Iscah Migration NewsLetter

Transcription

1 Iscah Migration NewsLetter (Copyright 2009) MONDAY 17TH AUGUST 2009 ISSUE 134 Hiya everyone Hope you had a great month since the last newsletter. Welcome to our latest edition which details all the changes we are aware of for obtaining visas to live in Australia. If you want to receive backcopies of our free publication, go on the permanent mailing list or wish to unsubscribe, please drop an to newsletter@iscah.com Has been an up and down few weeks for my frustrating Fremantle Dockers football team. We had a win in the local derby against our local rivals and then followed it up with a much improved showing against Port Adelaide. Then a shocker yesterday, OMG. The kids are looking really classy at times, just need to get some muscles on those bones, and we will forget about yesterday!!! Okay, onto the newsletter Contents 1) Review of skilled migration program 2) Job Ready Test 3) Iscah now on Facebook and Twitter 4) Closure of Capital Investment Scheme 5) Western Australian state sponsorship changes 6) English Language requirements 7) Australia to delink studies from skilled migration 8) Skilled visa allocation times 9) Changes to 457 visa 1) Review of skilled migration program DIAC often conduct reviews of their visa program to make sure they obtain the right balance of new migrants and short term entrants to Australia. At present there are economic pressures on lots of economies including ours. As a result there has been a tightening of the requirements to bring in short term workers under subclass 457 visas. There also has been a clear indication from the immigration minister that students who come to study in Australia, should not expect automatic pathways to a permanent visa. For the last few years, students could tailor their courses to try and meet DIAC s visa requirements for permanent residence. This has been a boon to the Australian student market, but has not lead to great outcomes in terms of filling skilled shortages in Australia. That is because many of those students have not gone on to follow the profession that their studies suggested. There is a currently a review being undertaken that will attempt to separate the overseas student market from expecting automatic permanent visa options. There will undoubtedly be a number of options available but we will have to wait and see how difficult this will be when announced by DIAC. There also is a review being conducted of the structure of the MODL (Modified Occupation in Demand List) as well as the SOL (Skilled Occupation List and the points allocation for different occupations).

2 Page 2 AUGUST ) Job Ready Test A key component of changes to the Skilled Migration Program will be the undertaking a Job Ready test for those applicants for a skilled visa (other than 485,887) if you nominate a trade occupation after 1st January Q1 What is the JobReady test? The JobReady Test is a part of the assessment process to ensure that people who wish to migrate are able to participate in the labour market in the area of their skills and knowledge. The test is currently being developed by the Government in consultation with industry and unions. The test will initially be applied to trade occupations. Q2 Why do I have to do it? A key aim of the GSM program has traditionally been to achieve the migration of job ready applicants to supplement the labour market. Employers are looking for employees who are job ready and can hit the ground running. Job ready migrants are more likely to find employment quickly, which leads to improved settlement outcomes for migrants. The JobReady Test will also ensure consistency of skills and competency across migrants. Q3 I started my study this year and won t finish until next year, will it affect me? If you apply for a GSM visa, other than the 485 or 887 visa, and your nominated occupation is a trade occupation, you will have to meet the JobReady requirement. Q4 When will JobReady Test become effective? The JobReady Test will come into effect from 1 January Applicants who nominate a trade occupation for migration purposes after this date will have to meet the JobReady Test requirement. Q5 Is the testing process for onshore applications the same as offshore applications? Yes. The test may vary from occupation to occupation and from one country to another. The Government may target particular cohorts and occupations from time to time. Q6 Is the JobReady Test the same for all trade occupations? No, the test may take slightly different forms depending on the occupation, but could be applied to any trade occupation. Q7 How much will it cost? The cost is yet to be determined. Q8 Is there an expiry date for a JobReady test? This is yet to be determined. Q9 Will the JobReady Test be necessary for all trade occupations? The test will be targeted towards particular occupations from time to time.

