Author: Esther Thurbin

Medical Practitioners and PR- the final hurdle.

If you are a medical practitioner from overseas, it is very likely that your pathway to Australia was a long and complex one.  Now that you are here, your skills are highly sought after, particularly in regional areas. How can you make the jump from a temporary visa to a permanent visa?

As a medical practitioner, you may well have a number of options, depending on whether your occupation is on the Medium to Long Term Skills Shortage List (MLTSSL), the Short Term Skilled Occupations List (STSOL) or the Regional Occupations List (ROL).

Points Tested Visas

The Skilled Independent subclass 189 visa is open to those with an occupation on the MLTSSL.

The Skilled Nominated subclass 190 visa is open to those with an occupation on the MLTSSL or STSOL and who have been nominated by an Australian State or Territory.

Each Australian State and Territory has its own list of occupations on the MLTSSL and STSOL that it will nominate for the subclass 190 visa and each State or Territory also has its own requirements for nomination. For example, some States or Territories may require you to have been living and working in that State or Territory for a certain period of time if you are applying from inside Australia or might require a certain number of years of work experience in your occupation or a high level of English language ability. It is very important to check that you can meet those requirements.

There is one catch with the points tested visas and it is one that regularly catches medical practitioners out. The skills assessment. For most medical practitioners, your registration is your skills assessment, however for the points tested visas, limited or provisional or registration is not sufficient. General, Specialist or Conditional Specialist registration is required.

Employer Nominated permanent residence – Employer Nomination Scheme subclass 186 visa

Given the incredibly low numbers of invitations per month for the subclass 189 visa, this may be the path that most medical practitioners now follow. This also has its traps for the unwary!

There are three “streams” to Employer Sponsored Permanent Residence: The Direct Entry Stream, the Temporary Residence Transition Stream and the Labour Agreement Stream.

The Labour Agreement Stream is where specific industries have agreed exemptions to the normal rules and regulations (for example, English language ability etc.) with the Department of Home Affairs due to specific skills shortages in certain occupations.

The new Designated Area Migration Schemes are a variation on this theme – employers in certain areas of Australia have been able to nominate a broader range of occupations and have been granted other exemptions because they have demonstrated that they have real difficulty in attracting skilled employees to those areas.

The Direct Entry Stream is available to those medical practitioners who have an occupation on the MLTSSL. You don’t need to have worked for your employer for a specified time before you can be nominated for this visa. It does however have a few drawbacks:

• There must be a direct employment relationship between the visa applicant and the nominator. An Independent Contractor arrangement is not sufficient for the Direct Entry Stream.
• You can apply with limited registration but this is likely to affect your ability to get a Medicare Provider Number. To find out more about this, talk to your relevant Rural Health Workforce: https://www.health.gov.au/contacts/rural-health-workforce-australia-rhwa

The Temporary Residence Transition Stream is generally available for employees who have worked for their nominating employer on a subclass 457 or TSS visa for the required length of time (either 2 or three years, depending on when the visa was granted) and whose employer want to continue to employ them. Many medical practitioners use this pathway. It has a few advantages:

• There is no need for a direct employment relationship between the visa applicant and the nominator. An ongoing Independent Contractor arrangement is sufficient for the Temporary Residence Transition Stream.
• You can apply with limited registration but this is likely to affect your ability to get a Medicare Provider Number. To find out more about this, talk to your relevant Rural Health Workforce: https://www.health.gov.au/contacts/rural-health-workforce-australia-rhwa. Most medical practitioners use their time on their subclass 457 or TSS visa to move through to General or Specialist registration which helps with this issue. Again, your relevant Rural Health Workforce is best placed to guide you through that: : https://www.health.gov.au/contacts/rural-health-workforce-australia-rhwa

There are also specific key exemptions that medical practitioners can take advantage of.

