Greetings to all aspiring immigrants and those keen on keeping up with the latest developments in Australian immigration. Here's a roundup of the most recent updates you need to know:
VETASSESS Skills Assessment Changes
VETASSESS has stopped taking skills assessments for the trade occupations of Chef, Cook, Diesel Motor Mechanic, Motor Mechanic (General), Fitter (General), Electrician (General), and Metal Machinist (First Class). This change comes as a disappointment to many tradies.
Have relevant work experience unless exempt. The applicant is required to have at least 3 years of relevant work experience in the nominated occupation.
Licensing, registration, or membership: The applicant must be licensed, registered, or a member of a professional body if it is mandatory in the state or territory the applicant intends to work in.
*Have a positive skill assessment
Be nominated by an Australian employer whose business is actively and lawfully operating.
The applicant must be under 45 years of age when he or she applies unless the applicant is eligible for the exemption policy.
Victoria has officially opened its State Nomination Program for the year 2023-24. This program provides aspiring skilled migrants, both within Australia and overseas, with an opportunity to pursue permanent residency in Victoria.
Victoria has set aside 2,700 allocations for the Subclass 190 visa and 600 for the Subclass 491 visa. This allocation distribution primarily emphasizes the Subclass 190 visa, making it an attractive option for those looking to secure permanent residency in this state.
Migration Queensland Program will begin inviting selected applicants from the end of September 2023 and hold invitation rounds at the end of each month for the remainder of the financial year 2023-24. The number of applicants invited each month will be capped to ensure an even and consistent rate of invitation throughout the program year. Due to this competitive process, ensure that you explore alternative migration options.
Western Australia (WA), South Australia (SA) and Victoria (VIC) are offering cash incentives for migrants for occupations in healthcare and construction. If you are a health worker or a construction worker, the opportunity is now. You can get the incentive if you move to their state and take up a job. If you have friends or family in construction or health care, then tell them about these amazing offers.
There are massive reductions of around 70% to all the state nomination allocations for General Skills Migration (GSM) for 190 and 491 visas. These allocations were released by the federal government on Thursday, August 25th.
We have created a chart to compare last year’s allocations with this year’s, and percentage cuts. The shocking overall numbers are that the combined state allocations for 190 and 491 visas in 2022-23 were 62,416, while for 2023-24, the number has reduced to just 16,700.
Welcome to our August Australian Immigration News, where we bring you crucial updates on changes in Australian immigration. In this edition, we cover a range of topics, including alterations to the 189 and 190 visas, state nominations, 408 pandemic visa, cash incentives offered by states for specific occupations, VETASSESS Skill Assessment, Parent visa program, English testing modifications, Aged Care Agreement and more. For detailed information on all visas, visit Work Visa Lawyers.
There’s good news for Australian aged care providers who are struggling to meet the growing demand for skilled workers!
Aged care workers no doubt play a crucial role in supporting and caring for Australia’s ageing population. Aged care providers can now request an Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement (“ACILA”), which aims to help address the serious and ongoing shortage of workers all throughout Australia.
What does this labour agreement offer?
Under the ACILA, approved aged care providers can nominate skilled workers for certain employer-sponsored visas, to work in direct care occupations such as:
Nursing Support Worker
Personal Care Assistant
Aged or Disabled Carer
Registered Nurse and Enrolled Nurse occupations are not included in this Agreement.
What do employers need to do?
Firstly, aged care providers who want to access this labour agreement must consult with and enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the relevant union(s):
Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation
Health Services Union
United Workers Union
The relevant union for the MOU will depend on the occupation group(s) being sought, service settings (residential or home care) and the state/territory where services are provided. In some instances, more than one union could be party to the MOU.
After an MOU is signed, aged care providers can proceed to request a Labour Agreement by making an application to the Department of Home Affairs.
What visas are available under this agreement?
Employers can either sponsor a skilled worker for:
Temporary Skill Shortage TSS (SC 482) - provisional visa valid for up to four years
For eligible applicants who hold a relevant AQF Certificate III or equivalent OR have one year of relevant work experience (to substitute for the formal qualification)
No extra work experience is required in addition to the above.
