SKILLED VISA SUMMARY

Visa Summary

Subclass 482 Temporary Skill Shortage Visa

The TSS (subclass 482) visa requires an applicant to be sponsored by an Australian employer to work in Australia in a nominated occupation. As an applicant, you must have skills (qualifications and/or work experience) that match those required for the nominated position. Usually you can only work for the business that sponsored you or one of its associated entities. The subclass 482 visa employer sponsored visa involves three stages including: 1) Sponsorship by an Australian Employer; 2) Nomination of an eligible occupation on the designated list; and 3) Visa application.

Your nominated occupation must be included on:

the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL) which allows for a maximum four-year-term of employment under the Medium-term stream of this visa; OR
the Regional Occupation List (ROL) and located in a regional area of Australia. This also allows for a maximum four-year term of employment under the Medium-term stream of this visa; OR
the Short-term Skilled Occupation List (STSOL), which allows for a maximum two-year term of employment under the Short-term stream of this visa and allows you to be sponsored for one further term of 2 years while you in Australia.

It is a temporary residence visa. There is no age cap on this visa.

Subclass 866 Protection Visa

Australia has an obligation under the Migration Act 1958 to protect individuals who can satisfy one of two criteria, broadly, a ‘well-founded fear of persecution or ‘a real risk of significant harm’ should they be returned to their country of origin.

The Migration Act provides that a non-citizen will suffer ‘significant harm’ if:

the non-citizen will be arbitrarily deprived of his or her life; or
the death penalty will be carried out on the non-citizen; or
the non-citizen will be subjected to torture; or
the non-citizen will be subjected to cruel or inhuman treatment or punishment; or
the non-citizen will be subjected to degrading treatment or punishment.

Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) visa (subclass 188) - Business Innovation stream

As an applicant you must:

be under 55 years of age
score at least 65 on the points test
for two out of the four fiscal years immediately before you are invited to apply, have had an ownership interest in an established business or businesses that had at least AUD500 000 turnover in each of those years
own at least one of the following percentages of your nominated main business:
- 51 per cent, if the business has a turnover of less than AUD400 000 per year
- 30 per cent, if the business has a turnover of AUD400 000 or more per year
- 10 per cent, if the business is a publicly listed company
have an overall successful business career
have a genuine desire to continuously own and maintain a management role in a business in Australia.

At the time of invitation, you must have total net business and personal assets of at least AUD800 000 that are lawfully acquired and available for legal transfer to Australia within two years of the visa being granted.

Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) visa (subclass 188) - Investor stream

This is a 4 years and 3 months provisional visa. Once you have this visa, you can apply for permanent residence through the Business Innovation and Investment (Permanent) visa (subclass 888).

For the Investor stream of the subclass 188 visa the Australian Government requirements are (as certain states have different requirements):

Nomination can only be made by a State/Territory government agency.
The applicant must not have turned 55 at the time of invitation to apply for the visa or satisfies the exception of contributing exceptional economic benefit to the State or Territory.

The applicant meets the minimum of 65 points of the Business and Innovation and Investment point test.

The applicant has had a successful record of eligible investment activity or qualifying business activity.

The applicant has had a total of at least 3 years experience of direct involvement in managing one or more qualifying business or eligible investment.
The applicant has demonstrated a high level of management skill in relation to the eligible investment or qualifying business activity.
For at least 5 fiscal years before time of the invitation an applicant and the spouse had either a qualifying interest of at least 10% of the total value of the qualifying business or together hold a total net value of the eligible investments of at least AUD 1,500, 000.
For 2 fiscal years before the time of the invitation to apply for the visa, the business or personal assets of the applicant, the applicant’s spouse or together had a net value of at least AUD 2,250, 000. You would be required to invest AUD 1,500, 000 into government bonds (NSW Treasury Corporation) for 4 years.
You must meet Functional English language requirements at the time of application.

Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) visa (subclass 188) - Significant Investor stream (there is no age cap on this visa)

Applicants are required to invest at least $5 million in complying investments for 4 years, which must include:

At least $500,000 in eligible Australian venture capital or growth private equity fund(s) investing in start-up and small private companies;
At least $1.5 million in an eligible managed fund(s) or Listed Investment Companies (LIC) that invest in emerging companies; and
A ‘balancing investment’ of up to $3 million in managed fund(s) or LICs that invest in a combination of eligible assets that include Australian listed securities, eligible corporate bonds or notes, annuities and real property (subject to the 10 per cent limit on residential real estate).

The Government visa costs are AUD 7,880 for the main applicant and AUD 3,940 for each family member 18 years and over, and AUD 1,975 for each family member under 18 years old.

Subclass 132 Business Talent (Permanent) visa

For the Significant Business History Stream of the Subclass 132 visa applicants must be under 55 years of age.

This is a permanent residence visa for high-calibre business owners or part-owners who want to do business in Australia.

The criteria for this visa is as follows:

Your wife and yourself combined must have all of the following:

total net business assets equivalent to at least AUD 400 000 as the ownership interest in one or more qualifying businesses for at least two of the four fiscal years immediately before you are invited to apply for the visa;
net business and personal assets of at least AUD1.5 million that are legally acquired and can be transferred to Australia within two years after the visa is granted;
a total annual turnover of at least AUD 3 million in one or more of your main businesses in at least two of the four fiscal years immediately before you are invited to apply;
ownership of at least:
- 51 per cent of a business with turnover of less than AUD400 000 per year;
- 30 per cent of a business with turnover of more than AUD400 000 per year; or
- 10 per cent of a publicly listed company;
an overall successful business career;
no involvement in unacceptable business activities; and
a genuine desire to own and maintain a management role in a business in Australia.

(Subclass 189) Skilled Independent Visa

This is a permanent resident visa, which allows highly skilled workers who are not sponsored by an employer, State or Territory of Australia, or family member to live and work permanently in Australia.

As an applicant you must:

Have an occupation on the relevant list of eligible skilled occupations;
Obtain a positive skills assessment assessment from the relevant Australian assessing authority in your nominated occupation;
Be under the age of 45 at the time of application;
Meet English language requirements at the time of application;
Meet the points test pass mark of 65 points;
Lodge an Expression of Interest (EOI). If this is successful, you will be invited to lodge a visa application; and
Be invited to apply for the visa.

Subclass 491 Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) Visa:

This new regional subclass 491 visa came into effect on 16 November 2019. The subclass 491 visa is a provisional visa valid for 5 years. There is a pathway to permanent residence under the Permanent Residence Regional (subclass 191) visa, after you have lived, worked and studied in a designated regional area for at least 3 years on the 491 visa.

However, while you are on a 491 visa, you will not be able to apply for any other permanent visas until you have held the 491 for at least 3 years. (This includes the 186, 189, 190 visas).

As an applicant you must:

Have an occupation on the relevant list of eligible skilled occupations
Have a positive skills assessment from the Australian assessing authority in your nominated occupation;
Be under 45 years of age at the time of application;
Have at least Competent English;
Have a points test result of 65 or higher;
Lodge an Expression of Interest (EOI). If this is successful, you will be invited to lodge a 491 visa application; and
Be invited to apply for the visa;

You must either be nominated by a state or territory government to apply for this visa (each state has its own occupation list) or sponsored by an Eligible relative living in a Regional area.

Subclass 190 Skilled Nominated Visa

This is a permanent resident visa, which allows highly skilled workers to live and work permanently in Australia.

As an applicant you must:

Have an occupation on the relevant list of eligible skilled occupations
Have a positive skills assessment from the Australian assessing authority in your nominated occupation.
Be under 45 years of age at the time of application;
Have at least Competent English;
Have a points test result of 65 or higher;
Be nominated by a state or territory government to apply for this visa (each state has its own separate occupation list)
Lodge an Expression of Interest (EOI). If this is successful, you will be invited to lodge a 491 visa application; and
Be invited to apply for the visa.