1. Work for the same employer exemption – There is no requirement for you to have worked for your nominating employer for either two or three years before you can be nominated in the Temporary Residence Transition Stream. Although you must be nominated by your current subclass 457 or TSS sponsor, as long as you have worked in your nominated occupation for the required two or three years, whether or not you have worked for your current sponsor for two or three years is irrelevant. Essentially the two or three year requirement becomes a requirement to have worked in your nominated occupation while holding a subclass 457/ TSS visa for the two or three years, not to have worked for your nominating employer for that period.
2. Age exemption – Regional Australia – The main applicant for a skilled visa generally has to be under 45. If you are a medical practitioner who has practiced in Australia for at least 3 years while holding a subclass 457 or TSS visa and at least 2 of those three years were spent working in “Regional” Australia, then the age limit doesn’t apply to you.
3. Age exemption – Fair Work High Income Threshold – Another way around the age limit is to show that you have worked in your nominated occupation in Australia for at least three years while holding a subclass 457 or TSS visa and that during each of those three years you earned at least the Fair Work High Income Threshold amount (currently $148,700 for the year 01/07/2016 to 30/06/2020, details for previous years can be found here: https://www.fairwork.gov.au/library/k600486_high-income-threshold-amounts#

New “Regional” Visas – Subclass 491 Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) Visa and the subclass 494 Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) visa

From 16/11/2019, you can no longer apply for the subclass 489 Skilled Regional (Provisional) visa and the Direct Entry Stream of the subclass 187 Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme Visas (certain transitional provisions are in place to allow people holding subclass 457/ TSS visas to transition to permanent residence via the Temporary Residence Transition Stream of the subclass 187 visa).

The Subclass 491 visa is a points tested visa which replaces the subclass 489 visa. The subclass 484 visa is an employer nominated visa. Both visas are stepping stones to permanent residence – the subclass 191 visa.

The subclass 491 visa has two steams. The first is the State/ Territory Nominated Stream the second is the Family Sponsored Stream. Our blog on this visa will give you more information about the visa:  https://visaavis.com.au/2019/11/21/the-subclass-491-skilled-work-regional-provisional-visa/.

The subclass 491 visa has the same drawbacks as the other points tested visas, namely that you must be under 45 and limited or provisional or registration is not sufficient. General, Specialist or Conditional Specialist registration is required.

The Subclass 494 visa will be very familiar to you from your experience of the subclass 457/ TSS process. Our blog about the visa is here:  https://visaavis.com.au/2019/11/21/the-subclass-494-skilled-work-regional-provisional-visa/.

The positive news is that although you must generally be under 45 to apply for the visa, the age exemptions set out above (the “Regional Australia” and the “Fair Work High Income Threshold” exemptions) apply to this visa. If you can meet those requirements, you can apply for a subclass 494 visa after you are 45.

At this early stage, it isn’t clear from the Department of Home Affairs’ policy whether or not  limited or provisional registration is sufficient to meet the skills assessment requirements for this visa. The Migration Institute of Australia is following this up with the Department of Home Affairs and we’ll update this blog as soon as we have an answer.

Check your eligibility first!

As always, this blog is a very general overview and doesn’t cover all the nitty gritty of the visas and exemptions discussed requirements for these visas.

If you are thinking about handling your own visa application, it’s definitely worth getting a migration professional to review your documentation first to make sure that you can tick all the Department’s boxes.

Getting an application refused because you either didn’t meet the requirements or didn’t provide enough evidence to demonstrate that you met the requirements is a very expensive mistake to make and is one that can have consequences for your visa options going forward!

Contact us to find out more:

E-mail esther@visaavis.com.au

Call 0477711778

Visa Avis – working with you on your. Australian journey.

Esther Thurbin

MA Hons (Oxon) MMIA

MARN 1461654

The subclass 491 Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa

Why is it such good news?

What does this visa do?

This new visa is a regional, skilled “points” tested skilled visa which provides a pathway to permanent residence.
If you are granted the visa, it lasts for 5 years. After 3 years of living and working in a “Designated Regional Area”, you can apply for a permanent residence visa – the subclass 191 visa.

