A little while ago I wrote about the slightly worrying view from the new Australia PM Julia Gillard. A view which could highlight further potential cuts to Australian Immigration should she remain in power.

Reading the front page of ‘The Australian’ newspaper today however it would seem that the news for wannabe migrants could perhaps be a little more positive!

Two key government advisers and the nation’s leading demographer have warned that the nation’s “big Australia” debate has now entered dangerous territory and pressed the case for higher immigration to keep the economy strong.

Peter McDonald, head of the Australian Demographic and Social Research Institute, said yesterday the current political discourse linking high immigration rates to inflated house prices and congestion in the big cities risked a damaging reversion to Hansonism. Read the full story

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Even more things for wannabe Aussie migrants to worry about as news reports today hint that Australias New Prime Minister Julia Gillard will be breaking from her predecessor’s advocacy of a “Big Australia” flagging further cuts to immigration quotas.

In an interview with the Australian version of the Daily Telegraph News paper, Gillard said:

“Australia shouldn’t hurtle down the track towards a big population… We need to stop, take a breath and develop policies for a sustainable Australia.” Read the full story

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Quite an interesting read for those of you who need to take the well know IELTS exam as part of your Australian Immigration application process.

According to an article posted on the Guardians website, the Australian government is seriously considering rival exams such as the ‘Toefl‘ examination as an alternative to IELTS.

The news came to light following a quote from an immigration and citizenship department spokesman which said that the minister in charge, Chris Evans, had written to ETS, the US company that produces Toefl, and other test providers to tell them of “his in-principal support for the acceptance of more than one English language test under the migration regulations”. Read the full story

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The Australian Government released their 2010-11 Australian Budget last night and it contained mixed news for wannabe migrants.

Within the report, the Australian Government has announced it intends to sharpen the focus of the Australian skilled migration program on key skills shortages.

Overall, the Australian Immigration program will remain the current size but the focus will be on employer-sponsored skilled migration as the Government moves to create a more skill- and demand-driven migration system.

The Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Chris Evans, said: Read the full story

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Scott Morrison Backtracks after he suggested that migration numbers would be cut

It’s not a rare occurrence when a politician needs to backtrack and opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison appears to be doing just that.

Following our article yesterday where we highlighted a potential risk of migration places being cut If the coalition got into power, in today’s news, Morrison says his comments about cutting the country’s migrant intake to curb population growth do not reflect official Coalition policy!

His comments come amid reports that some of his colleagues are angry that his earlier call to reduce migration was made before any discussion with the party room.

Yesterday there were also confusing signals from the Coalition about where it would want to see cuts made.

Business Council of Australia spokesman Graham Bradley has told Radio National the skilled migration program should not be cut. Read the full story

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Tony Abbott’s Coalition will cut net migration levels if it wins government, in a bid to stop Australia’s population reaching its predicted size of almost 36 million in 2050.

Opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison yesterday told The Australian the Rudd government had allowed immigration to rise too high and the population figure that Treasury’s Intergenerational Report predicted last September for 2050 was unsustainable.

Mr Morrison said the Coalition would not allow the average net overseas migration of more than 300,000 a year that had occurred since the Rudd government took power to continue. Read the full story

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The Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) updated the Critical Skills List this weekend with many computer professionals breathing a huge sigh of relief!

When the DIAC announced changes to the Australian immigration procedures on the 8th February, the Migration Occupations in Demand List became defunct. This left many people with occupations previously in the MODL in the dark about their chances of a successful Australian visa application.

Computer professionals had to have an occupation listed in the MODL in order to qualify for the CSL. With the MODL gone this was now impossible to achieve. Thankfully for many of these IT professionals, their quandary is now over as the CSL includes many computing occupations on the list. Read the full story

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This article describes the evidence required for making a successful Australian spouse visa application as well as several other useful tips and hints on how to select the best professional adviser.

1. SPOUSE VISAS ARE IMPOSSIBLE TO OBTAIN UNLESS YOU HAVE A JOINT BANK ACCOUNT OR LEASE

Not true as many couples do not have these important documents but still succeed. We can show you how to compensate with other even better evidentiary documents from yourselves, friends and family. Read the full story

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The process of obtaining a visa for Australia and New Zealand can be a complex process. The complexity of the process depends largely on the type of visa being applied for and the evidence you have in support of your application.

