The Minister for Immigration has announced a modest increase to Australia’s migrant intake.

Minister for Immigration, Chris Bowen.

While the full detail of the proposed changes have yet to emerge, the small increase in the permanent visa numbers is lower than was expected.

However, there was more positive news for work visa hunters in the temporary resident area with faster processing times promised for 457s.

As his cabinet colleague Wayne Swan revealed the 2010/11 Budget Chris Bowen revealed that the net migration intake target for the next financial year would be 185,000 visas.

Of these places, over 125,000 will be reserved for skilled migrants including 16,000 for “regional areas”.

‘For the first time, the Federal Government will specifically allocate permanent visas for regional areas,’ Mr Bowen said.

The government will also fast-track permanent residency for temporary business (subclass 457) visa holders who have spent two years in regional Australia and where their employer will continue to sponsor them for a further two years. This will make it easier for 457 visa holders to remain in the region where they have been living and working.

The Minister also announced the establishment of a new processing centre in Brisbane, specifically charged with cutting the processing times for 457 visas.

‘While processing times for 457 visas have reduced by 30 per cent over the past five years, the government will establish a new processing centre in Brisbane and aims to reduce processing times even further,’ Mr Bowen said.

‘The goal is to deliver a 10-day median processing time for applications which are complete at the time they are lodged.

‘This additional processing site, with a significant number of extra visa processing staff, will ensure that complete applications are allocated and processed as quickly as possible.”

The Minister’s announcements underpinned the government’s sensitivity about immigration issues, despite the obvious economic benefit to the country of importing skilled migrants.

“It is critical that Australia’s skilled migration program is driven by Australia’s skills needs, rather than the desires of prospective migrants,” he said.

The Minister also announced a “new model for selecting skilled migrants” which is “expected to come into effect on 1 July 2012″.

The new model concludes a series of reforms to ensure the skilled migration program is more focussed and efficient, demand-driven and tailored to employers’ needs.

‘Under this model, the government will be able to select migrants like a business manages its workforce – selecting the best candidates, altering the skill composition of its workforce, and speeding up or slowing down recruitment as circumstances change,’ Mr Bowen said.

The model will be a two stage process whereby potential applicants first register their claims for skilled migration through an online Expression of Interest (EOI), and subsequently may be invited to make an application for a visa.

This is a significant change from the current situation, as applicants for independent or state/territory sponsored migration will require an invitation to lodge a visa application.

The model will, according to the government, ensure a match between the number of applicants and the number of available program places and consequently, the selection of the best and brightest migrants as well as streamlined processing times.

Watch for more coverage of the migration changes in the next print edition of the Irish Echo.

Dear John, I am a 25-year-old carpenter from Ireland living and working in Brisbane this last 18 months. I have six years’ experience as a carpenter but no formal qualification. I have been told that state sponsorship could be my best option. Could you give me a rundown on the process, stages, expenses, length of time, and chances of success? Brian G.

Dear Brian,
Seeking state sponsorship may well be a strong option as it seems this route is set to get higher priority processing by the Department of Immigration (DIAC).

On February 8, 2010 the Government announced changes to priority processing of skilled visa applications.
Employer Nomination applications now get the highest priority followed by state-sponsored application where the applicant’s skill is a ‘State Migration Plan’.

Currently all states are offering sponsorship in some occupations but as yet none have issued a ‘State Migration Plan’. One would expect these plans will begin to appear in the coming months. This could be good news for people who have a state-sponsored application in the system or are planning to make one.  If your occupation appears on a state plan one would expect to get moved up the priority processing list.

You need to check each state’s website to find the occupations they will sponsor however I note that Queensland is not currently sponsoring carpenters.

For people without formal trade qualifications, provided you have at least four years work experience in a trade such as carpentry there is a pathway to become eligible to apply for a skilled migration visa incuding  state-sponsored visas.

Your first step should be to get your skills assessed to the Australian Qualification Framework Certificate III (AQFIII).

