Visa Newsletters

01st July 2006

July is a month containing a plethora of legislative changes! Our July Alert outlines some of the more significant changes which will impact on employer sponsored visas, working holiday visas, Australian­sponsored skilled visas and business owner's visa, and more. I hope you find the information contained in this Alert useful. Please do not hesitate to contact our office should you require further details of these changes.

All of the legislative changes discussed below have been enacted and will take effect from 1 July 2006.

DIMA Fees Increase ­ 1 July 2006

Most DIMA fees are indexed annually in line with the CPI. Visa application fees will increase by 2.7%, with the exceptions to Contributory Parent visas – where the second instalment of visa application charges will increase by 5.3%! For information on the new fees, please check the DIMA website:

DIMA Visa Charges

Interdependent (Same Sex) Partner inclusion – 457 visa As discussed previously, from 1 July 2006, interdependent partner and the dependent children of their interdependent partners are permitted to be included as secondary applicants. The provisions will apply to other categories of skilled migrants and students later – we will keep you posted.

(Tip: The removal of such an impediment will encourage more highly skilled professionals with interdependent partners to move and work in Australia. No doubt this will be an advantage for employers who are aware of this change and advise their prospective employees accordingly.)

Working Holiday (417) and Work and Holiday (462) Visas – New initiatives

The Migration Regulations have been amended to increase the amounts of time these visa holders are permitted to work and study. These changes will apply only to visas granted on or after 1 July 2006. Visa holders will be permitted to work for one employer for six months instead of 3 months; and study for four months instead of three months.

As the changes only apply to 417 and 462 visas granted on or after 1 July 2006, many existing 417/462 holders will continue to carry the old conditions. The following table will assist you in identifying the differences to avoid any inadvertent non­compliance of visa conditions:

New Work Condition 8547 ­ work up to 6 months
Old Work Condition 8108 ­ work up to 3 months
New Study Condition 8548 ­ study up to 4 months
Old Study Condition 8201 ­ study up to 3 months

From our previous Alerts, you would have noted that WHMs are now permitted to apply for a second visa if they have done seasonal harvest work in regional Australia. DIMA has announced that more than 2000 applications were received in the first six months of its introduction.

(Tip: The above again highlights that a significant pool of skilled workers is available for employers. Importantly, many WHMs come from highly skilled based countries and they are permitted to apply for a 457 visa during their stay in Australia.)

Skilled­Designated Area­Sponsored (SDAS) 139 visa – abolished

From 1 July 2006, no more applications can be made for a subclass 139 visa. This subclass has been replaced with a two­stage SDAS visa process – a subclass 496 SDAS (Provisional) visa, and then a 883 SDAS (Residence) visa.

These visas are not points tested. Details of the subclass 496 and 883 visas will be uploaded at our website and can be viewed by going to the Visa Information page at Skilled Visas

Should you have any urgent queries regarding the above changes, please contact our office.

Prescribed Minimum Salary Level (MSL) for Regional Australia – 457 visa

Serious concern have been raised about exploitation of visa holders in the Regional 457 Temporary Business Long Stay visa program, both in terms of low salaries and the number of hours visa holders are required to work. To address these concerns, the Government has decided to specify:

• Minimum Salary Levels (MSL) for Regional Australia;
• that all MSL must be calculated based on a 38 hour week;
• that salary packaged items are to be excluded.

From 1 July 2006, gazetted MSL will be as follows:

• Non­regional, Non ICT occupations: $41,850
• Non­regional, ICT occupations: $57,300
• Regional, Non­ICT occupations: $37,665
• Regional, ICT occupations: $51,570

State Sponsored Business Owner – 163 and 892 Visas

From 1 July 2006, the Migration Regulations have been amended to:

• introduce a definition of 'Senior Manager' for subclass 163 (State sponsored Business owner provisional) visa, to clarify the requisite qualifications and experience that an applicant would need to possess to meet the Australian standards for a senior manager; and
  
• introduce a provision for subclass 892 (State sponsored Business Owner) visa under which the usual annual turnover requirement need not be met where an appropriate regional authority has determined that exceptional circumstances exist for grant of the visa to certain applicants who reside and operate a business in a specified regional area or a low population growth metropolitan area.

The above amendments are aimed to remove uncertainties under the past provisions. Details of the relevant changes will be uploaded on our website shortly at Provisional Business Visas and Permanent Business Visas

Other Changes

MODL points
From 1 July 2006, points from MODL to be enforced at the time of application OR the time of assessment – whichever is more favourable to the applicant. This is great news for Skilled visa applicants and will reduce uncertainties that existed in the past.

TRA – Fee Structure Changes
From 1 July 2006, TRA will implement a standard international application fee of $300. The $500 for priority assessments will no longer apply. TRA will only provide priority processing for occupations in
the MODL, which has been quoted to be around 10 working days.

For assessment criteria by TRA, please go to: TRA Assessments

ACS – Changes to Assessment Guidelines
From 3 July 2006, the ACS have changed the Skills Assessment Guidelines. These changes only affect applications for those who want to apply based on ACS professional membership or Group C which applies to Recent Graduates. For details visit the ACS website: ACS Skill Assessment Guidelines

IELTS Test

Applicants who are required to sit for IELTS are advised to book their tests as early as possible, as long queues are being experienced at all test centres as a result of the introduction of the new requirement since November 2005. Applicants must ensure that they take their passports to the tests for ID purpose.