A permanent residency pathway can be available to sponsored workers who demonstrate at least 2 years of full-time experience in the nominated occupation in Australia.
Employer Nomination Scheme ENS (SC 186) – permanent visa
Those who have already worked in aged care in Australia could access a shorter, direct path to permanent residency (PR).
Applicants who possess two years’ experience in a directly relevant occupation (not tied to a particular employer or visa subclass) may be nominated for a permanent 186 visa.
This work experience must have been undertaken in Australia (meaning overseas experience does not count).
For both TSS and ENS visas, work experience needs to be relevant to the nominated occupation (at the required skill level), full-time or otherwise part-time pro rata, and undertaken in the last five years.
Advantages of Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement vs Designated Area Migration Agreement (DAMA)
Salary concession
The Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold TSMIT for employer sponsored visas is set at $70,000 (or at least $63,000 if salary concession is available under a DAMA).
Compared to this, the minimum salary under the Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement is AUD $51,222.
Certainty in occupations available
The Agreement covers a range of lower-skilled and semi-skilled roles within the aged care industry, namely Personal Care Assistants, Aged or Disabled Carers, and Nursing Support Workers. These roles are no doubt essential for ensuring quality care and continuity of care.
Compared to this, not all regional areas covered by a DAMA contain all of these occupations.
Direct PR pathway
The Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement can offer a quicker path to PR for those who already have relevant Australian work experience in the aged care industry.
Work Visa Lawyers has supported many businesses across Australia to negotiate and enter into labour agreements including DAMAs, industry and company specific. If your sponsorship needs are not currently being filled by the standard migration program, we are here to help.
FAQS
Do I need a skills assessment?
Applicants do not need a positive skills assessment, if they hold a relevant AQF qualification that was completed in Australia.
A relevant skills assessment for the nominated occupation is required for applicants who have an overseas qualification or are relying on work experience to substitute for a formal qualification.
Should I get a Student visa to study Aged Care?
Aged care studies may not be the preferred option, because it does not directly lead to visa options in the standard migration program. You might instead consider studies in a field with more migration pathways.
The aged care occupations are not currently on Australia’s skilled occupation list. This means visa options are limited for aged care workers.
For instance, there are no General Skilled Migration pathways (points-based visas Skilled visas such as 189, 491 or 190).
Employer sponsored visas are only available under certain Designated Area Migration Agreements, or otherwise the Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement. A challenge could be finding a sponsoring employer willing to nominate you for a visa.
A family member or friend in Australia wants to sponsor me, to provide aged care support services. Can they apply for an Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement?
No, only Australian aged care providers can access an Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement.
An approved provider is an organisation that has been approved by the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission, to deliver Australian Government subsidised home, residential or flexible care services to older Australians.
Your family member or friend might instead consider accessing those services through an aged care provider that you work for.
How do I find a sponsor for the Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement?
These are some approaches you can try:
Search popular recruitment websites such as Seek or Indeed. You could include search terms such as “DAMA”, “sponsorship”.
Speak with those in your networks. Perhaps you have a friend or coworker working in aged care who can recommend or refer you
At the time of publication, this is the list of current Aged Care Industry Labour Agreements:
Curtin Heritage Living Inc.
Uniting NSW.ACT
TLC Aged Care Pty Ltd
Fremantle Italian Aged Persons Services Association Inc
I’m 45 years old (or over), can I apply for permanent residency through an Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement?
Unfortunately not. The ACILA does not offer a concession to the age limit for PR (186 visa), and applicants must be under 45 when they apply for this visa.
What concessions are available under the Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement?
Salary
A reduced TSMIT applies - $51,222 per annum.
English
English requirements depend on whether the aged care provider is CALD (Culturally and Linguistically Diverse) or not.