This is the Australian equivalent of FETAC National Craft Certificate or City and Guilds level 3. There are many registered training organisations in Australia that will assess trade occupations. Expect this to cost about $2,500.

(Find an RTO at www.ntis.gov.au)

With the AQFIII, apply for a migrating skills assessment through Trades Recognition Australia (TRA).
The application fee is $300.
(www.deewr.gov.au/Skills/Programs/TRA/)

Once you have the skills assessment and can show recent work history, you can apply to a state government for sponsorship. Some states charge $250–$300.

State websites include, Queensland Government (www.workliveplay.qld.gov.au) and Western Australia (www.migration.wa.gov.au).

When the state sponsorship is approved you can apply for the 176 state-sponsored skilled visas.

The visa application fee is $2,525.

Don’t forget, you have to agree to live in the sponsoring state for at least two years after the visa is granted. Expect the process to take about six months to get to the point of visa application.

Immigration’s stated application processing times for a visa application with a skill on a state migration plan is ‘within 12 months’.
For a state-sponsored application with a skill not on a state migration plan, expect about a three-year processing time.
Consider getting a full assessment from a registered migration agent to help find the best visa option.
(http://mia.org.au)

Irish people looking to live and work in Australia will be affected by significant changes to Australia’s immigration programme to be revealed today.

The number of Working Holiday Visas granted to Irish citizens more than halved in the first six months of this financial year.

The Rudd Government is reforming the permanent skilled migration program to ensure it is more responsive to the needs of industry and employers and better addresses the nation’s future skill needs.

The significant reforms from an Irish point of view are the new Skills List (SOL) which will proscribe occupations in demand and a new State an Territor sponsored-programme which will allow state governments to idntify their own skills shortages. Applicants under this scheme will get preference over indpendent skilled applicants.

According to the government, the reforms will deliver a “demand rather than a supply” driven skilled migration programme that meets the needs of the economy in sectors and regions where there are shortages of highly skilled workers, such as healthcare, engineering and mining.

The major reforms to the skilled migration program are:

20 000 would-be migrants will have their applications cancelled and receive a refund.

All offshore General Skilled Migration applications lodged before 1 September 2007 will have their applications withdrawn. These are people who applied overseas under easier standards, including lower English language skills and a less rigorous work experience requirement. It is expected about 20 000 people fall into this category. The department will refund their visa application charge at an estimated cost of $14 million. Average applications cost between $1500 and $2000 and most contain more than one person.

The list of occupations in demand will be tightened so only highly skilled migrants will be eligible to apply for independent skilled migration visas.

The wide-ranging Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL) will be revoked immediately. The list is outdated and contains 106 occupations, many of which are less-skilled and no longer in demand. A new and more targeted Skilled Occupations List (SOL) will be developed by the independent body, Skills Australia, and reviewed annually. It will be introduced mid-year and focus on high value professions and trades. The Critical Skills List introduced at the beginning of 2009 which identified occupations in critical demand at the height of the global financial crisis will also be phased out.

The points test used to assess migrants will be reviewed to ensure it selects the best and brightest.

Potential migrants gain points based on their qualifications, skills and experience, and proficiency in English. The current points test puts an overseas student with a short-term vocational qualification gained in Australia ahead of a Harvard-educated environmental scientist. A review of the points test used to assess General Skilled Migration applicants will consider issues including whether some occupations should warrant more points than others, whether sufficient points are awarded for work experience and excellence in English, and whether there should be points for qualifications obtained from overseas universities. The review will report to Government later this year.

Certain occupations may be capped to ensure skill needs are met across the board.

Amendments to the Migration Act will be introduced this year to give the Minister the power to set the maximum number of visas that may be granted to applicants in any one occupation if need be. This will ensure that the Skilled Migration Program is not dominated by a handful of occupations.

Development of state and territory-specific migration plans.

