WHAT'S NEW

February 2010

8 Feb: Changes to the Skilled Migration Program

On the morning of 8th February 2010 DIAC has announced extensive changes to the Skilled Migration Program. A summary of them is as follows:

1.    Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL) no longer exists as of 8/2/2010. This does not affect lodged cases and only applies to applications to be lodged on or after 8/2/2010. These cases will no longer be able to claim the additional 15pts that were awarded for being on the MODL. This will make it much more difficult for some people to reach the passmark.

2.    New Skilled Occupations List (SOL) to be announced on 30/4/2010 to come into force mid 2010. This will be more targeted and most probably with a lot less occupations on it.

3.    Critical Skills List to be withdrawn when new SOL comes in.

4.    State & Territory Governments will be able to still sponsor people for STNI if their occupation is not on the new SOL but is on the State sponsorship list once the State or Territory Governments have an agreed migration "plan" signed by the Minister. This change is going to once again mean that State Sponsorship will be a vital part of many people's application.

5.    Applications with state sponsorship under the new plan will be given the highest priority after ENS in the processing priority. This has the unfortunate result of meaning that applications with State Sponsorship from 1 year ago are still going to take up to 3 years, but people who apply now once there are agreed "plans" will be processed first.  This makes little sense in assisting the States & Territories to acquire the skills they need as we think the states "plan" will be the same as their current lists.

6.    The entire points test will also be reviewed mid year.

If you would like to find out more how this affects your situation or to discuss any aspect in more detail please contact our office.

December 2009

23 Dec: On Hire Labour Agreement Application Approved

The On Hire Labour Agreement Application made to the Department of Immigration (DIAC) and Department of Employment (DEEWR) by Four Corners on behalf of our client Sustainergy Pty Ltd has been approved today - 23rd Dec 2009. The 3 year agreement will allow Sustainergy Pty Ltd to sponsor offshore Engineers to work in Australia and be on hired to their clients. They are one of a small number of companies in Australia that have been granted access to the On Hire Labour Agreement.

1 Dec: Processing of some State sponsored non-CSL GSM applications (Australia)

There have recently been reports and speculation about the processing of some State sponsored non- Critical Skills List (CSL) General Skilled Migration (GSM) applications.

These are the Tier (or Category) 5 applications: that is, applications from people who are nominated by a State/Territory government and whose nominated occupation is not listed on the (CSL).

In order to provide realistic expectations for your clients, the MIA has been discussing the matter with DIAC to obtain an accurate statement of what is happening.

DIAC has today provided the MIA with the following statement:

“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.”

October 2009


NEW TRAVEL ALLOWANCES

Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan's Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) on Tuesday unveiled steps to ease South Africa's exchange controls.

  1. Travel Allowances have increased from R 500k to R 750k immediately.
  2. Tax Clearance has increased from R 2mill to R 4mill.

Changes to VETASSESS assessment requirements for General Occupations from 1 January 2010

VETASSESS conducts assessments for over 200 occupations for people applying to migrate to Australia under the Commonwealth Government’s General Skilled Migration (GSM) and Employer Nomination Schemes (ENS).

INVEST IN PROPERTY IN AUSTRLIA
OzInvest is a privately owned, real estate and marketing company that specializes in researching and sourcing quality house and land packages specifically for the investor in growth corridors of Australian capital cities.

Their comprehensive service includes organizing finance and legal representation, the coordination of the building process, and property management, making it a stress free and seamless process. They have a genuine 10 year leaseback guarantee that is unique in the market and means that investors can rest assured that they will have no vacancy periods for the next 10 years.

The scope of the service they provide makes their offer especially attractive to non residents who can invest in a sound property market supported by the fundamentals – strong population growth, structural undersupply of housing and a stable and prosperous economy, with a minimum of effort.

OzInvest is a company that is genuinely committed to honest and ethical dealings with all their clients and business partners. Four Corners would invite you to look at their website, www.ozinvest.com.au and let us know if this is something that you would consider in starting to create wealth for you and your family in Australia.


Macquarie Economic Research
Currency Perspective (PDF)
SA - Outlook 5/10 (PDF)
AUD & NZD - Outlook 5/10 (PDF)

September 2009

24/9 - Changes to the Subclass 457 Visa program

We attended a meeting with senior DIAC officials on 22nd September 2009 covering the new changes on subclass 457 visas which came into force on 14 September 2009. The changes were quite complicated from a legislative drafting perspective and so further clarification from DIAC was a good thing for us and our clients.
The essential theme of the changes is “parity” in the work place. What DIAC is trying to achieve is that employees on 457 visas are treated exactly the same as or no worse than an Australian employee. This is one reason why a number of provisions and definitions from the Fair Work Act have been word for word incorporated into the Migration Act. This relates to rates of pay and conditions of work.