The subclass 491 visa is a points tested skilled visa, so the process is the same as the other points tested skilled visas.

1. Submit an Expression of Interest (EOI);
2. Wait for an invitation to submit a visa application.

It is absolutely critical to be sure that you meet all the visa requirements and can back up the points you claim in your EOI with the appropriate evidence BEFORE you submit a points tested skilled visa application.

The Department of Home Affairs regularly refuses points tested applications because either the applicant hasn’t provided enough evidence to back up the points claimed or has awarded themselves points that they aren’t entitled to. It is a very expensive mistake to make and is one that can have consequences for your visa options going forward.

What are the basics?

There are two “streams” for this visa, the State or Territory Nominated stream and the Family Sponsored stream.
As an absolute minimum, before you can apply you will need the following:

• To be under 45;
• A skills assessment for an occupation on the relevant “list” for your application stream;
• Competent English;
• The required points (and the evidence to be able to demonstrate that you are entitled to the points that you are claiming);
• A valid Nomination from an Australian State or Territory government; OR
• A valid Nomination from a family sponsor (see below);
• Good health;
• Good character.

Which family members can sponsor?

A family sponsor:

• must have turned 18;
• must be an Australian citizen, an Australian permanent resident or an eligible New Zealand citizen;
• must be an Australian citizen, an Australian permanent resident or an eligible New Zealand citizen;
• must be related to the visa applicant OR, if the applicant’s spouse or defacto partner is included in the application, the sponsor can be related to the applicant’s spouse or de facto partner.

What does “related” mean?

“Related” means that the family sponsor must be the visa applicant’s (or if they are included  in the application, the visa applicant’s spouse or defacto partner’s):

• parent;
• child or step-child;
• brother, sister, adoptive brother, adoptive sister, step-brother or step-sister;
• aunt, uncle, adoptive aunt, adoptive uncle, step-aunt or step-uncle;
• nephew, niece, adoptive nephew, adoptive niece, step-nephew or step-niece;
• grandparent;
• first cousin.

The sponsor “sponsors” each member of the family unit included in the application. All members of the family unit have to meet the health and character requirements for the application to be successful.

How long is the visa granted for?

The visa is a temporary visa which allows the visa holder to travel to, enter and remain in Australia for a period of 5 years from the date of visa grant. There are no restrictions on the visa holder’s ability to travel within that 5 year period.

Do I need to be anywhere in particular when the visa is granted?

Applicants can be in Australia or overseas when the visa is granted, but not in immigration clearance.

If a second instalment of visa application charge is payable (where an additional applicant aged 18 and over has less than functional English), the second instalment must be paid before the visa can be granted.

Are there any conditions attached to this visa?

Definitely! Key conditions are:

• All visa holders must live, work and study in a Designated Regional Area. That means not just you as the primary applicant, but everyone else included in the application as well! Your partner and children will need to work, study and live in a Designated Regional Area too!
• You’ll need to inform the Department within 14 days if certain events occur. These include moving house, getting a new email address or phone number or a new passport. This isn‘t the complete list, the full one is set out in the visa conditions attached to the visa grant letter.

 

A word to the wise… it has been made very clear to us that the Department of Home Affairs and the ATO will be keeping a close eye on visa holders to make sure that they comply with their visa conditions.

Permanent residence?

When you can prove that you’ve lived and worked in a Designated Regional Area for at least 3 years and you’ve complied with all your visa conditions, you can apply for permanent residence. 

FYI, there are income requirements linked to the “work” side of the permanent residence requirement (currently a minimum taxable income per year of $53,900 is required), so it is important to make sure that you believe that you can meet that before you go further.

 

Check your eligibility first!

As always, this is a very general overview and doesn’t cover all the nitty gritty of the requirements for this visa.

If you are thinking about handling your own visa application, it’s definitely worth getting a migration professional to review your documentation first to make sure that you can claim the points that you think that you are entitled to.