3 Page 3 AUGUST ) Iscah now on Facebook and Twitter If you want to keep even more up to date with visa policy changes, you are welcome to join or view the Iscah pages now on Facebook and Twitter below.. Facebook 2Fcoworker&sf=r&sid=&nm=Iscah+Migration Twitter 4) Closure of Capital Investment Scheme From 31 October 2009, the South Australian Government Financing Authority (SAFA) has announced it will not accept any further applications from General Skilled Migration (GSM) applicants who wish to lodge a capital investment, as it will close the scheme. Since the announcement of the reopening of the capital investment scheme by SAFA on 29 January 2009, the department has contacted all applicants whose cases had been assessed and who indicated they intended to lodge a capital investment. Any applicants who have indicated they intend to lodge a capital investment, but have not yet done so, are advised to finalise their capital investment before the scheme is closed. This is the final opportunity for all pre 1 September 2007 GSM applicants to lodge a capital investment. Applications will then be finalised. As there will be no further capacity for applicants to make a capital investment to gain the bonus five (5) points, the department will not provide applicants any additional time to make a capital investment once the scheme offered by SAFA closes. Please note that this also applies to those applicants who have appealed to the Migration Review Tribunal (MRT) and those applicants seeking judicial review. Applicants who still intend to make a capital investment are strongly urged to do so before 31 October Please note that only SAFA provides an approved designated security that enables an applicant for a pre-1 September 2007 GSM visa to be awarded bonus points for making a capital investment. Link:

4 Page 4 AUGUST ) Western Australian state sponsorship changes It is possible to obtain state sponsorship to make the requirements for skilled migration easier in the following subclasses 176, 475, 487 and 886. There have been a number of recent changes to their criteria, commented on below.. The WA government have released their new skilled August 2009 state shortage lists for state sponsorship (ie subclasses 176, 475, 487 and 886). You will note that it says trades people (including cooks) now need 6,6,6,6 in IELTS for state sponsorship. Please note this does not include 886 applicants. They still only need 5,5,5,5 until the 1 st January 2010 for WA state sponsorship From 23 July 2009 the WA government requires that all applicants who are required to demonstrate recent work experience must have worked for at least 12 months in the last 24 months in their NOMINATED occupation From 24 July 2009 the SMC requires all Accountants to achieve at least 7 in all four components of their IELTS test. This applies to all applications lodged after this date including Graduate Students and applications from countries who are normally exempt (ie UK, Ireland, USA, Canada, New Zealand etc) months in the last 24 months in their nominated occupation. (Source: SBDC) 6) English Language requirements Most people would know that IELTS test results used for a GSM (General Skilled Migration) visa must be less than two years old at the time of lodgement. It is useful to remember though that for adult dependents on the application who are trying to show functional English, these results are only valid for 12 months (not 2 years). Also the OET (Occupational English Test) can be shown to obtain 15 or 25 points in English. In both cases you must achieve a B or higher in each of the four components of the test. As a footnote I am off to do the academic IELTS test on Saturday 22 nd August. New Migration agents will shortly require a score of 7 in that test and in case that also becomes a requirement for existing agents, I may as well go through the pain now, haha.

