Travel Exemptions Update
As of 10 September, additional categories of persons are automatically exempt from travel restrictions and can enter without an individual exemption. Those exempt are: an Australian citizen a permanent resident of Australia an immediate family
Critical Skills List September 2020
The following skilled occupations are being accepted by the Department of Home Affairs as priority and the States are being encouraged to nominate the following occupations: The 17 occupations (ANZSCO code) are: • Chief
COVID-19 Visa Details
The government are attempting to deal with this changing situation. Please keep up to date with this website: https://covid19.homeaffairs.gov.au/ We expect normal migration processing to be back to pre-covid times, by early next year
Subclass 491 NSW State Sponsorship and Nomination
The NSW government has recently announced the new rules for State Nomination. The system is an improvement on the scheme that operated under the old subclass 489 visa process. NSW have done away with delegating
PappaRich franchise – Rich unless you work for them
PappaRich franchises at Macquarie Park, Chatswood and on Liverpool Street in Sydney's CBD have underpaid workers to the tune of $74,000. A massive amount for low paid hospitality staff, who often struggle to make ends
Partner Visa for Unlawful or Illegal Person in Australia
Sometimes circumstances arise where a person becomes unlawful, either overstaying a visa or due to a cancellation. In many cases these people do not realise they are unlawful for sometime, even years. If a person
Regional Migration Subclass 491 and 494
An additional 2000 visa places are to be available sc491 and sc494 visa applicants (Eligible persons and Holders of Skilled Work Visa (subclass 491 and 494)) Order 2019. It is clear that regional migration is
Medicare for 491 and 494 visa holders
Medicare is to made available for sc491 and 494 visa holders. This is great news for regional skilled migration applicants as private internal health insurance is a high burden cost on new migrants. The Medicare
Don’t Whistle While You Work!
For six years to 2012, an employee of the Department of Immigration, tweeted approximately 9000 times. The tweets were from her own device. The tweets were critical of immigration policies. The Department found the employee
457 Visa holders have avenue to appeal if they are underpaid
A Melbourne dental practice has been fined for underpaying a 457 visa holder dentist. He was ordered to back-pay a 457 visa-holder $32,889 plus interest, following legal action by the Fair Work Ombudsman. The
Student Visa Work and Employer Sponsorship Pay
The Fair Work Ombudsman has secured $124,416 in penalties against the operator of a chain of sushi outlets for deliberately underpaying migrant workers in Canberra. The owner of the business ‘Sushi Bay Belconnen’ has been
New Regional Skilled Visa 2019
More on the new subclass 491 visa to start November 2019. It will be very similar to the existing 489 subclass. The main changes are a 5-year visa validity and new visa conditions requiring visa
What is a Significant Investor for migration?
The Significant Investor visa (SIV) (188c) is an initiative run by the Department of Home Affairs as part of their Business Innovation and Investment Program (BIIP). The SIV offers a four–year provisional visa with a
Partner Visa Family Violence Claims
The Federal Circuit Court recently held that a sponsor’s threats to have their partner deported amounted to Family Violence behaviour and were grounds for a positive finding on the grant of a permanent visa to
New Skilled Migration Pathways
With the return of government at the recent election, it is now very likely the Department will introduce two skilled regional visas, subclass 494 and subclass 491. These new visa will come into effect from
More fines for Employers who Underpay Overseas Workers
Federal Circuit Court has found Labour-Hire employer Ram Kumar exploited overseas workers on Australian farms. Ram Kumar has been penalised $17,000 and his Queensland labour-hire company, Seasonal Farm Services Pty Ltd, has been penalised a
Family Members Redefined
In November 2016, legislation redefined the age limit of dependent children for certain visa types. The new definition is more restrictive on adult aged children. Rather than look at each situation on the facts in
Student Visa Cancellation
During the last 12 months, the Immigration Department have increased the number of Student visa cancellations. The Department are using powers under section 116 to cancel student visas onshore, and using powers under section 128
This is the Real Australia
Australia has absorbed an estimated 10 million settlers since the First Fleet arrived in 1788. The majority of these settlers, some seven million, have come to Australia since 1945. The migration program has favoured skilled migrants over
Changes for Working Holiday Makers (Subclass 417)
There are to be several beneficial changes for working holiday maker visa holders in 2017: The maximum age eligibility will increase to 35; There will be expanded work rights: Application fees to reduce; and
The impact on local workers of skilled migration
A common concern is that by adding to the supply of labour, immigration can reduce the wages of local workers (or displace them from jobs). This concept of displacement is partly a manifestation of a
Extra points for skilled research students
Under law Migration Regulation - F2016L01391, skilled applicants can now obtain five extra points for completing an Australian PhD or Masters (Research). This requires two years full time study in the following fields: Biological Sciences Chemical Sciences
Relationship registration in Victoria
Relationship registration in Victoria has just become more sensible and beneficial to potential visa applicants. Changes came into effect 1 July 2016. Now only one person needs to be living in Victoria in order
Accountants have higher points requirements
Accountants may need a points score more than 70. This is based on feedback that EOIs lodged for Accountants with 70 points have not received an application invitation for several week.
Migration year – quota reset
The new migration year commencement on 1 July means that most federal and state migration quota limits are reset. Therefore many state occupation restrictions are now available. Many potential skilled migrants may now have