australian permanent residence status.
The Australian Government will increase the planning level of Australia's visa program to 160,000 visas between 2022 and 2023. Immigration, and subsequently the number of visa applications for a permanent residence, is expected to increase to 180,000 in 2022-2023.
In the following year 2024-2025, applications for Australian visas are expected to increase to 213,000.
Here is an overview of the most important changes for migrants:
Skilled migrants who are eligible to apply for a “Skilled Stream” visa will account for 70% of the current planning level. A total of 109,900 applicants are expected to receive their visa grants from this program between 2022-2023. This represents an increase of about 30,000 visa applicants compared to the previous year.
Here are the details for selected visas within the skilled migration program:
Read more about Skilled Migration and Sponsoring Workers
Here are the details for some business visa classes:
At a glance: Global Talent Visa Australia
Family visas (within the sponsored family stream) are allocated the remaining 30% of places within the program. The following planning information was given for 2022-2023:
Read more about partner visa and parent visa in Australia
Working Holiday Visa applications will increase by 11,000 (30%) in 2022-23.
Australia is currently trying to lure working holiday makers with attractive offers: Working Holiday Visa Australia
Source: This article was first published on https://www.sydney-migration.de/latest-news/287-visum-australien-gute-neuigkeiten-fuer-auswanderer.html
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The TSS visa (482 visa) has now replaced the subclass 457 visa.
One of the new requirements for visa applicants is that they must have “worked in the nominated occupation or a related field for at least 2 years”. This criteria must be satisfied at the time of decision, which means that it may be possible to apply for the TSS Visa before the applicant has acquired 2 years of experience.
We expect that case officers will generally require such work experience to have been undertaken in the last 5 years prior to the date of application. It may be possible under policy for work that has been undertaken on a part time basis to also be counted.
Please note that this does not override any requirements which are stated in the ANZSCO definition of the nominated occupation (which may for example require 5 years of relevant work experience in the absence of appropriate qualifications).
Read in detail about becoming a Business Sponsor and how to obtain a 482 visa to nominate your workers:
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The government may introduce a mandatory engineering register, the National Engineering Register (NER).
When the NER will be introduced, it may mean that engineers wanting to work in Victoria with an employer sponsored visa may need to register with the NER.
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Starting from 1 February 2018, students wishing to study in Australia will need to provide more evidence of funds than before. With the January 2018 Student Visa Digest being released, the annual cost of living will go up from 1 February 2018. The new annual living amount that a student or guardian needs to prove in every application that requires evidence of funds is 20.290 AUD. A partner or spouse needs to demonstrate the amount of 7.100 AUD. And for a child, the new annual living amount is 3.040 AUD.
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Questions relating to English Language requirements for employer sponsored visa applicants are among the most frequently asked. What exactly does “competent” English mean?
Firstly it is important to note that generally applicants who hold passports from either the UK, US, Canada, New Zealand or the Republic of Ireland will be exempted from the requirement to demonstrate “competent” English.
Generally, unless a specific exemption applies for the particular subclass of visa, applicants of all other nationalities must demonstrate that they have achieved the relevant score in an English test from an approved English language test provider. There are 5 different tests which are accepted by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection:
Unless otherwise indicated above, applicants must have undertaken one of the above tests within 36 months/3 years before they lodge their visa application.
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Some of the occupations which are eligible for employer sponsored visas are subject to “inapplicability conditions”. This means that whilst the occupations are available for employer sponsored visas, there are conditions that employers / employees need to be aware of which determine the availability of those occupations. Below is a list of occupations that have inapplicability conditions and in relation to which further guidance has been issued on the interpretation of their associated conditions:
To know more about the availability of these occupations, contact us and stay informed:
Currently, employers who wish to sponsor skilled workers either have to pay 2% of their payroll to an industry training fund or spend at least 1% of their payroll on training their Australian employees.
One of the major upcoming changes to employer sponsored and skilled visas affects these training benchmark requirements. As of March 2018, business sponsors will no longer be required to meet those training benchmark requirements. Instead, they will be replaced by the requirement to make financial contributions (for each overseas employee who is sponsored) to a newly created Skilling Australians Fund.
