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Australian businesses that want to bring in skilled workers on what are known locally as ‘457 visas’ will have to be prepared to pay them market wages from next week.

The Immigration Minister, Chris Evans, has announced details of the changes to the temporary visa program which are designed to end the potential for workers to be exploit.

“The payment of market salary rates will ensure that overseas workers are not used as a cheap form or labour or used to undercut Australian wages and conditions.” senator Evans said.

Previously migrant workers have been paid as little as $45,000 AUD per year with some companies often choosing cheaper migrant workers over local ones.

The new legislation would protect local workers and also ensure that people immigrating to Australia in search of work would receive a fair deal. Continue Reading

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Foreign students will face greater screening as the Government cracks down on visa fraud and scrutinises their ability to finance life in Australia reports the Age

The changes, announced by Immigration Minister Chris Evans yesterday, apply to students from India, Mauritius, Nepal, Brazil, Zimbabwe and Pakistan and take effect immediately.

Students from target countries will be subject to more stringent interviews and have limited access to visa applications online.

Applications for student visas have soared in the past year. They grew by 20 per cent to more than 362,000 in the year to June 30. Of those, 28,000 applications were rejected. Continue Reading

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Getting your SOL’s mixed up with your MODL’s?  Alan Collette at Go Matilda  has written a  a great article  summarising  the myriad of occupations lists currently doing the rounds.

The Skilled Occupations List, or SOL

The SOL is a threshold list of skilled occupations – if your occupation is not on this list you do not meet one of the basic requirements of a skilled visa application, and as such cannot migrate to Australia under the general skilled program.

This list does not vary very often, but with a reclassification of skilled occupations having taken place in Australia in the last few months there is an expectation that the SOL will be subject to fairly significant amendment within the next year => as ever, if you are an intending migrant and you have an occupation that appears on the SOL as presently constituted it would be prudent to lodge your application sooner rather than later, just in case your occupation is omitted from a new SOL. Continue Reading

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A member of parliament for the ruling Labor Party on Friday called for Australia’s immigration quotas to be cut in light of the threat from homegrown Islamic terrorists. That threat was exemplified last week when five men were charged over an alleged plot to storm an army base in Sydney.

Kelvin Thomson rational for the cut was that fewer migrants would mean more stringent background checks on applicants could be carried out.

He said Islamists were entering Australia through official immigration channels stating that this was “a far more serious issue than the prospect of us being attacked by another country”.

Hmmm, sounds like an interesting character this Kevin Thomson chap and I really don’t think he quite ‘gets it’. The current checks and as many of us who have been through the process can testify are more than rigorous enough. Continue Reading

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So I’ve just been reading a story on the ABC website about a young Indian reporter who was attacked after going undercover to reveal migration and education scams

The woman, who was reporting under cover for Australia’s ‘Four Corners’ program at the time, was subjected to threats during the making of the program and was attacked over the weekend. Police have been notified.

Whilst filming for the program, the reporter went to two different migration agents posing as someone wanting to pass an English Language Test (IELTS) without having the skills. To assist here in her attempts to pass the exam she said she was willing to buy a fake work certificate. She was able to do both if she paid between $3,000 and $5,000.

Some Indian students, principally in Melbourne and Sydney, have been subjected to violent attacks which have tainted Australia’s reputation as an education provider. The actions of those responsible could never be justified but having said that, something positive may well come out of this after all. Continue Reading

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During a recent visit to India, Australian Minister of Immigration & Citizenship, Chris Evans told press that Australian Immigration law is changing with a stronger focus on skilled workers.

Evans said in New Delhi, “We are reviewing the policy on migrants. Our government will adjust the policy based on the needs of the country and not be driven by the education choices of overseas students”.

Senator Evans is in New Delhi to advise the Indian government on steps that Australia is taking to ensure the safety of Indian students who choose to study in Australia.

Thousands of Indian students move to Australia each year, taking admission in vocational courses like cookery and hairdressing in Australian institutions to get permanent residency. Continue Reading

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Frequently Asked Questions – Attestation

On 1 April 2009, the Minster for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Chris Evans announced a requirement for sponsors to attest in writing that they have a strong record of, or a demonstrated commitment to employing local labour  and non-discriminatory employment practices.

What the heck is an attestation?

Attestation is the  witnessing of the execution by the method that is appropriate to the situation.

Attestation of a document is certification that the document has been executed correctly and is signed by the witness or witnesses to the execution. Continue Reading

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Yesterday we posted an article detailing the significant delays for folks applying under certain visa classes and following numerous discussions in our forum on the topic a number of additional factors have come to light.

Firstly, Visa Subclasses 485 (Skilled – Graduate visa) 476 (Skilled – Recognised Graduate visa), 487 (Skilled – Regional Sponsored visa and 887 (Skilled – Regional Residence visa) are exempt from the priority processing changes.

Applications under these subclasses will continue to be processed in the order in which they were received by the Department of immigration so if your applying under these visa classes then you shouldn’t be impacted.

The Australian Imigration Department have also confirmed that these changes will not affect people who have or are going to apply for Tourist, Family, Spouse or Prospective Marriage visas!