There are some changes which are positive for sponsors and others which will require a little more work on your side. Firstly, all new sponsorship applications will now be for a 3 year period instead of a 2 year period. There will no longer be a limit on the number of nominations you can make. DIAC will still monitor each sponsorship agreement and ensure that the number of nominations is appropriate for the size of sponsor and the number of Australian staff they have. But essentially DIAC want to get to the stage where there is 1 sponsorship agreement per ABN at any time with no nomination limit. This will remove the requirement to lodge additional sponsorship applications if you use up your “limit” within the life time of the sponsorship agreement.

DEEWR is currently still working on training benchmarks, but we are led to believe that they are not far away. In the meantime the previous guidelines are still being followed by DIAC. That is that 1% of payroll is spent on training or a commitment to pay 2% of payroll to an Industry Training Fund. Once we have these benchmarks we will let you know.

A new set of Sponsor Obligations came into force on 14th September 2009. This replaces the previous Sponsor Undertakings. These updated obligations can be found here (PDF).

23/9 - Processing priorities at the ASPC for all Skilled Migration applications

Please find below a summary of the processing priorities at the ASPC for all Skilled Migration applications as of 23 September 2009. The main change appears to be that occupations on the CSL are now placed above State Sponsored applications in the priority list.

This Direction applies to applications in the pipeline that have not been finalised, and to applications lodged with the Department of Immigration and Citizenship, on or after 23 September 2009. Priority processing applies to both onshore and offshore applications.

Processing priorities (highest priority listed first)

  1. ENS and RSMS applications
  2. State/territory nominated applications with nominated occupation on Critical Skills List (CSL)
  3. Family member sponsored applications with nominated occupation on CSL
  4. Applications not nominated or sponsored, but with nominated occupation on CSL
  5. State/territory nominated applications with nominated occupation NOT on CSL
  6. (i) applications with nominated occupation on the Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL)
    (ii) Family member sponsored applications with nominated occupation on the MODL
  7. all other applications processed in the order in which they are received

A more concerning aspect is the processing times that have also just been updated. Please see below. This means that there will now be substantial delays for all applications with a nominated occupation not on the CSL. This is now much worse than we first feared. Applications appear to now have the potential to sit in the queue for another 3 years. This is patently unfair, but we can only work in the confines of the system DIAC operates. We will be lobbying this side to see if this can be altered. We also believe that only allowing occupations on the CSL to be processed will actually skew the immigration quota and that other skills are also required to help the Australian economy grow. We will be advocating that this be recognised and that further amendments to the processing priorities will be made.

DIAC’s estimated processing times
Applications with nominated occupation on CLS: within 12 months of lodgement

If your nominated occupation is not on the CSL and you have applied for an offshore GSM visa or intend to apply for an offshore GSM before the end of 2009, it is unlikely that your visa will be finalised before the end of 2012.

If your nominated occupation is not on the CSL and you applied for an onshore GSM visa or intend to apply for an onshore GSM before the end of 2009, it is unlikely that your visa will be finalised before the end of 2011.

Your ‘nominated occupation’ is the occupation you nominated at the time you lodged your application and cannot be changed.

August 2009

New requirements for subclass 457 visa applications

VETASSESS has been contracted by the Australian Government, through Trades Recognition Australia, to conduct formal skills assessments for the 457 visa program. VETASSESS is leading a consortium consisting of Central Gippsland TAFE and Kangan Batman TAFE to conduct the 457 skills assessments and issue a qualification to applicants against relevant qualifications from the Australian Qualifications Framework. VETASSESS and partners are undertaking this work as part of the recent Australian Government’s changes to the Subclass 457 Business (Long Stay) visa. From July 1st 2009 Australia requires 457 visa applicants in specified trade occupations and countries of residence to satisfy certain skills requirements as part of their visa application.

The new process will apply to applicants in the following trades: Welder (First Class), Motor Mechanic, Cook/Chef, Fitter, and Metal Fabricator need to be assessed for applicants from Brazil, Philippines, China, India, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, South Africa, Thailand, Vietnam or Zimbabwe.

VETASSESS can assess applicants in their country of residence. However, if an applicant wishes to be assessed in another country, arrangements can be made.

