Posts Tagged Department of Immigraiton

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.