As before, we would encourage you to post in our forums if you have any specific questions. Lots of discussions in this thread

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The Australian Immigration and Citizenship department have started issuing letters to visa applicants who have applied for Australian Residency under certain visa classes.

The letter confirms that priority will be given to applicants who are applying under the employer or state sponsored visa classes. In addition the letter also confirms that priority will remain for those holding a primary occupation which is listed on the Critical Skills List (CSL)

Essentially though, the letter goes onto confirm that if you do not fall into one of these three categories, it now looks almost certain that the processing of your application will be delayed into the 2010 – 1011 Migration program year.

The key text taken from the letter is as follows: Continue Reading

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The Australian visa application fee increases have been formally announced, with the skilled migration fee set to increase by 20 per cent as of 1 July 2009.

The Australian Government reviews the Australian visa application fees on an annual basis, as part of the release of the Federal Budget release. Typically, fees will increase in accordance with changes in the Consumer Price Index, resulting in an increase of approx. AU$40 – AU$60 for the skilled migration visa application fee.

However, this year has seen a 20 per cent increase applied to some Australian visa application fees, including the skilled migration fee. Continue Reading

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G’Day UK 2009 kicks off this weekend delivering two weeks of food, wine, cultural and business events.

Top of the list will be Australian immigration and tourism which will be sold to Brits interested in making the move Down Under.

Being a major source of skilled workers and tourists for Australia, organisers of G’Day Week have targeted the UK to showcase Australian immigration and Australian tourism.

G’Day UK 2009 is a chance for Australian celebrities, governments, businesses and agencies to show off the sunshine in Australia. Two week’s worth of events will showcase Australia as a place of investment, tourism, business, and more importantly, as a prime destination for skilled migrants. Continue Reading

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Alan Collett at Go Matilda often writes a good article and his more recent article;   ’skilled migration, dispelling the myths’ is no exception.

Within the article, Alan talks about some of the misconceptions now held by people looking to make the move down under following the announced changes to the skilled migration program made towards the end of last year.

In no particular order, here are some of the comments heard in recent months:

Australia has stopped accepting skilled migrants

Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, Australia’s skilled migration program (the amount of visas the Immigration Minister requires his Department to grant annually) is the highest on record this year, with a planned 115,000 skilled visas to be granted in the year to 30th of June, 2009. Continue Reading

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I read a very interesting letter printed in the Sydney Morning Herald this morning

Within the letter a chap by the name of Michael Jones writes about the strong link between overseas students studying in Australia and perminant Australian residency. He also points out that the $16 billion education industry, our third largest export earner, is largely about selling visas, not education. Very strong words indeed!

Now the thing is… Does he have a point?

I think for starters it’s fair to say that there is indeed a very strong link. Afterall, anyone applying for permanent residency under the skilled migration program needs to show acceptable qualifications and 12 months’ recent, full-time, skilled employment. On the other hand, those with an ‘Australian qualification’ can, after only two years’ study in Australia, qualify for a permanent visa without any work experience, or any intention to work in their field of study. Continue Reading

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The Migration Institute of Australia (MIA) has warned the government that work on infrastructure projects will be difficult to accomplish following the decision to put restrictions on the skilled migration program.

While the MIA welcomed the Australian immigration ministers decision to increase the number of humanitarian and family reunion Australian visas for the 2009/10 Migration Program, they were less than impressed with the decision to remove a number of trade-level occupations from the skilled occupation list.

“The MIA awaits with great interest to see how the Government proposes to administer the new job-readiness criteria for trade occupations. It’s hard to imagine a one-size-fits-all assessment system of employability,” said Maurene Horder, CEO of the Migration Institute of Australia. Continue Reading

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There is less than one month to go before the changes to the Australian skilled migration will come into effect, as outlined in last month’s release of the 2009-10 Budget.

As of the 1 July, the Australian skilled migration program will be downsized again, so that only 108,100 skilled visas are available for people emigrating to Australia. Further, as of this date, the Government will raise the English language requirements for trades occupations in the independent skilled migration pathway so that overseas workers in trade positions are better prepared for working in the Australian workforce.

The Government has made it harder for people emigrating to Australia through the Australian skilled migration program during the recession so that those skilled workers emigrating to Australia support economic growth rather than unnecessarily add to employment competition. Not only has the Government been gradually downsizing the skilled migration program, but it has also implemented a priority processing order for all Australian skilled visas so that the program can target the skills it needs. Continue Reading

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A world-wide survey has found that Australia has been voted the best place for business during the economic downturn, meaning that all those emigrating to Australia will benefit from greater investment security and a stronger economy during the recessionary and recovery period.

As we reported earlier this year, the government restricted the Australian skilled migration program so that fewer people are emigrating to Australia during the recession. Despite this, the program remains at significantly high levels, with 108,100 places for skilled migration to Australia, and the government has sufficient reasons for doing so.

While other countries such as the UK are deeply entrenched in the recession, Australia seems to be fairing well and are even tipped to come out stronger than before. Continue Reading

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