Those sponsored by CALD providers must achieve:
482 visa – overall IELTS 4.5 (or equivalent) with no minimum scores in each band
186 visa – overall IELTS 5.5 (or equivalent) with no minimum scores in each band
Those sponsored by non-CALD providers must achieve:
482 visa - IELTS 5.0 (or equivalent) with minimum of 5.0 for Speaking and Listening, and 4.5 for Reading and Writing.
186 visa – overall IELTS 5.5 (or equivalent) with no minimum scores in each band
If you needs help with this visa, Work Visa Lawyers can assist you.
Work Visa Lawyers is highly experienced in all parts of an employer-sponsored visa application process. We are able to assist with all aspects of the application, and will provide an eligibility assessment before advising you to proceed with a visa application.
Our team of experienced Immigration Lawyers and Migration Agents look forward to assisting you with your potential application(s).
Based in Adelaide South Australia, we provide Australian Immigration advice to people and businesses from all over the world.
You can book an appointment online or call us at (+61) 8 8351 9956.
This article is not intended to be or taken as migration legal advice. The author of this article disclaims any liability for any action or omission on the information provided or not provided in this article. You should always consult an immigration lawyer or a registered migration agent (like Work Visa Lawyers) to form an informed opinion on your immigration matter.
When the Global Talent Visa subclass 858 was first introduced it was touted as the fast-track, streamlined pathway to permanent residency for highly skilled, highly paid professionals to move to Australia. And indeed, it was, qualified applicants got their visas within a short time.
EOIs with the support of the Global Talent Taskforce officers are being actioned quickly and the visa processing was prioritised, and applications were finalised within a few weeks or in less than a month. At its peak in early 2020, the GTV whole process was taking 2- 5 months.
However, since late last year, the Federal Government has put the brakes on the Global Talent Visa. The whole GTV process could now be expected to take 18 to 29 months.
Re-prioritisation or de-prioritisation?
The priority of the Australian Government has shifted to other skilled visas such as the Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189) wherein 35,000 invitations were issued in December 2022.
The Department’s resources were also reallocated to reduce the visa processing times of other skilled visas and priority were given to critical sectors like healthcare and education.
While the allocations for the Global Talent Visa have been kept to 5,000 places for the 2023-2024 financial year which is the same allocation for 2022-2023, this is significantly lower than the previous allocation of 15,000 places for the 2021-2022 financial year.
Longer processing times for the Global Talent Visa
EOIs now take about 3-6 months if prioritised and 12-18 months if not. Applicants who lodged their applications from late November 2022 onwards are expected to wait 6-11 months for their applications to be finalised.
With the popularity of the program, it has become more competitive, and the Department is more stringent with their requirements.
For a successful EOI, it is very important to provide evidence of the EOI candidate’s international record of exceptional and outstanding achievement applying for the Global Talent visa seeking priority on the basis that they:
work in one of the future-focused sectors: and
have written communication from an Australian employer offering employment with an annual salary equal to or higher or evidence that they are likely to attract a salary equal to or higher than the High income threshold amounts in Australia.
Rise in the GTV Income - Fair Work High Income Threshold
The High Income threshold amounts referred to above is the amount set by the Australian Fair Work Commission. It is currently set at AUD167,500 and is adjusted every year on 1 July.
Those who lodged their EOI before 1 July 2023 and who have not received any response from the Department yet would have to meet this new High Income Threshold. If the EOI candidate’s salary just met last year’s threshold of $162,000, they must prove that their salary had been increased and meets the current threshold or provide evidence that they have an offer of employment in Australia with a salary equal to or over the High-Income Threshold otherwise, their EOIs will not be successful.
Future of the Global Talent Visa?
The Global Talent visa has been a program of the former Morrison government where the government allocated significant resources. It is reported that the program would cost Australia $13 million to establish.
It however had been severely criticised. The criticisms included, the program falling short of its targets; the subjectivity of the criteria for the grant of the visa and the granting of visas to applicants who are already in Australia and who were going to migrated to Australia anyway and therefore was not in line with the program’s objective of attracting the “best and brightest” and the “high-value businesses and exceptionally talented individuals to Australia along with their ideas, networks and capital.”
