Viewing Single Post From: Visa Processing Changes

Viewing Single Post From: Visa Processing Changes - 16.03.09
Tallyho!	Mar 18 2009, 10:26 PM
Croc Posts: 254 Group: Members Member #221 Joined: April 25, 2008	More news from our agents with news of the removal of all trades/manufacturing occupations off the CSL list. Any way - details as follows :- The Australian Government have just released the amended Critical Skills List (CSL) (attached). The changes to this new CSL involve most trade occupations being removed. This does not effect your points score which means you are still eligible. The only thing effected is that the processing times will lengthen significantly. It is estimated you could be waiting up to 2 years from lodgement if you are not state sponsored or not on the CSL. Please do not panic. We advise that you continue with lodging your application as soon as possible, if you haven't done so already. State Governments can expect to be inundated with applications for sponsorship and we expect that they will refuse certain occupations once they reach their quota. We also anticipate that the next changes the DIAC will make will be to the MODL (Occupations in Demands List). If this happens and you are claiming 15 points for an occupation that is removed form the List, then you may need to consider a new visa category (Sponsored or Temporary). To avoid being in this situation, you should lodge your final application with DIAC as soon as possible. Those who have lodged their application and have been requested documents e.g medicals, police clearances, etc have been allocated a visa already and it should only be a matter of weeks before DIAC finalise your visa application. Those who have lodged but haven't been requested any documents you should expect a long wait. No-one should complete medicals or police clearances until requested to do so. Once the government refresh the visa's in the new financial year 1 July 2009 they will only be processing applications that are State Sponsored &/or on the CSL The changes announced to the skilled migration program by the Minister for Immigration are: * capping the 2008-2009 General Skilled Migration (GSM) Program. * removal of construction and manufacturing trades from the Critical Skills List (CSL) What does capping the program mean? Capping means that a set number of visa grants is determined by the Minister for a particular visa category or categories. Once that number is reached, no further grants can occur until the next program year. How long will it take to process my visa? The department is unable to determine how long it will take to process visas, including those which have already been lodged. It depends on normal processing conditions and it does not take into account the new priority processing or capping measures. *WHAT ARE THE PROCESSING PRIORITIES?* 1. Employer Sponsorship (see below) 2. State or Territory Sponsorship 3. An occupation on the CSL 4. An occupation on the MODL 5. All other applications EMPLOYER SPONSORSHIP The priority processing only applies to those who have an employer in Australia willing to formally sponsor them for migration, and not simply a job offer. The employer must be eligible to sponsor an employee, by meeting certain requirement. Applicants who are sponsored must apply for one of the ENS visas. STATE OR TERRITORY SPONSORSHIP It is entirely and the discretion of States and Territories whether or not they choose to nominate migration visa applicants. It may be possible to change from a Skilled Independent 175 application to a Sponsored 176 application, whether or not your application is lodged. Please see information below in regards to this option. NEW CRITICAL SKILLS LIST The new CSL has taken effect from the 16th March 2009. Please understand that this list has NO BEARING ON YOUR ELIGIBILITY. The occupations on this list receive priority processing, that is all. Will there be further changes to the CSL? There may be further changes this program year, depending on impact of the global economic crisis on Australia. How can Accountants receive priority processing? Accountants who hold a current passport from the UK or Republic of Ireland are considered to have 'proficient English' and therefore would not need to sit an IELTS test for extra points. However, completing the test and scoring the required 7points in each component would qualify you for priority processing. MODL (OCCUPATIONS ION DEMAND LIST) At the present time, there have been no changes to the MODL and no changes to the points allocations for those occupations on the MODL. This list is reviewed usually twice a year, but can change at regular intervals without warning. Any changes will likely reflect the current economic climate. CHANGING FROM A 175 VISA TO A 176 STATE SPONSORED VISA Many of you may be thinking of changing to a State Sponsored visa, in the hope of speeding up the application process. Whilst this is possible, you should be aware that all states will be taking into consideration their most immediate requirements for specific skills. Aapplications for sponsorship have been taking from 4 to 6 weeks but this could be considerably longer due to the high volume of applications being submitted. What is the difference between the 175 and the 176? Undertaking State Sponsorship means making a commitment to live and work in that State for a minimum of 2 years. There may be other requirements that you agree to when making the application to the State. Please consider also, that for many people, State Sponsorship is their only chance of migrating. There are many highly skilled people who, without this sponsorship, would otherwise be unable to migrate to Australia. So basically for us this means that George's occupation as a Carpenter is no longer on the CSL list and therefore we will now have to wait for at least 2 years from the date of lodgement for a visa - gutted!!!! Kim Edited by Tallyho!, Mar 29 2009, 09:02 PM.
	Kim, George, Emily and Grace Vetasses submitted 23.04.08 - passed 28.05.08 - practical done 21.07.08, passed 07.08.08 175 Visa submitted 11.08.08.

Visa Processing Changes - 16.03.09 · Migration Matters