Key terms: SkillSelect – Invitation to Apply – Skilled Independent subclass 189 - Skilled Regional Provisional subclass 489 – Expression of Interest – Points Test

Results for the SkillSelect invitation round on 15 February 2017 have been published. Here is a summary of the results:

• 1253 Skilled Independent visa invitations were issued (up from 1144 in the previous round)
  • applications with 60 points or more were invited
  • applications submitted 15 February 2017 have been invited
• 27 Skilled Regional Sponsored visa invitations were issued (down from 28 in the previous round)
  • applications with 60 points or more were invited
  • applications submitted 14 February 2017 were invited

Earlier today news broke that former Adelaide gang leader Vince Focarelli has received a Notice of Intention to Consider Cancellation (NOICC) from the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP). The Minister of Immigration, Peter Dutton has exercised visa cancellation powers granted to him under section 501 of the Migration Act 1958.

Visa Cancellations in Numbers

Since the power to cancel visas was amended in December 2014, there has been a large increase in visa cancellations compared to the previous period. The number of visas cancelled under section 501 of the Migration Act increased from 76 cancellations in 2013-14 to 983 cancellations in 2015-16. The Commonwealth Ombudsman published a report about the Minister’s new cancellation powers and identified various issues which have placed visa holders facing visa cancellation and deportation various hardships and difficulties. The report also provides a few recommendations which demonstrate the need for the cancellations powers to be exercised with consideration.

Further reading: Increase in Australian Visa Cancellations for Character Reasons such as Criminal Convictions

It is estimated that Australia will face a shortage of nurses in the medium to long term because of the following factors:

1. Retirement of older nurses
2. Increased demand for nurses, especially in aged care (Australia has a growing aged population)

In the immediate and short term Australian states and territories have started to look towards overseas nurses to fill in the demand for skilled professional nurses. Just last month Neroli Ellis from the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation told ABC Radio Hobart nursing recruitment agencies were increasingly looking overseas for nurses to work in Tasmania. Hospitals are also competing to attract experienced nurses to work in their establishments.

Nursing occupations which are suitable for migration purposes have been listed on the Skilled Occupation List (SOL) and Consolidated Skilled Occupation List (CSOL). They include:

Key terms: SkillSelect – Invitation to Apply – Skilled Independent subclass 189 - Skilled Regional Provisional subclass 489 – Expression of Interest – Points Test

Results for the SkillSelect invitation round on 1 February 2017 have been published. Here is a summary of the results:

• 1144 Skilled Independent visa invitations were issued
  • applications with 60 points or more were invited
  • applications submitted 1 February 2017 have been invited
• 28 Skilled Regional Sponsored visa invitations were issued
  • applications with 60 points or more were invited
  • applications submitted 31 January 2017 were invited

Key terms: Visa cancellation – Migration Act 1958, s501 – Migration Act 1958, s116 – character issues – criminal charges – Commonwealth Ombudsman

The Commonwealth Ombudsman is the organisation responsible for handling complaints about Commonwealth Government departments and agencies. The Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) is one of the Government departments monitored by the Ombudsman.

In December 2016 the Ombudsman published two reports involving the DIBP, namely:

1. Administration of section 501 (hereafter the “section 501 report”)
2. The administration of people in immigration detention who have had their Bridging visa cancelled due to criminal charges or convictions (hereafter the “bridging visa cancellation report”)

Both reports identified shortcomings and issues with the DIBP process of cancelling long term Australian visas and bridging visas.

The section 501 Report

In the section 501 report it was noted that a similar investigation was carried out in 2006, which was critical of the then Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs (DIMA) for not “always provide(sic) the minister with all relevant information, especially mitigating information, about long term Australian residents when considering the cancellation of their visa”.

The US and the UK are tightening their immigration policies. President Trump implemented a travel ban and has repeatedly emphasised that he will be evaluating the country’s immigration policy and introduce tougher screening of visa applicants. While the travel ban has been removed by the US Federal court there is no stopping the President from giving out another executive order of similar nature. In the UK there has also been a stir up as the British government looks to cap the number of international students to the UK. The trend in the development of immigration policies in these two countries has startled migrants and temporary-stay workers and students, who now ponder their future in the US or the UK.

This presents Australia with an opportunity to attract genuine skilled professionals, aspiring students and potentially business and investor migrants to Australia. The US and the UK have long benefited from their preferred migrant destination status for many years, with many entrepreneurs, technology innovators and brilliant scientists settling down in the US or UK. Now Australia may stand to gain from opening its borders to attract talent, skills and investment from overseas.

What are the visa options available for Australia?

Applicants applying for the General Skilled Migration (GSM) visas – subclass 189 Skilled Independent, subclass 190 Skilled Nominated and subclass 489 Skilled Regional Sponsored visas, will need to meet points test requirements to be eligible to receive an Invitation to Apply. Applicants applying for Employer-Sponsored visas such as the 457 visa, RSMS 187 visa and the ENS 186 visa may also need to meet English testing requirements to successfully obtain a work visa.

There are many types of English tests which you can take to demonstrate your English ability, but the IETLS and TOEFL English exams have been the traditional English tests for Australian visas. Many prospective visa applicants face difficulties with their English exams because of various reasons:

• English not being the first language or mother tongue

• Not familiar with the exam format and time limits

• Not practicing with specimen materials before attempting the exams

The team at Work Visa Lawyers is always happy to help deserving applicants in successfully obtaining an Australian visa. More often than we hoped for, we come across many applicants who tried to submit an application themselves and face complications thereafter, or a refusal.

Here is a recently approved client, Wenru Pan describing her experience applying for a state sponsorship by herself, and later on with Work Visa Lawyers:

Dear Work Visa Lawyers,

I would like to say a big thank to your guys and I am really appreciate how the support has been for last four months working on my 190 state sponsored permanent visa.

My situation is really tricky and I have been rejected by the state nomination when I first tried to apply by myself. Then I decided to look for help from Chris who was highly recommended by one of my friends. Luckily, my state nomination was successfully approved after Chris’ magic.

Once the trust is built, I decided to let Chris to deal with my 190 visa submission as well. We submit the documents around early November (2016) and I was granted the permanent residency on 17th December, 2016. In other words, the whole process takes less than two months. I almost break the records among who I heard has been granted the permanent residency visa!!!!

I would highly recommend Work Visa Lawyers to all of you who are intending to live/ work in Australia for a long term purposes!

Thank you all the team members from Work Visa Lawyers

Best wishes,

Wenru Pan

Welcome to 2017! It was a year full of changes for Australia’s migration policies in 2016. Here is our recap of the significant changes to the migration programme for Australia in 2016 and some of the discussions and ongoing developments for 2017.

The Immigration News in 2016 has been dominated by employer scandals and crackdowns by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP).

While it may all sound like doom and gloom, the planning levels for permanent visas continue to be significant. 

The numbers of Australian permanent visas that are granted each year are controlled by planning levels. 

I am going to make comments below about news in relation to a wide range of visas including business, skilled, visitor and family visas.

All you need to know and do when your visa application is refused!

Receiving a refusal notification for your visa application is stressful and places you in a wave of uncertainty. However, quick action is required to resolve your visa status if your visa application was lodged onshore in Australia.

The same can be said if you received a Notice of Intention to Consider Cancellation (NOICC) for your current visa. It is best to quickly address the issues raised in the NOICC, than to challenge the decision to cancel your visa after the decision has been made.

What are the common reasons for a visa application to be refused?