For instance, short term tourists who are passport holders from certain countries (if there is no adverse record against their name) have free entry to New Zealand and are granted a visa when they arrive at the New Zealand airport.

The current list of countries is located at http://www.immigration.govt.nz/ Best check this passport status well in advance of ticket purchase and making travel plans.

Australia has a different system. If a potential tourist holds an acceptable passport and has no adverse immigration alert against their name, they may apply over the internet at the Australian government site http://www.immi.gov.au for an Electronic Tourist visa. They can only do this whilst they are outside Australia. Again, check the passport status and your status will in advance of ticket purchase and making travel plans. Read the full story

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 Australia is a very hot destination for the students of the overseas countries. Australian Government has released 14.7$ billion in 2009 for providing the highly sophisticated infrastructure to schools and various educational institutions.

The government of this country is highly dedicated to provide world class educational methods to the future generations. The students who are seeking admission to the schools or colleges of Australia must obtain a student visa. Student visa permit you to stay in Australia as a temporary resident according to your course duration.

An applicant of a student visa will prove his eligibility in terms of personal, financial and academic substances. The capability to afford Airfares, tuition fees, accommodation, ability to support the dependent family members in the course of the studies etc are included in the financial eligibly of the applicant. Read the full story

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Australia Immigration figures show applications for 457 visas (temporary skilled workers visas) fell 49 per cent in the five months to November, after the laws were tightened requiring employers to pay equal wages and lift conditions for foreign workers.

Despite these changes, the numbers for the same visa class began to pick up through October and November as employers became more familiar with the rules. Currently, more than a third of the country’s temporary skilled migrants work in NSW.

The Immigration Minister, Chris Evans, said a report released Monday on temporary workers provided evidence the changes were having the intended effect as the Australian average salary jumped to AU$85,300, from $74,700 in the same period a year earlier. Read the full story

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From the 1st of January, as part of the skills assessment process for certain onshore GSM applicants who nominate a trade occupation, applicants will be required to demonstrate that they are ‘job ready’.

This new requirement will be assessed through the Job Ready Program (previously referred to as the Job Ready Test). The Job Ready Program has been developed by the relevant assessing authority, Trades Recognition Australia (TRA), in consultation with industry and unions and will include a workplace assessment by a TRA approved assessor.

The new job ready requirement will ensure that people who wish to migrate to Australia as skilled migrants in trade occupations are able to participate in the labour market in the area of their skills and knowledge. Read the full story

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G’day everyone! Well, in less that 14 hours time it’s going to be Christmas day here in Australia.

For those ‘enjoying’ the snow throughout many countries in the Northern hemisphere, you’ll be interested to know that it’s forecast to be a not so chilly 36 Celsius here in Australia tomorrow.

We’ve got the ‘outlaws’ over from Sydney this Christmas so were looking forward to what will be the largest ‘family Christmas’ we’ve had in the three years that we’ve now been here. All we need to do now is work out how to cram 60 hours of defrosting time for the turkey into 24. I’m sure we’ll be OK

I know when we were in the UK planning our move to Australia we spent many years saying ‘just imagine what it’ll be like…. Christmas in Australia’. I can concur that it is the most wonderful place to spend Christmas and the sweat, tears, frustrations and almost endless waiting really were worth it. Read the full story

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The Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL) is going to be overhauled whilst the Critical Skills List (CSL) will be phased out completely.

The Australian Department of Immigration is near to concluding its review of the MODL. As part of their review, the department will examine and report on the role and purpose of the MODL in targeting skill needs in relation to the General Skilled Migration (GSM) program, to complement the supply of tertiary qualified Australians.

It’s hoped that the review will enable DIMIA to use the MODL as a more strategic tool ensuring that skilled migration is better aimed at responding to future skill needs which cannot be addressed through domestic training and skills development.

The arrangements for the transition to the new MODL will be determined once the outcomes of the review are finalised. Read the full story

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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. Read the full story

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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. Read the full story

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