Subclass 500 Student Visa

For a student visa, an applicant must be enrolled in a course of study that is registered on the Commonwealth Register of Institutions and courses for Overseas for Overseas Students (CRICOS). If you are applying from outside Australia, you must include a Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) for each intended course of study with your visa application. I can assist you in searching for an appropriate course. At the time of this visa application, you and your family members must have and maintain adequate health insurance, Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC), for the period of intended stay in Australia.

For those who is under 18 years of age and intend to apply for a student visa, you must have adequate welfare arrangements in place while you are in Australia.

You might be required to provide evidence of English language proficiency while the visa application being processed unless exempt.

In addition, a primary applicant need to have access to sufficient funds to cover travel expenses, living costs and expenses, tuition fees as well as costs required for any dependents included in the application. Current standard of annual living costs for those who intends to stay in Australia for a period of 12 months or more is AUD 21,041, and AUD 7,362 for a spouse or de facto partner, and AUD 3,152 for a dependent child. The accurate amount of financial support will be calculated case by case as per the requirement prescribed by the Department of Home Affairs.

With this visa, you can work up to 40 hours every 2-week period during your course of study or training is in session, and for your initial visa only commence work once your course has commenced. If your student visa granted in relation to a masters degree by research or doctoral degree, you can work with no restriction after course commencement.

Subclass 187 Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme Visa

This visa is a permanent visa. This visa applies where you have been nominated for permanent residence under this visa by an Australian employer to work in a regional area in Australia in an occupation on either the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List or Regional Occupation list of eligible skilled occupations.

You must be nominated by your employer.
You must have worked for your employer full-time for at least 3 years on the Subclass 482 visa.
You must be under the age of 45 at the time of application.
You must meet English language requirements.
You must meet the required skills and qualification requirements.
You must have at least five years of full-time experience in your nominated occupation if you do not have the formal qualifications required for the occupation.

Subclass 494 Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) visa

The new subclass 494 visa came into effect in 16 November 2019, aimed at encouraging migrants to commit to working and residing in designated regional areas in Australia. The subclass 494 visa is a provisional 5-year visa. There is a pathway to permanent residence under the Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional) visa (subclass 191), after you have lived, worked and studied in a designated regional area for at least 3 years on the 494 visa. You must also have a taxable income at or above a specific income threshold for at least three years to apply for the Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional) visa (subclass 191) (https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/what-we-do/skilled-migration-program/skilled-visa-newsletters/september-2019).

The subclass 494 visa is a regional employer sponsored visa that will involve three stages including: 1) Sponsorship by an Australian Employer; 2) Nomination of an eligible occupation on the designated list; and 3) Visa application.

The position must be located in a designated regional area of Australia;
The occupation must be on the relevant occupation list or the Labour Agreement;
The position must be genuine; and
The position must be full-time.

As for 494 visa applicants, an applicant must:

Be under 45 years of age at time of application;
Hold a successful skills assessment assessment from the Australian assessing authority in your nominated occupation at time of application;
Have a genuine intention to perform the occupation;
Have at least three years full-time relevant work experience in the nominated occupation or a related field at the same level of skill;
Have Competent English skills at the time of application; and
Meet the health and character requirements of the visa.

The Government visa costs are AUD 4,045 for the main applicant and AUD 2,025 for each family member 18 years and over, and AUD 1,010 for each family member under 18 years old.

Subclass 186 Employer Nomination Scheme visa

This visa applies where you have been nominated for permanent residence under this visa by an Australian employer to work in Australia in an occupation on the relevant list of eligible skilled occupations.

The subclass 186 visa will be applicable to applicant’s seeking employment in Australia and applying for permanent residence as follows:

You must be under the age of 45 at the time of application
You must meet English language requirements
You must meet the required skills and qualification requirements.
You must have at least three years of full-time experience in your nominated occupation.

Generally, you will be required to work for your sponsoring employer for 3 years on the Subclass 482 Temporary Skill Shortage Visa before being sponsored for permanent residence under the subclass 186 visa.

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