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Labour Market Testing Introduced for 457 Visa Application

Labour Market Testing Introduced for 457 Visa Application

From 23 November 2013, employers in Australia who are keen to sponsor for 457 visas are required to meet the requirements of the newly introduced Labour Market Testing (LMT) in order to employ workers from overseas.

This aims to ensure that the subclass 457 visa program will be used by businesses only when there is no suitable candidate that is available in the local labour market to fill a job vacancy.

What is a 457 Visa?

A 457 visa is a temporary work visa that allows employers to sponsor overseas skilled workers to work in Australia up to four years. A 457 visa holder is allowed to bring his/her family to work or study in Australia and travel in and out of Australia as often as they want.

Who consists of the local labour market?

Australian Citizens and Australian Permanent Residents (PR).

How will the Labour Market Testing be Conducted?

If required, Australian employers must provide evidence of testing the local labour market first through advertising and other recruitment efforts before lodging sponsorship for an overseas worker.

The sponsoring employer must:

  • Provide information about where those advertisements/recruitment activities took place, the dates they occurred and the geographic target audience of the advertising/recruitment efforts
  • Provide information about the outcome of those activities
  • Provide the reasons why no local candidate is qualified for the nominated occupation
  • Provide meet all requirements of the LMT in the twelve month period prior to lodging the sponsorship

Use of company websites and social media (such as Facebook) to advertise a job vacancy is acceptable while paid advertising is not required.

Affected Occupations and Exemptions

The following occupations are affected:

  • Engineers
  • Nurses
  • Some trade occupations
  • Some technical occupations

There are however exemptions for the above occupations. Click here to view complete list of occupations affected and exemptions to LMT.

Summary:

The impact of of Labour Market Testing is minimal especially if you are from the Asia-Pacific region. But if your sponsoring employer does not fall to any exemptions to the LMT, additional requirements must be met that may delay the approval of your 457 visa application.

If you have further questions concerning your Australian visa application or plans in migrating to Australia, please contact us for a professional consultation schedule.

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Act Fast! Engineers and IT Professionals

Act Fast! Engineers and IT Professionals

Statistics released by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) indicate that quotas (Occupation Ceiling) for Engineers and IT Professionals are being filled up despite Australia’s new fiscal year having just began on 1st July.

DIAC has therefore announced that remaining places will be allocated on a ‘pro-rata basis” for the rest of the program year meaning that only a few places will be allocated each month in the highest demand occupations to make them last for the rest of the year.

Below are six occupations presently affected:

  • ICT Business and Systems Analysts (67% filled)
  • Chemical and Materials Engineers (50% filled)
  • Electronics Engineers (39% filled)
  • Telecommunications Engineering Professionals (38% filled)
  • Other Engineering Professionals (36% filled)
  • Software and Applications Programmers (28% filled)
What is an Occupation Ceiling?

The Occupational Ceiling is a quota set by the Australian government each program year (which runs from 1 July to 30 June) for General Skilled Migration program. Once an occupation reached its ceiling, no further invitation to apply will be issued in that occupation until the beginning of the next program year. An invitation to apply (ITA) is a requirement obtained from the SkillSelect system to qualify for skilled migration.

Engineers

After just 3 invitation rounds started 1st July 2013, 11% of engineering places are filled:

ANZSCO

TITLE

CEILING

% FILLED

2331

Chemical and Materials Engineers

360

50%

2332

Civil Engineering Professionals

2280

7%

2333

Electrical Engineers

1500

3%

2334

Electronics Engineers

420

39%

2335

Industrial, Mechanical and Production Engineers

2040

8%

2336

Mining Engineers

780

3%

2339

Other Engineering Professionals

300

36%

 

Engineering Overall

7680

11%

IT Professionals

On the other hand, 23% of IT professional places have been filled (As of 15 August 2013):

ANZSCO

TITLE

CEILING

% FILLED

2611

ICT Business and Systems Analysts

1380

67%

2612

Multimedia Specialists and Web Developers

720

0%

2613

Software and Applications Programmers

4800

28%

2621

Database and Systems Administrators, and ICT Security Specialists

1920

4%

2631

Computer Network Professionals

1800

6%

2632

ICT Support and Test Engineers

300

0%

2633

Telecommunications Engineering Professionals

300

38%

 

IT Overall

11220

23%

Affected Visas

All visas under the General Skilled Migration program are subject to occupational ceilings, including:

  • Skilled-Independent (subclass 189): a permanent visa which does not require sponsorship by a State/Territory Government or Relative
  • Skilled-Sponsored (subclass 190):a permanent visa which requires sponsorship by a State/Territory Government
  • Skilled-Regional Provisional (subclass 489):a four year provisional visa which requires sponsorship by either a State/Territory Government or Relative living in a Designated Area

If the occupational ceiling has been reached for your nominated occupation, you may apply for employer sponsored visas such as:

  • Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS):a permanent visa sponsored by an employer
  • Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS):a permanent visa requiring a job offer in a regional area
  • Temporary Work (Skilled) (subclass 457):a four year temporary visa sponsored by an employer
Immigration Advice

If you are concerned that your nominated occupation is affected, you may contact us at +65 6299 0245 to discuss your concerns on your migration to Australia plans. NTRUST has substantial experience in handling permanent residence and work visa applications for Engineers and IT professionals.