There had even been fears about the possibility of the Global Talent Visa being scrapped altogether. However, the Review of the Migration System released in May 2023 did not recommend for the abolition of the program and instead recommended reforms such as improving the clarity of the criteria and removing the need for a nomination. This indicates that the Global Talent Visa will be continued, albeit changed.
Our Experience: Rare Exceptional Talent from Universities and Tech Giants
While it is understandable that the Global Talent Visa program needs to be improved, we believe that the government’s approach to it is not understandable considering the current global war on talent and Australia’s aim to attract and retain highly educated and highly skilled workers vis-à-vis the skilled shortage.
We have assisted hundreds of global talent visa applicants in the last four years. From our experience the applicant’s often work for global tech giants and leading universities.
Prior to the Global Talent Visa, we were not seeing any applicants through the GSM process from leadership positions in tech giants.
The average income of GTV of applicants would be at least $70,000 higher and often $200,000 to $300,000 higher than GSM applicants.
Warning – Australia Will Stop Attracting the Top Talents:
The present blowout of processing times will make the Global Talent Visa unattractive to most global talents. Waiting over two years for a visa is not attractive to Global Talents and these applicants will just go to the UK or Canada instead.
We encourage the Government to re-priorities Global Talent Visas through an updated Directive or Instrument.
We believe that eligible global talents have a place in Australia’s future and the process of getting them to choose and come to Australia should be made easier or risk the chance of losing these talents to other countries who are more accommodating and receptive.
If you are interested in the Global Talent Visa or needs help with this visa, Work Visa Lawyers can assist you.
Work Visa Lawyers is highly experienced in all parts of the Global Talent visa application process. We are able to assist with all aspects of the application, and can also provide advice in relation to:
documents to demonstrate your skills and ability to attract the FWHIT salary
Work Visa Lawyers will provide an eligibility assessment before advising you to proceed with a visa application.
Our team of experienced Immigration Lawyers and Migration Agents look forward to assisting you with your Global Talent EOI, visa application or appeal.
Based in Adelaide South Australia, we provide Australian Immigration advice to people and businesses from all over the world.
You can book an appointment online or call us at (+61) 8 8351 9956.
This article is not intended to be or taken as migration legal advice. The author of this article disclaims any liability for any action or omission on the information provided or not provided in this article. You should always consult an immigration lawyer or a registered migration agent (like Work Visa Lawyers) to form an informed opinion on your immigration matter.
There were some positive signs in recent months for the 188 Visa. These include that allocations have been announced of 1900 places for 2023, 2024 years.
The Parkinsons’ Migration Review Final Report, while overall, having some negative comments did say that it could say there are some positive contributions by their Significant Investor Visa.
Competition between the states for high-quality 188 verse applicants:
In the 2023 migration program year just 810 places were allocated to the states, and this led to a very high competition. The result of this was most states increased their criteria above the minimum requirements from the Department of Home Affairs (DoHA). So, in this program, here, we could expect the same approach from the states and territories.This means that 188 Visa applicants may need to consider the different states and choose the one which suits their profile best.
It is likely that the most popular states, such as New South Wales and Victoria, will have high criteria that many applicants can’t meet. Some states may concentrate mostly on the Significant Investor Visa. With a modest number of places, available of up to 1900, states may also run out of allocations before the end of the program year on 30 June 2024.
Here is some information about what happened last year for the 188 Visa:
There are also many potential 188 Visa applicants waiting to put a nomination in because last year’s programs closed early. It is going to be a case of the first in best dressed for the 188 visas.
Please visit our website, fill in the questionnaire, and find out if you qualify for 188.
Our team of experienced Immigration Lawyers and Migration Agents looks forward to assisting you with your business and investor visas.
Based in Adelaide, South Australia, we provide Australian Immigration advice to people and businesses from all over the world.
If you require further information regarding your Australia visa options, you can contact us through: (08) 8351 9956 or +61 8 8351 9956 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