As mentioned above, the Department of Home Affairs regularly refuses points tested applications because the applicant hasn’t provided enough evidence to back up the points claimed or has awarded themselves points that they aren’t entitled to.

It is a very expensive mistake to make and is one that can have consequences for your visa options going forward!

Contact is to find out more:

E-mail esther@visaavis.com.au

Call 0477711778

Visa Avis – working with you on your Australian journey.

Esther Thurbin

MA Hons (Oxon) MMIA

MARN 1461654

The subclass 494 Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) visa

Tell me more?

What does this visa do?

This new visa is a regional, employer nominated, skilled visa which provides a pathway to permanent residence.

 

If you are granted the visa, it lasts for 5 years. After 3 years of living and working for your nominating employer  in a “Designated Regional Area”, you can apply for a permanent residence visa – the subclass 191 visa

 

How does it work?

The subclass 494 visa is an employer nominated skilled visa, so the process is very similar to the subclass 482 (Temporary Skills Shortage) visa.

1. The nominating employer must become an approved sponsor (current subclass 457 or subclass 482 sponsoring employers can use their current approval for this new visa);
2. The nominating employer must submit a nomination application demonstrating (amongst other things):

a. the need for the role in the business;

 

b. that it can afford the proposed salary (the salary offered must be at the market rate for the occupation and it must be a minimum of $53,900);

 

c. that it has been unable to find a suitable Australian citizen or permanent resident for the role (Labour Market Testing); and

 

d. that it believes that the role will be available in the business for at least the next 5 years.

The employer must also pay the relevant Skilling Australians Fund Levy (currently $3000 where the business’ turnover is less than AUS$10 million and $5000 where it is AUS$10 million or above);

3. The visa applicant submits a visa application demonstrating that s/he has the relevant skills, qualifications and experience for the role.

BEFORE you submit a visa application, it is absolutely critical to be sure that:

you meet all the visa requirements; and that

you can demonstrate that you do with the appropriate evidence

Getting an application refused because you either didn’t meet the requirements or didn’t provide enough evidence to demonstrate that you met the requirements is a very expensive mistake to make and is one that can have consequences for your visa options going forward!

What are the basic visa eligibility requirements?

As an absolute minimum, before you can apply you will need the following:

• To be under 45;
• A skills assessment for an occupation that is on the “list” for this visa;
• Competent English;
• At least three years of full time, paid work experience in your nominated (or closely related) occupation (an equivalent number of years of part time work can also be used to meet this requirement);
• Good health;
• Good character.

How long is the visa granted for?

The visa is a temporary visa which allows the visa holder to travel to, enter and remain in Australia for a period of 5 years from the date of visa grant. There are no restrictions on the visa holder’s ability to travel within that 5 year period.

 

Do I need to be anywhere in particular when the visa is granted?

Applicants can be in Australia or overseas when the visa is granted, but not in immigration clearance.

If a second instalment of visa application charge is payable (where an additional applicant aged 18 and over has less than functional English), the second instalment must be paid before the visa can be granted.

Are there any conditions attached to this visa?

Definitely! Key conditions are:

• The primary applicant must only work in the nominated occupation for his/her nominating employer while s/he holds this visa. If the employment ceases, the visa holder has 90 days in which to find a new employer.
• All visa holders must live, work and study in a Designated Regional Area. That means not just you as the primary applicant, but everyone else included in the application as well! Your partner and children will need to work, study and live in a Designated Regional Area too!
• You’ll need to inform the Department within 14 days if certain events occur. These include moving house, getting a new email address or phone number or a new passport. This isn‘t the complete list, the full one is set out in the visa conditions attached to the visa grant letter.

Permanent residence?

When you can prove that you’ve lived and worked for your nominating employer in a Designated Regional Area for at least 3 years and you’ve complied with all your visa conditions, you can apply for permanent residence. 

 

The fantastic news is that at the permanent residence stage, you don’t need your employer to nominate you- you can apply independently! That’s a definite improvement on the subclass 186 Employer Nomination Scheme and subclass 187 Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme Temporary Residence Transition Stream pathways!