The amount businesses have to pay into the Skilling Australians Fund depends on the size of the business and on the visa subclass utilized to sponsor the overseas employee.
The Temporary Skill Shortage Visa will replace the 457 visa soon. Businesses with a turnover of less than A$10 million per year will be required to make an upfront payment of A$1,200 for each employee sponsored on the new Temporary Skill Shortage Visa (TSS).
For permanent visas such as the subclass 186 ENS or RSMS visa, small businesses have to contribute A$3,000 to the Skilling Australians Fund.
Medium and large businesses with an annual turnover of more than A$10 million will be required to pay A$1,800 and A$5,000 respectively.
For more information regarding the current 457 training benchmarks and the upcoming changes, contact us and stay informed:
As an approved standard business sponsor for subclass 457 Temporary Work (Skilled) visa applicants, each employer must comply with various sponsorship obligations. Their obligations generally remain as long as there is a 457 visa holder in their employment and in some cases throughout the businesses’ approval validity period.
The sponsorship obligations framework is implemented to ensure that the sponsored visa holders are not exploited and working conditions meet the standards that would apply to Australians performing the same work at the same location.
We note that the Department of Immigration and Border Protection intends to commence collection of Tax File Numbers for 457 visa holders (as well as other employer sponsored migrants) before 31st December 2017. The data will be matched with the Australian Tax Office’s records to determine whether a visa holder is being paid less than their nominated salary as notified to the Department as part of the nomination application. This is in response to findings that various approved sponsor businesses have been underpaying their workers and in some cases demanding repayment of their salaries.
The Department will also start to publish details of sponsors which have been sanctioned for non-compliance.
Seeking Business Visas in Australia?
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The Immigration Department has finally released the occupation ceilings for the 2017-18 Program Year. An occupation ceiling is a limit on the amount of invitations that can be issued through SkillSelect each year. The size and composition is set every year depending on the Australian Government’s Budget process.
An occupation ceiling is applicable to:
For the 2017 – 2018 program year, there have been expansions in the occupation ceiling for the following pro rata occupations - it is quite likely that the required points score will lessen compared to the previous year.
For further timely advice on your migration plan, contact us and stay informed:
The Department of Immigration and Border Protection is planning to introduce tax file number collection from visa holders of permanent skilled migration visas such as the Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) visa, the Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (subclass 187) visa, the Skilled – Independent (subclass 189) visa, the Skilled – Nominated (subclass 190) visa, and the Skilled –Regional (Provisional) (subclass 489) visa.
Read more about your Business Sponsorship:
The commencement of the collection of tax file numbers is scheduled to commence some time prior to 31 December 2017. The purpose of collection is to enable data to be examined against Australian Taxation Office records so as to ensure that permanent visa holders are actually being paid at least their nominated salary as notified to the Department of Immigration and Border Protection. This is one of the measures to be introduced which seeks to preserve the integrity of the permanent visa programme and is welcomed by Melbourne Migration International.
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The requirements for sponsorship accreditation approval have been relaxed to accommodate low risk sponsors who only use the 457 program occasionally, and sponsorship accreditation is therefore no longer only suitable or attractive only for large volume sponsors.
The benefits of accredited sponsorship are:
There are currently 4 categories of accredited sponsor, each with different eligibility criteria.
Category 1 is for Commonwealth, state and territory government agencies.
Category 2 is for Australian trusted traders. The key requirements for this category are that the sponsor must:
Category 3 is for low risk sponsors who sponsor infrequently but who have a higher percentage of Australian employees. The key requirements for this category are that the sponsor must:
Category 4 is for low risk sponsors who have sponsored at least 10 457 visa holders in the last two years and who have Australian workers comprising at least 75% of their workforce in Australia.
Stay informed about:
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On 10 September 2016, the Entrepreneur stream was added as a new stream to the Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) visa (subclass 188) by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP). Th Entrepreneur stream has the lowest funds requirements in the Business visas for starting-up an innovation.
The main criteria:
For more information regarding how to apply for this visa
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The Minister for Immigration and Border Protection submitted a bill for an Act to amend the Australian Citizenship Act 2007 to the Parliament in mid-June 2017.
This bill raises the requirements of applying for the Australian Citizenship, which might cause difficulties for some migrants to gain the citizenship if the bill is being approved by the government.
