Archive for December, 2009
Australian DIAC Migration Law Changes – in force from 1 January 2010
Posted by admin in Australia, Australian Visa Requirement, DIAC on December 18th, 2009
This is a summary of some very important changes that will effect all future offshore visa applicants and some lodged onshore visa applicants from 1 January 2010:
Onshore Applicants in the following subclasses will be required to provide a suitable skilled assessment at the time of application, not just proof that a skilled assessment has been applied for:
- Skilled Independent Visa (subclass 885)
- Skilled Sponsored Visa (subclass 886)
- Skilled Regional Sponsored Visa (subclass 487)
Further, some applicants will have to provide a skills assessment which has been completed on or after 1 January 2010 for specified gazetted occupations. (We do not know, as this stage, which occupations will appear on this list.)
Offshore Applicants in the following subclasses will be required to comply with new work experience requirements:
- Skilled Independent Visa (subclass 175)
- Skilled Sponsored Visa (subclass 176)
- Skilled Regional Sponsored Visa (subclass 475)
In particular, visa applicants with a listed occupation will be required to show recent work experience in their occupation NOT just any skilled occupation. Again, the list of occupations affected has not yet been made available.
Please contact us via email, marking the subject matter as URGENT, if you believe that as a result of the above changes your application must be lodged prior to 1 January 2010. Although we are closed over the holiday period, in light of these changes we will be able to deal with urgent enquiries.
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Sort Out My Visa is a Australian and NZ visa specialist, providing visa and migration services to individuals and families wanting to travel to, conduct business, work or live in Australia or New Zealand. Visit Sort Out My Visa for more information.
Australian Department of Immigration – DIAC – on YouTube
Posted by admin in Australia, DIAC, Department of Immigration, Moving to Australia on December 16th, 2009
To find out more about the Australian Department of Immigration – commonly known as DIAC – and about migrating to Australia, you may want to have a look at some of the videos posted up by the DIAC.
You will find stories of interest from other migrants (who have already gone through the visa aopplication process) and more.
The website can be accessed by following this link: DIAC on YouTube.
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Sort Out My Visa is a Australian and NZ visa specialist, providing visa and migration services to individuals and families wanting to travel to, conduct business, work or live in Australia or New Zealand. Visit Sort Out My Visa for more information.
Australian Skilled Visas – Processing Update
Posted by admin in Australia, Australian Migration Legislation, Australian Visa Processing Times on December 10th, 2009
There is currently a huge amount of speculation on the internet, particularly on a number of migration forums, about when the Department of Immigration will or will not resume processing visa applications that have been lodged but are not on the Critican Skills List.
This is understandable, given that so many visa applicants have now been left in a state of limbo as to when their visa applications are likely to be processed and finalised.
For the sake of clarity, we would like to make the following points:
1) According to some sources (agents who are receiving emails from case officers in particular) it is likely that some offshore State/Territory Sponsored skilled visa applicants with non-Critical Skills List occupations will be processed shortly.
2) According to some sources from within the Department, non-CSL visa applicants who have obtained state sponsorship and have been asked to undertake character and health checks by their case officer will be the ones that will now be processed. However, according to other sources such applications are to be processed in chronological order of receipt, irrespective of the visa subclass and irrespective of whether or not character and medical checks have been requested.
3) Advice from the Department directly to agents is as follows:
“The Department is processing applications according to Ministerial Direction No. 42 – Order of consideration – certain Skilled Migration visas.
The Department anticipates that a small number of State sponsored non-CSL applications will be finalised this program year.
Finalisations will focus on applications where health and character checks have been requested by the case officer.”
We will post a further update as soon as he have a further update, from the Department of Immigration, about any changes to processing times and policies.
Construction workers, Engineers, miners – Shortages Increase in Australia
Posted by admin in Australia, Moving to Australia, Working in Australia on December 4th, 2009
According to The Age newspaper, the huge planned Chevron natural gas project (worth about $US40 billion) in Australia, together with other gas mining projects, will result in severe shortages of construction workers and will force the Department of Immigration to relax rules so that enough workers can enter the country and undertake work required to get the oriject underway.
Mining projects – about 12 are currently planned or underway - fuel Australia’s economy and workers hired by mining recruitment firms are reeady to offer high premiums for skilled workers such as welders, pipe fitters, project managers and engineers. In Western Australia alone, the State is predicting a shortage of about 40 000 construction workers. About 70 000 workers will be needed Australia wide in the next decade.
Click here to read the full story.
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Sort Out My Visa is a Australian and NZ visa specialist, providing visa and migration services to individuals and families wanting to travel to, conduct business, work or live in Australia or New Zealand. Visit Sort Out My Visa for more information.
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