Points to note

A few words to the wise…

1. There are income requirements linked to the “work” side of the permanent residence requirement (currently a minimum taxable income per year of $53,900 is required), so it is important to make sure that you believe that you can meet that before you go further.
2. A change of employer will need a new nomination application and will also “re-set” the three year clock. (subject to very limited exceptions).
3. A change of occupation will not only require a new nomination application, but you will need a new skills assessment and work experience in that occupation because you will need to apply for a new visa. It will also “re-set” the three year clock.
4. It has been made very clear to us that the Department of Home Affairs and the ATO will be keeping a close eye on visa holders to make sure that they comply with their visa conditions.

Check your eligibility first!

As always, this is a very general overview and doesn’t cover all the nitty gritty of the requirements for this visa.

If you are thinking about handling your own visa application, it’s definitely worth getting a migration professional to review your documentation first to make sure that you can tick all the Department’s boxes.

 

As mentioned above, getting an application refused because you either didn’t meet the requirements or didn’t provide enough evidence to demonstrate that you met the requirements is a very expensive mistake to make and is one that can have consequences for your visa options going forward!

 

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Contact is to find out more:

E-mail esther@visaavis.com.au

Call 0477711778

Visa Avis – working with you on your. Australian journey.

Esther Thurbin

MA Hons (Oxon) MMIA

MARN 1461654

Unsure if you are Protected or “Grandfathered”?

Here’s the million-dollar question you need to answer.

Pathways to permanent residence from subclass 457 or subsequent TSS visa

There is still a lot of confusion out there regarding whether subclass 457 visa holders have a pathway to permanent residence. This blog aims to explain whether or not you might be one of the lucky protected or “grandfathered” visa holders.

 

The good news is that if your employer has complied with its obligations as a subclass 457 sponsor, the Government was actually pretty generous when it introduced the TSS visa.

A lot of people who currently hold a subclass 457 visa or TSS visa will find that their pathway to the permanent residence has been protected or “grandfathered”.

To work out whether or not you are protected or “grandfathered”, there is one million dollar question:

Do either of these scenarios apply to you?

You held a 457 visa on 18 April 2017 AND you still hold that visa or a subsequent 457/TSS visa/bridging visa

You applied for a 457 visa on or before 18 April 2017 AND that visa was granted?

If the answer to that question is yes, then your pathway to permanent residence has been protected – you are “grandfathered”.

What does being “protected” or “grandfathered” mean?

If you are “protected” or “grandfathered”, then the following special rules apply to you:

Your occupation does not need to be on any particular occupations list (or any list); and

You must be under 50 years at time of PR application rather than 45 (unless an exemption is available); and

You must have held the 457/TSS visa for at least TWO years rather than three.

To take advantage of this protection, you must lodge your PR application by March 2022

In another bonus, if you can answer “yes” to the million dollar question above, then your ability to access this protection isn’t dependent on you:

Continuing to hold the same subclass 457 visa that allows you to access these rules. That means that if you need to apply for a new TSS visa to meet the two years working for the same employer permanent residence eligibility requirement, then that new visa will still allow you to access the special rules.

Continuing to work for the same employer. That means that if you change employer, that change doesn’t stop you accessing the special rules. It will still “re-set” the two years working for the same employer permanent residence eligibility requirement, so you will need to work for that new employer for two years before potentially being eligible to apply for permanent residence.

Having said that, if you are considering a change of employer or role, it is a good idea to get advice on how that will affect your permanent residence pathway BEFORE you change jobs.

Although the Australian Government was relatively generous, there are some things that can affect your protected or “grandfathered” status.

A relatively common example is if your new employer nominates you in a different occupation. For example, you are currently employed as a carpenter, but your new employer nominates you as a cabinet maker because you have the qualifications and/ or work experience for both roles. That new nomination as a cabinet maker will prevent you from accessing these special rules. If in doubt, get advice BEFORE changing jobs!

 

If you would like more information please contact us!