Individual state and territory migration plans will be developed so they can prioritise skilled migrants of their own choosing. This recognises that each state and territory has different skills requirements. For example, Western Australia may have a shortage of mining engineers while Victoria may have a requirement for more architects. Under the new priority processing arrangements, migrants nominated by a state and territory government under their State Migration Plan will be processed ahead of applications for independent skilled migration.

The Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Chris Evans, said the new arrangements will give first priority to skilled migrants who have a job to go to with an Australian employer. For those who don’t have an Australian employer willing to sponsor them, the bar is being raised.

“There are plenty of occupations where there is an adequate supply of young Australians coming through our schools, TAFE colleges and universities to take up new job opportunities. They must be given the opportunity to fill these vacancies first,” Senator Evans said.

“But there are some occupations where there will be high demand for skills. Hospitals can’t go without nurses, country towns can’t do without a local GP and the resources sector increasingly needs skills.

“These latest changes will continue reforms already implemented by the government and result in a more demand-driven skilled migration program that attracts highly skilled migrants to Australia to work in areas of critical need.”

The government recognises that the changes will affect some overseas students currently in Australia intending to apply for permanent residence.

Those international students who hold a vocational, higher education or postgraduate student visa will still be able to apply for a permanent visa if their occupation is on the new Skilled Occupations List. If their occupation is not on the new SOL, they will have until 31 December 2012 to apply for a temporary skilled graduate visa on completion of their studies which will enable them to spend up to 18 months in Australia to acquire work experience and seek sponsorship from an employer.

The changes will in no way impact on international students coming to Australia to gain a legitimate qualification and then return home

by Pádraig Collins

AN Irishman was recently fined $1,400 and expelled from Australia after being convicted of immigration fraud.
The confirmation from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) followed a series of revelations in the Irish Echo of Working Holiday Visa (WHV) fraud among Irish backpackers.

Other Irish backpackers are under investigation for similar frauds, with one case already having been referred to the director of public prosecutions and 32 second working holiday visas being cancelled in NSW alone on the basis of fraudulent documentation.

The expelled man was convicted after admitting he bought employment verification details for a second-year WHV for $500. To get a second WHV backpackers must work for three months in agricultural or regional work during their first visa year. Typically this would involve fruit picking or working on a building site in a rural area.

But many, unwilling or unable to do the tough work required for the visa, have risked imprisonment for up to 10 years, and/or a fine of up to $110,000 by claiming they worked on a farm when they did not.

This work is ìprovedî through providing the Australian Business Number (ABN) of a farmer who has previously hired backpackers and saying you worked there too. This in turn led to a scam where people have been selling the ABNs of farmers for up to $500 each. This method has been advertised on backpacker websites such as Gumtree 
under headings such as ì2nd year visa, no problemî.

One Irish fraudster allegedly told clients who paid him $400 each for ABN details that DIAC checked only 10 per cent of second WHV applications.

Deidre Russack, director of the working holiday section of DIAC, told a backpacker conference that: ìThere’s a lot of fraud …they’re not working in regional areas… Immigration is trying to do something about it … There’s a lot of work going on in the department around this issue,î she said.

The fraudulent behaviour among some backpackers has made big news in Ireland in recent weeks, with The Irish Times, the Wicklow People  and both RT… radio and television reporting on the scandal.

Of the 21,727 second WHVs granted in the year to June 30, 2009, a massive 4,425 were given to Irish people.
Only Koreans, with 6,079, got more than Irish people.
UK backpackers got 4,072 second-year WHVs.

The recent visa scam revelations has led to uncertainty among some as to the future of the second WHV scheme.

But Sydney-based immigration agent John McQuaid says it is just a rumour.

DIAC has made no statements that suggest this might happen. An in depth review of the working holiday visa programme conducted in February 2009 made no recommendations to change the system,î he told the Irish Echo.

DIAC has just introduced a new version of its employment verification form used to record regional work for a second WHV. The new form asks more questions aimed to assist DIAC case officers reduce the risk of fraudulent applications.