Costs:

  • The initial assessment of your documents costs $600.00 for an online application and $650 for a paper based application.
  • The technical interview costs $600

Time frames - The assessment is normally completed within 5 weeks. If an applicant requires an urgent assessment a fast track service is available.

Applicants that are from the next 10 trades being released in November 2009 can also be assessed through this process so they are job ready when applying for their 457 Visas.

May 2009

13/5 News

Australian Economy Scores Top Marks

It's not just swimming and cricket that Australia does well at, it seems our economy scores top marks against the rest of the world.

According to the Reserve Bank, the Australian economy is in "better shape than most" and "will remain one of the better performing economies in the developed world".

Compared to the United States and the UK, where cash rates sit at a range of 0-0.25% and 0.5% respectively, Australia still has significant room to move with monetary policy. While there is no guarantee this will insulate us from the worldwide recession, it does put us in a good position to benefit from the renewed global expansion when it comes.

Experts are now predicting 2010 as the year most likely to bring about the start of the global upswing. The International Monetary Fund and the US Federal Reserve anticipate that fiscal measures put into place now by the world economies will go a long way towards stimulating this turnaround.

G20 Summit leaders recently agreed on a $US1.1 trillion plan for recovery and reform, which adds up to a staggering $US5 trillion spent in stimulus measures this year and next. Australia's own stimulus plan and recent injection of cash bonuses is well underway, and when coupled with the positive impact of interest rate cuts, many are hopeful that our economy may well hit a home run.

Housing Market Grows

If there's a good news story to come out of the gloom of a recession, it's that Australia's property market may no longer be under the hammer.

Record low interest rates and the First Home buyers boost have done their job in re-energising the market, with strong signs that people are once again confident about buying property. First home buyers now represent over a quarter of all borrowings, with investors tipped to be the next growth market.

Investors make a come-back

Rising rental yields, low interest rates and an improvement in home values are expected to encourage property investment. As the gap between mortgage repayments and rents continues to shrink, the amount investors will have to dip into their own pockets to cover borrowing costs is diminishing.

According to the latest QBE LMI Half Yearly Property Update, compiled by BIS Shrapnel, the differential between rental yields and interest rates is only 2 per cent. Residential rents are continuing to rise strongly, spurred by the low vacancy rate of less than 2 per cent in most capital cities.

The report shows that conditions for investors are at their best since the late 1990s. Stagnant property prices combined with low interest rates has made it significantly more affordable to purchase a property, with overall rents predicted to rise by another 10 per cent this year, according to BIS Shrapnel property analyst, Jason Anderson.

Buying becomes more affordable

A dramatic improvement in housing affordability has taken place in recent months.

According to the Housing Affordability Report from the Real Estate Institute of Australia (REIA), released March 09, the cost of buying a home improved by a record 6.4 per cent in the December 08 quarter, compared to the September 08 quarter.

The percentage of family income needed to service a home loan decreased to 32.4 per cent from 38.8 per cent over the same period. This is the largest quarterly change recorded by the REIA since calculations of this affordability measure were first introduced in 1995.

With so much positive research available, there are plenty of good reasons to buy into property right now.

 

12/5 Update

Highlights of 2009 Federal Budget on the Migration Program

Please also refer to the Skilled Migration Fact Sheet (Australia) for more info.

• The Migration Program will total 168,700 places for 2009-10.

• The Federal Government's 2009 Budget has made a further cut to the permanent skilled migration intake to 108,000 places for the 2009-10 program (a 20% reduction to the previous budget). In March, the Government cut the 2008–09 permanent skilled migration intake by 14 per cent from 133 500 to 115 000. This reduction to 108 100 places represents an overall drop of almost 20 per cent on previous planning levels.

• The reduction will be achieved largely through cutbacks in the General Skilled Category. The migration intake in the coming year reflects the economic climate while ensuring employers can gain access to skilled professionals in industries still experiencing skills shortages.

‘The reduction is being achieved through a cutback in places for the general skilled category rather than in the high-demand employer-sponsored category or in areas in which Australia has critical skills shortages.’ Said the Minister.

• A job-readiness test will be introduced for onshore skilled applicants.

The Government is introducing a JobReady Test (JRT) from 1 January 2010 for all GSM applicants nominating trade occupations for migration purposes. This measure complements similar measures previously announced for the subclass 457 visa and is designed to ensure a supply of ‘job ready’ applicants to supplement Australia’s labour market needs. The JobReady Test will also ensure a consistent standard of skills and competencies across trade occupations.

The JRT will ensure that GSM applicants who wish to migrate to Australia are able to successfully compete in the Australian labour market in the area of their nominated occupation.

