If you are looking at the Global Talent visa (GTI visa) you must be nominated by a senior professional in your field. This person will vouch for you and can speak on your behalf about how your talent can bring benefit to Australia. This is a key part of the Global Talent visa process but one that is often overlooked. Here are our tips on how to find a Global Talent nominator.
Click here for Global Talent visa criteria
Important terms:
"Applicant" or "Nominee" – this is you, the person who is applying or hoping to apply for the Global Talent 858 visa.
"Nominator" – this is the person providing the nomination to the applicant/nominee. This person will be the author of the Form 1000.
"Expression of Interest" or "EOI" - the document you send to the Department of Home Affairs to express your wish to be considered for a Global Talent visa
"Invitation" - the document the Department of Home Affairs sends to applicants who it deems suitable for the Global Talent visa. NOTE: this an invitation to apply, it does not guarantee you will receive a visa!
"Application" - after receiving an invitation, this is the document you submit to actually apply for the Global Talent visa.
"Department of Home Affairs" or "the Department" - the department of the Federal Government of Australia in charge of immigration and visas
The Do’s
Below are some of the things we recommend you do when finding a Global Talent nominator.
1. Understand the Form 1000
The Form 1000 is the nomination for Global Talent form and in our experience, applicants who have this already completed when submitting their EOI have a much higher chance of receiving an invitation. This form gets updated from time to time, so it is important to ensure you have the most up-to-date version of the Form 1000. You can find the current version on the Department of Home Affairs’ website.
The updates to this form have usually been to increase the amount of information required from the nominator. This shows an adjustment from the form which existed for the old Distinguished Talent visa to better match the assessment taking place in the Global Talent program.
While not strictly required, we strongly recommend that you have your Form 1000 ready for the Expression of Interest, so that you have the best shot at being invited, and at being invited quickly.
2. Ask Previous Co-workers and Bosses
We understand that you may feel uncomfortable asking those at your current workplace to nominate you, as this can signal that you are looking to end your employment and move your life to Australia for the long-term.
Co-workers and bosses, however, are some of the best nominators as they have lots of first-hand experience of how you work and what your strengths really are. Sometimes they can have better insights than you do yourself! They are also usually as prominent (if not more so) than you are. Try asking people you used to work for, or senior managers in other departments of the business, who you can trust not to tell your current boss!
3. Ask Colleagues to Put You in Touch with Prominent Professionals
Your existing social and professional networks can be a great asset if you do not have a nominator to hand. This might be because none of your first-hand contacts.
If you are an engineer, you can now ask Engineers Australia to nominate you.
Discuss with your network that you are looking to apply for this visa and ask if people might have worked with or know professionally an Australian citizen or permanent resident. If they have some contacts, see if you can set up a first meeting, either to get coffee together or to have an initial chat on the phone or via videoconferencing.
The way you find someone can be an important part of the nomination, as the Department has recently shown increased interest in how the nominator came to know the nominee. If you met through your network, this can be a very easy explanation for the Department to understand.
4. Choose Your Best Nominator
Some lucky applicants may have several persons open to nominating them for their Global Talent visa. If this is you, it is important that you choose the best nominator for your application.
This depends on the situation. Two important things to consider are:
- How prominent the nominator is in your field; and
- How well the nominator knows you.
Sometimes somebody who you know less well, but who is extremely prominent in your target sector can be the right choice. Other times, it will be someone you are very close to, but might be slightly less prominent than your other options. Prominence is usually the dominant factor. The Department would rather hear form somebody who knows a lot about the field than somebody who is your close frined, but knows little about the field.
Whichever is the best choice for you, it is important to be considerate when discussing this with your options. While you can only put forward one Form 1000 for your visa, references from other professionals can be very useful in showing you are a global talent. Even if some contacts do not end up providing a Form 1000 nomination, you might ask them for a letter of support instead.
The Don’ts
Here are some things to avoid for your Global Talent nomination and Form 1000.
1. Don’t Pay Someone
There have been concerns raised about integrity risks in the Global Talent visa program. While there is no express rule against payment for nomination, the exchange of any payment (whether in exchange for nomination or not) might undermine the earnestness of the nomination in the eyes of the Department. As such, we do not recommend offering payment in exchange for your nomination, and being very careful that your nomination does not appear to be financially motivated.
The exception to this is certain organisations. Australian Computer Society, for example, is charging $500 for nominations. These sorts of organisations are experienced at providing a verification as a service, and so payment in those circumstances is appropriate.
2. Don’t Provide False Information
Do not ask your nominator to provide information to the Department which they would not know about. Unless the information the nominee gives comes directly from their own experiences, it is considered false information. Giving false information, or incitng a nominator to provide false infomration for your benefit, will automatically preclude you from receiving a Global Talent visa and quite possibly, any other Australian visa you might pursue in future.
3. Don't Use Someone Who is Doing Numerous Nominations
Some people may be nominating several people at once. This is not in itself a problem, however if someone is nominating too many people, this may cause the Department to grow suspicious. Further, if there is a problem with any of these nominations, it may quickly become your problem. If one of the nominations is considered problematic, it will most likely lead to the Department refusing all nominations made by that nominator.
As such, we recommend that you ask someone to nominate you with whom you have a genuine connection and who is closely associated with you.
Conclusion
The nomination is a critical part of your Global Talent visa and it is important that you get it right. We understand that locating a nominator and getting a good quality Form 1000 can be challenging but if you follow our advice and reach out to all the connections in your professional network, you will give yourself the best possible chance at success.
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Author:
Luke Edwards, Associate Lawyer at Work Visa Lawyers
Disclaimer
This information is correct at the time of publication but is subject to change without notice. All information provided on this page is provided for purely educational purposes and does not constitute legal advice. For advice on your situation, please speak with an Immigration Lawyer or a Registered Migration Agent.
Resources
Australian Government, Department of Home Affairs, Global Talent Independent Program, URL: https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/working-in-australia/visas-for-innovation/global-talent-independent-program.
Abul Rizvi, 2020, "The Folly of the Global Talent Independent visa", Independent Australian, URL: https://independentaustralia.net/politics/politics-display/the-folly-of-the-global-talent-independent-visa, 14617.
