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In this week's edition, DOA's limited
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policy release for the 191 visa,
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Victoria closes for new ROIs, the annual
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JSA labor market report for migrants,
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what can we expect from a new Labor
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government, and an update on processing
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times. Hi, I'm KL Conrad and welcome to
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the weekly edition of Australian
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Immigration News. On this channel, we
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cover the important news and changes
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concerning migration law and policies so
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you can make informed decisions. This
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program is brought to you by Australian
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Immigration Law Services where we have
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been guiding people to obtain their visa
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dreams for the last 26 years.
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The Department of Home Affairs after
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nearly six years has finally issued some
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policy advice regarding condition 8579
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of the 491 and 494 visas as well as the
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191 PR application pathway under the
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regional stream. Last Friday, the
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Migration Institute of Australia
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released this policy advice from DOA
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which has been widely circulated as
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breaking news. While it is notable that
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the DOA has provided some policy, this
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information was actually available in
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late 2019 when the regulations for the
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491 and 494 and 191 visas were
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published. The MIA website states the
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following. The department has confirmed
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that the key requirements for the
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subclass 191 visa is that applicants
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must have complied with visa condition
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8579 during their time in Australia. The
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visa does not require applicants to have
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resided in Australia for a specific
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period. It goes on further concerning
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condition 8579 which is applicable to
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all 491 and 494 visa holders and it
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states condition 8579 requires subclass
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491 and subclass 494 visa holders to
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live, work and study only in a
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designated regional area while they are
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in Australia. Despite nearly six years
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passing, the department still hasn't
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created a policy document for the
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processing of the 191 visa. While other
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visas have policy instructions known as
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the procedural advice guidelines for
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which we maintain an expensive
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subscription to provide accurate advice.
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The 191 visa policy is simply not there.
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However, since November 2019, it became
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evident that for the 191 visa in the
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regional stream, there is no residency
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requirement and condition
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8579 only applies to visa holders while
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they are residing in Australia. Most
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viewers familiar with our channel will
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be aware that we have explained this for
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a long time. Migration professionals
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claiming this is breaking news should
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rethink their stance. Those advisers
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struggling to understand basic
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legislation might consider leaving the
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profession. More about this in our
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readers comments later in the
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video. Victoria's 2024 to 25 state
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nomination skilled visa program closed
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to new registration of interest this
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week. The announcement on their website
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stated, "The number of ROIs received has
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exceeded the 5,000 places allocated to
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Victoria by the Australian government
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for the 2024 to 2025 program year. The
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Victorian government will continue to
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assess submitted ROIs for any remaining
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nomination places within the current
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program year. Meanwhile, the New South
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Wales government is still issuing
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invitations for the 190 visa this week.
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For example, one of our offshore clients
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received a 190 invitation with 95 points
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for a software
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engineer. Jobs and Skills Australia
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released its annual report on the
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Australian labor market for migrants.
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This publication provides valuable
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information for recent migrants to
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Australia and those interested in
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working in Australia on temporary or
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permanent visas as well as organizations
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supporting migrants and potential visa
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applicants. The report shows that the
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Australian Capital Territory remains a
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leader in migrant employment with 61.6%
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6% employment in selected major
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occupation groups, managers,
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professionals, and technicians and trade
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workers, followed by Victoria at 55% and
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New South Wales at
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54.2%. The publication also provides
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data on growing and shrinking employment
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sectors. Unsurprisingly, health care and
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social assistance, followed by education
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and training, dominate the field. It is
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concerning however to see the decline in
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manufacturing and professional
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scientific and technical
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services. As this video was filmed on
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Friday night, May the 2nd, by the time
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most of you watch this, the Labor
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government is likely to be in office
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once again. So, what does this mean for
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Australia's migration approach over the
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next 3 years? If by some miracle Peter
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Dutton wins, I'll have to make a new
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summary, but that seems unlikely.
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Starting in July, Australia will have
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the world's highest student visa
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application charge under Labor
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governments with a $2,000 fee set to
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take effect. The government will
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continue to try and reduce the number of
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incoming students unless this higher
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increase fees deters that for them. This
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policy will remain in effect until the
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net overseas migration numbers start to
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drop. However, if a recession looms, the
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policies might reverse, much like they
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did when they were in power during the
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global financial crisis when they could
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not get enough students fast enough.
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Labour will continue their plans and
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introduce a new points test under the
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migration strategy. My guess it will be
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announced by July and come into effect
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by July 2026 or perhaps by the year end
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if the legislation is all sorted
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out. And now some updated visa
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processing times have been released.
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I'll just mention the 50% times. And you
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can see next to them on the table the
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90% times. The 309 visa at 13 months.
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The 820 visa at 15 months. The 191 visa
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at 5 months. The 189 visa at 4 months.
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The 190 visa at 18 months. The 491 visa
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at a staggering 20 months. The 186
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direct entry at 8 months. the transition
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stream at 13 months and the labor
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agreement stream at 6 months. For the
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482 visa, the specialist stream is 8
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days, the core stream is at 43 days, and
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the labor agreement stream is at 44
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days. And now it's time for one of our
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readers comments, and this one comes
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from Freakitude II. Dear Carl, in one of
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your upcoming videos, can you cover the
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latest MIA clarification regarding no
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restriction on offshore residency for
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the
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4912191? It was the question that
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prompted me to cover that MIA notice
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earlier in tonight's edition, and it is
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a reminder of the importance of giving
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accurate advice. I have to wonder how
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many people have been told over the
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years, "No, you can't travel or you have
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to stay in Australia for 3 years to get
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your PR." How many people have had to
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make sacrifices to meet such incorrect
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advice? And why did the MIA have to post
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that notice and ask the department to
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clarify information that didn't really
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need any clarification at all? This
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whole 191 misinformation saga has cost
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so many people so much and I hope we
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never see a reoccurrence for future new
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visas. Well, it's going to be an
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interesting new start from Monday with
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new ministers waiting to make a
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difference. Let's see who gets the
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Department of Home Affairs and the
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Immigration Department's portfolios and
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more on that for next week edition.
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Remember, if you need help, we are
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always here. You can book a consultation
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online, but if you're in a hurry, you
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can just pick up the phone. As always,
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take care out there and I'll see you
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next time. So, bye for now.