Details of the JobReady Test are being developed by the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations in consultation with the Department of Immigration and Citizenship and key industry stakeholders.

• The Government will be increasing the English language requirement for trades occupation to IELTS 6 from 1 July 2009 for offshore applicants and 1 January 2010 for onshore applicants. In addition to the cutback in places, the Government will be increasing the English language level required for trades-related occupations and introduce a targeted skills-testing regime to ensure that migrants have both the language and skills needed to participate in the labour market.

The aim of the GSM Program is to select migrants who, because of the skills they possess, are more likely to find skilled employment shortly after they arrive in Australia. A high level of English language ability is recognised as being essential for achieving this objective.

The English language requirement for GSM applicants nominating a trade occupation will be increased to a minimum of 6.0 (Competent English) in each of the four components of the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) test. This increase in the IELTS score brings the English language requirement for trade occupations in line with other occupations for GSM visas, with trade occupations previously exempt from GSM changes introduced in September 2007.

For the provisional GSM visa subclasses, the threshold English language standard will be raised from an average score of IELTS 5.5 to an average score of IELTS 6. The change will affect applicants for the subclass 475 Offshore Skilled - Regional Sponsored and subclass 487 Onshore Skilled - Regional Sponsored Visa.

The increased English language requirement will apply to all new offshore GSM applications lodged after 1 July 2009 with Australian Standard Classification of Occupations (ASCO) Level 4 nominated trade occupations.

The increased English language requirement for onshore GSM applicants will apply from 1 January 2010.
The Government’s reform measures are aimed at ensuring an appropriate balance between providing skills needed in the economy now (demand-driven employer-sponsored), in the future (independent skilled pathway) and in the regions (government-sponsored pathway).

‘The Government has begun the task of constructing a long-term planning framework for migration as a key component of the current reform agenda,’ Senator Evans said.

• There will be fewer visas granted to trade level occupations.

• There will be an increase in family migration places to 60,300, including addition 2500 for partners, 1000 for contributory parents and 300 for child visas. The Government will provide more opportunities for family reunions with an increase of 3800 places in the family component of the Migration Program, to 60 300. The increase includes an additional 2500 places for partners, 1000 places for contributory parents and 300 for child visas.
‘We are recognising the importance of family through this boost which will benefit Australians who seek to have their parents, partners or children join them to live here permanently,’ the minister said.

• Increased humanitarian Program to 13,750 (7750 Special Humanitarian and 6000 refugee)

• Increased funding to improve detention centres

• DIAC staff reductions

• Increased costs for DIAC to establish the new Office of the MARA

April 2009

Changes to legislation covering superannuation relating to temporary residents

From 1 April 2009, if you are, or were, a temporary resident you can only access your preserved superannuation benefits if:

  • You have departed Australia permanently and your visa has ceased
  • You become permanently incapacitated
  • You have a terminal medical condition

In addition, your beneficiaries may access your benefits upon your death.

If you satisfied a condition of release prior to 1 April 2009 you may still be able to access your preserved superannuation benefits. You should speak to your financial adviser.

The Australian Government now requires the Super Fund to pay temporary residents’ unclaimed superannuation to the Australian Taxation Office after at least 6 months have passed since:

  • The date a temporary resident’s visa ceased to be in effect; and
  • The date a temporary resident permanently left Australia

Once the benefit has been transferred to the ATO you need to claim directly from the ATO.

English language requirement – Subclass 457 visa program

On 14 April 2009 the English language requirement for Subclass 457 – Business (Long Stay) visa applicants increased from an IELTS (International English Language Testing System) score of 4.5 to 5. This requirement applies to people making a subclass 457 application on or after 14 April 2009 and, for the first time, applies to people applying as chefs or head chefs (ASCO 3322-11 or 3322-01).

March 2009

From March 2009 the processing of permanent residence Employer Nominations will follow the route of the subclass 457 visa. Three centres of excellence will be established in Sydney. Melbourne & Perth. Sydney will cover applications where the position is based in Queensland, NSW or the ACT. Melbourne will handle applications from Victoria & South Australia. Perth will handle applications from Western Australia. Currently, the processing of ENS applications has been handled well by DIAC and it is hoped that these steps will further improve processing times.

27 February 2009

Policy Change by DIAC for 457s introduced 24 February 2009.

This policy update is in fact an instruction to DIAC case officers on how they should make their decisions on 457s. A key element that relates to the purpose of the 457 program is that processing of applications under the program should remain cognisant of the prevailing economic conditions. In relation to sponsorship applications, DIAC decision makers need to ensure they are satisfied that the Benefit to Australia requirement is met. In relation to nominations and particularly visa applications, a key focus should be given to the nominated salary and its proximity to the average remuneration for that occupation.