There are several major changes in the bill:
This bill was opposed by several parties after the release, we still do not have any idea whether it will be approved or not.
Stay informed with news about Australian Citizenship
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The Australian government has announced sweeping changes to the 457 visa program from 19 April 2017. However, the changes will not only have a direct influence on 457 visa applicants and employers, but also on various Australian skilled visas, in particular, the 186 Employer Nomination Scheme visa, also known as the employer sponsored permanent resident visa.
However, the news is that foreign CEO’s who had applied for permanent residency before 1 July and are awaiting approval from the Immigration Department will no longer be impacted by the retrospective application of the Government’s new permanent residency rules.
Under the new rules, CEO’s annual wages of above $180,000 and who are under the age of 45 years will be able to apply for a permanent skilled visa.
Further updates regarding the migration changes will available soon. Stay informed:
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With the approval of the Immigration Department, Tasmania has introduced a new visa category for overseas applicants who seeks migration solutions to Australia. This visa category will enable applicants to live and work in Tasmania for up to four years and also offers a pathway to permanent residency in Australia.
From 1 July 2017, a new category for the Skilled Regional (Provisional) visa (Subclass 489) has been presented for Tasmanian state nomination for overseas applicants. They are eligible to apply for this category offshore.
A state nomination from Tasmania will add 10 points to a skilled visa applicant’s overall score required to qualify for a visa under Australia’s Immigration Department point test.
After having lived in the state for at least two years and worked full-time (35 hours per week) for at least one year during their stay, visa holders become eligible to apply for permanent residency in Australia.
To apply for this visa, an applicant is required to nominate an occupation from Tasmania’s Skilled Occupation List and provide appropriate proof of employment opportunities in the state. Applicants can also secure a genuine offer of employment from employers in the state.
Seeking permanent residency in Australia? Contact us and stay informed:
The migration regulations changes made the Immigration Department this 1st July 2017 have brought good news to working holiday visa workers who wish to visit Melbourne, Australia to work and holiday.
The Department has amended the eligible age for Subclass 417 Working Holiday, which applicants must be aged at least 18 and no more than 35 years old at the time of application. If an age younger than 35 is specified in an instrument for a specified passport, that younger age limit will be applied.
On the other hand, for subclass 462 Work and Holiday Visas, the increase to age limit is only available for those countries where Australia has negotiated a similar bilateral age increase.
Below is the list of countries that are eligible for subclass 462:
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Key recent changes prior to 1 July 2017
On 19 April 2017 the occupation lists which determine which occupations are eligible for skilled visas (i.e. subclass 457, 186, 189, 190, 407, 485, and 489 visas) were changed and the eligible occupations were significantly condensed resulting in fewer occupations being available.
For practical purposes, two new lists were in effect created:
457 visas for occupations on the MLTSSL are now issued for a maximum of 4 years. However 457 visas for occupations on the STSOL are only issued for a maximum of 2 years.
1 July 2017 changes
A number of changes have been implemented effective 1 July 2017 which impact the 457, 186, 187, 189, 190, 485, and 489 visa subclasses.
The occupation lists which underpin many of these skilled visa subclasses and determine which occupations are eligible for each visa have again been changed. Notably:
The key changes are as follows:
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The key changes are as follows:
Further changes are expected on or around 31 December 2017 and again in March 2018. One of the key reforms is the abolishment of the 457 visa and its replacement with a new Temporary Skill Shortage Visa in March 2018.
Please contact our Migration Agents and Immigration Lawyers if you have any questions. We are always here to help!
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From 1st July 2017, Processing Fees are set to increase in line with the forecasted Consumer Price Index. Visa fees will be indexed annually from July 2017 onwards. A number of changes will be introduced to the Australian Skilled and Family Visa Program:
Stay informed and contact us:
After much political negotiation, the Government’s proposed “Backpacker Tax” changes received Royal Assent, and has come to effect to all working holiday visa holders.
From 2017, any employers who employ people on Subclass 417 (Working Holiday Visa) or Subclass 462 (Work and Holiday Visa), will need to make instant changes.
What are the changes?
For all working holiday makers in Melbourne, if you worked and earned super, your super will be taxed at 65% when it is paid to you (upon departing Australia).
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