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6 Page 5 AUGUST ) Australia to delink studies from skilled migration AUSTRALIA'S skilled migration policy is driven by national economic needs, not the educational choices of overseas students, Immigration and Citizenship Minister Chris Evans warned last week. In a speech in New Delhi that signalled immigration would be decoupled from education, and immigration, Senator Evans stressed that there was "no automatic link" between study in Australia and access to permanent residency. "The Australian government will adjust the program to meet our national needs and not be driven by the education choices of overseas students," he said. In a possible response to mounting anger among overseas students whose hopes for permanent residency may be denied, Senator Evans said: "The skills and qualifications we seek in migrants will vary over time." Although most of Senator Evans's speech emphasised the depth of the strategic partnership between Australia and India, he had a sharp warning for unscrupulous education agents. "Those who seek to market access to a permanent visa in Australia rather than a quality education do a grave disservice to potential students," he said. Senator Evans's comments followed a report in The Australian last week that quoted researcher Bob Birrell as saying the attacks on Indian students in Melbourne and Sydney may have been only the beginning of the social conflict to be played out as thousands of foreign students stay on with full work rights and compete for jobs and housing. Dr Birrell told the HES that Senator Evans's speech in India was significant as it revealed a longstanding departmental concern to detach the migration selection system from the output of the overseas student industry in Australia. Migration Institute of Australia chief executive Maurene Horder said that since the new critical skills list had come in, many applications based on the previous occupational demand list would languish in the immigration processing pipeline for many years. The developments coincide with a recommendation from a conservative US think tank that skilled migration into the US should be restored to pre-september 11 levels to reverse the country's technological skills crisis. (Source:

7 Page 6 AUGUST ) Skilled visa allocation times The majority of the delay time in processing of a skilled visa application is the time taken to allocate it to a case officer. Here are the latest allocation times available from the two processing centres of Adelaide and Brisbane.. ADELAIDE WEEK COMMENCING: August 2009 Visa Subclass Month/Year Lodgment VC 485 (paper): 9 September 2008 VC 485 (e-lodged): 29 February 2008 (Please note - E-lodged applications lodged after 29 February 2008 will be processed in Brisbane) VF 476 (paper): 22 August 2008 VF 476 (e-lodged): 22 August 2008 VC 487 (paper): 23 March 2009 VB 887 (paper): 23 March 2009 Prior to allocation FREEZE in Adelaide these were the allocation dates below that ASPC had got to: Subclass 880, 881 and 882: E-Lodged: All Allocated Paper Lodged: All Allocated Subclasses 134, 136, 137, 138, 139, 495 and 496: Paper lodged: 08 August 2007 Subclass: 175 E-lodged: 07 December 2007 Paper lodged: 15 October 2007 Subclass: 176 E-lodged: 11 December 2007 Paper lodged: 20 November 2007 Subclasses: 475, and 476 E-lodged: 08 January 2008 Paper lodged: 07 January 2008 Subclasses: 885, 886, and 887 E-lodged: Now processed by the BSPC. All cases processed in Adelaide have been allocated to case officers. Paper lodged: 19 August 2008

8 Page 7 AUGUST 2009 BRISBANE WEEK COMMENCING: August 2009 VB 886 (State and Territory Nominated Only) Applications with nominations approved in May Applications for VB886 visas that are not sponsored by a State or Territory government Are not being allocated at present. VB 885 (Occupations on the Critical Skills List Only) Applications received up 15 April 2009 except Accountants who do not have IELTS of at least 7,7,7,7 Applications for 885 visas that are not on the Critical Skills List Are not being allocated at present E-lodged Visa Subclass Month/Year Lodgment VC 485 (non trade): 30 November 2008 VC 487 (non trade): 18 April 2009 VB 887 (all): 1 January ) Visa 457 changes DIAC have announced a number of changes to the 457 temporary visa. It looks like the majority of these changes will take place from 14th September There will no longer be a minimum period allowed on the 457 visa. - Those applicants who require an IELTS test result, will no have to obtain 5 in EACH of the components (rather than just an average of 5). - Nominations that are lodged before a company sponsorship ceases will be allowed to processed even if the sponsorship ceases during processing. It is quite a lengthy explanatory statement, so if you want a copy of the full publication, please drop us a line to newsletter@iscah.com Okay then, that is all until September s newsletter. That is planned for Monday 21 st September, be good until then!! Cheers Steven O Neil (Iscah Manager) Iscah Migration Suite 22 (Kewdale Business Park) 133 Kewdale Road, Kewdale Perth Western Australia, 6105 PO Box 75 Welshpool BC 6986 Phone: Fax: newsletter@iscah.com Website: Registered Migration Agent