Case officers ("decision makers") have to "carefully consider the prevailing economic conditions, both globally and locally" and satisfy themselves that "there is a benefit to Australia as opposed to a benefit to the business." The prevailing Australian rate of participation in the workforce is an extremely important element when assessing all four elements. During times of growing unemployment, decision-makers should satisfy themselves that there is a benefit to Australia as opposed to a benefit to the business. When the economy is buoyant with low unemployment, a vigorous assessment of the benefit to Australia requirement should be limited to applications where there are very clear inconsistencies. However, during periods where economic conditions are deteriorating and levels of unemployment rising, the need for the importation of overseas workers to fill positions in the trades and semi skilled areas diminishes. Even during periods of economic turbulence, there will remain shortages in some areas of the Australian workforce, although this is more likely in the higher skilled, professional groupings.

The four elements of the Benefit to Australia requirement are:
(i) the creation or maintenance of employment for Australian citizens or Australian permanent residents
(ii) expansion of Australian trade in goods or services
(iii)  the improvement of Australian business links with international markets
(iv) competitiveness within sectors of the Australian economy

These four elements have always been a requirement for a Sponsorship application, but it now appears that DIAC will be treating them much more seriously and we will need to address them in more detail. In times of growing unemployment, decision-makers would need to be satisfied that the skills and attributes required for this role could not be found locally and that the individuals proposed to be sponsored demonstrably have a higher level of skill than can be sourced within Australia. We have spoken to DIAC and although it is not their intention to bring back Labour Market testing as a general rule this could mean that in some cases evidence of labour market testing will be required to prove that you tried to fill the position locally but were unable to.

DIAC will also be looking more closely at the level of remuneration a 457 visa holder will receive at the nomination & visa stage of the process. In addition to meeting the minimum salary threshold other factors will be considered. DIAC will also look at “average” remuneration for that position. They will consider collective agreements, industrial awards, similar positions within the sponsoring company, & Australia Bureau of Statistics data.  For ASCO levels 1 & 2 and salaries over A$100,000 DIAC will not be asking too many questions. They will be more interested in lower skilled occupations where the salary is the minimum salary threshold level. DIAC will need to satisfy itself that the overseas worker is being paid the same as an Australian worker in a similar position. DIAC wants sponsors to use the 457 program to fill genuine skills shortages and not to secure workers at a lower salary than an Australian would receive.
 
Closer attention will also be paid by DIAC to a person’s suitability for the position – their relevant qualifications & work experience. We have always paid close attention to this aspect and do not see too many issues arising with this point.

In all cases it now appears that the onus is on us to work together to provide a justification for your need to employ an overseas worker. In many instances this will not be a problem. Skills are still in short supply due to skills shortages or the geographic location of an employer. It seems that DIAC will not make any assumptions now and will be looking for more supporting information as part of an application. We do not see this as an obstacle to any 457 visa applications being successful. It just means providing a more detailed submission and convincing the decision maker of the need for the appointment. After speaking to DIAC they do not have any set guidelines on what additional information they require. It will depend on our submission and the circumstances of the application as to what additional information they will require if anything.
The new policy though could mean slightly longer processing times for certain applications if additional information is requested.

If you have any questions or would like to discuss this in more detail please contact our office.

January 2009

As of 1 Jan 2009 the Adelaide Skilled Processing Centre which processes all skilled migration applications has introduced a new processing priority. All existing and future applications will be affected by this change. This is a further reflection of the Australian Government’s stated intention to assist getting the skills required by Australian business into Australia sooner.

The new Ministerial Direction gives priority processing to applications strictly in the following order:

  1. employer sponsorship; then
  2. State or Territory Sponsorship; then
  3. an occupation on the Critical Skill List (CSL); then
  4. Business Skills; then
  5. an occupation on the MODL; and then
  6. All other applications

The ASPC is currently in the process of identifying and allocating all State or Territory Sponsored applications. Once these are all completely allocated, only then will cases with occupations on the CSL commence allocation and not until after all CSL applications are allocated will we be able to look at the remaining application priorities.

2008

Four Corners has attending both the Johannesburg & Cape Town Skills Expos with Australian employers. We also represented our other clients in Australia that will not physically be attending the expos.

If you would like to attend future expos and speak to a Four Corners consultant to find out more about the employment market in Australia please contact us.
http://www.expo-australia.com