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1 July 2013 Australia Immigration Changes Summary

1 July 2013 Australia Immigration Changes Summary

On 1st July 2013, the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) released a number of changes.

Below is the summary:

1. New fees and charges

Additional Applicant Charge: for applications which include dependent family members such as spouses and children.

Nearly all the subclasses are affected. The main ones that may be relevant to you are:

  • Student Visa
  • 485 Temporary Graduate
  • General Skilled Migration (189, 190, 489)
  • 457 Temporary Work (Skilled)
  • ENS/RSMS (186/187)
  • Partner Migration (Onshore 820)
  • Partner Migration (Offshore 309/300)
  • 188 Business Innovation & Investment

Subsequent Temporary Application Charge: additional fees for certain visa applications lodged from within in Australia

Non-Internet Application Charge: additional fees where a visa application is lodged in paper format and there is an online lodgment option

Reference: http://www.immi.gov.au/fees-charges/visa-pricing-table.htm

2. Updates in the Skilled Occupation List (SOL)

The following are the five occupations which were removed from the SOL:

  1. Hospital Pharmacist
  2. Retail Pharmacist
  3. Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (Avionics)
  4. Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (Mechanical)
  5. Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (Structures)

3. Paper application for 457 visa not any more accepted

All 457 visa applications (including nominations and sponsorships) can now only be lodged online through DIAC’s lodgement system.

Feel free to call us at +65 6299 0245 for Australia immigration advice or complete our free migration assessment if you want to find out your likely eligibility for Skilled Migration.

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Australia Named World’s ‘Happiest Nation’ – Again

Australia Named World’s ‘Happiest Nation’ – Again

For the third year running, Australia has been declared as the world’s happiest nation. The report is based from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Better Life Index 11 criteria which include income levels, education, health and work-life balance.

The happiness of Australians is considered greater than Sweden and Canada, countries also known for high standards of living. Norway and Switzerland rounded up the top five while United States stood at sixth position followed by Denmark, the Netherlands, Iceland, and the United Kingdom.

Survey participants said they encounter more positive experiences daily, such as good life, pride in accomplishment and enjoyment without being stressed.

More than 73% of Australia’s 23 million people aged 15 to 64 are employed, which is above the OECD’s 66% average.

Life expectancy at birth is also higher, at almost 82 years, 2 years more than the average.

A Strong Economy

Australia’s economy of the natural resource-rich nation has been boosted by strong demand from China and many countries in Asia. Its strong financial sector on the other hand has helped the country to remain stable during the global downturn.

The Australian dollar, presently trading close to 30-year highs is reflecting the strength of the country’s economy.

“Australia performs exceptionally well in measures of well-being, as shown by the fact that it ranks among the top countries in a large number of topics in the Better Life Index,” stated on the OECD website.

Know the procedures in applying for permanent residency in Australia by calling us at +65 62990245 or register for our upcoming seminar. If you have plans to migrate to Australia, our consultants are on the best position to provide you with the best advice on how to take your application forward.

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NTRUST Celebrates 10 Years Of Australia Immigration Service

NTRUST Celebrates 10 Years Of Australia Immigration Service

NTRUST (Singapore) Pte Ltd, the leading registered Australia migration agency in Singapore celebrates its 10-year anniversary this month of April. Established in 2003, the company has helped thousands of individuals and families in immigrating to Australia.

What makes a great migration agency?

“Trustworthiness taking up every case we come across, glossing over details.”

Immigration pieces of advice are given by people. Even the most experienced of registered migration agents cannot compensate for irresponsible and bad advice. That is why the NTRUST management takes as much care selecting registered migration agents and documentation specialists as you do choosing whom you work with.

Our philosophy is to do it right, do it once. This way, instead of taking all free or offering highly discounted professional fees, our experienced consultants take time to listen, contemplate and offer advice as it stands. Whether you’ll qualify or not, you can be assured of upfront, honest advice and strategies.

We don’t just provide agency services – we inspect the registered migration agents. In addition to regular quality checks by our management team, all document submissions are regularly double checked by a senior documentation specialist. Both must be 100% satisfied with the quality of the progress before the next stage can proceed.

You will have direct communication and access to all registered migration agents and documentation specialists, as do your entirely family because we want everybody to be happy with the immigration process.

And once you’ve been successfully grated the visa, we’re not out of the picture. If you need our help with job placements, property acquisition or school placement advice, we’ll be there. We do everything in our power to preserve the trust you have in us.

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