The Australian Government has decided to temporarily suspend the acceptance of certain General Skilled Migration (GSM) visa applications. This temporary measure will begin on 8 May 2010 and is expected to remain in effect until the end of 30 June 2010.

This Temporary suspension is only on the visa applications that are to be lodged outside Australia (Offshore applications).

• Subclass 175 – Skilled Independent (Migrant) visa
• Subclass 176 – Skilled Sponsored (Migrant) visa
• Subclass 475 – Skilled Regional Sponsored (Provisional) visa.

The suspension has resulted due to the Pending GSM visa applications for the current assessment year crossed the available supply. This will also facilitate the transition from the current SOL to the New Proposed SOL which was released on 17th May 2010 to meet the current needs of Australian Labour market.

This suspension will not apply on the Dependant visas that are lodged for the Subclasses 175/176/475. Only Paper based applications will be accepted as the online system is deactivated due to the Temporary suspension of GSM offshore Visa applications.

All the offshore applications lodged or received at our office on or after 8th May 2010 will be considered invalid and the fee along with the applications will be returned back to the applicant.

Minister’s Announcement of New Skilled Occupations List – 17th May 2010.

The New Skilled occupations list announced by the Minister will replace the current occupations list from 1st July 2010. The New SOL is of 180 skilled occupations including all Major IT professionals, Engineers, Medical Professionals & Teachers. The New SOL announced is applicable only for the GSM visas that are lodged under Skilled Independent migration program. The Employer Nominated visas still have a broad list of occupations of about 400 occupations.

It is also decided that the SOL will be reviewed annually to meet the Australian Labour Market requirements to have a successful skilled Migration programme.

As the Current changes in SOL will have a Major effect on the International Students in Australia there are few arrangements made to control the same.

Overseas Students who held or hold student visas (572/573/574) before 8th May 2010 will still be eligible to file the Temporary Graduate Visa 485 for an occupation that is in the current and Old SOL anticipating to lodge a visa for permanent residency by end of 2012.

Students who hold 485 visas and anticipating lodging for a permanent residency after 1st July 2010 will have to choose an occupation as per the new SOL and have a relevant education from Australia.

Options if your occupation is not listed in the New SOL:

Applicants who do not qualify as per the New SOL will have other options like Employer Nomination, Regional Employer Nomination or State /Territory Migration.

1) Employer Nomination scheme: You have an Employer who is ready to sponsor you for a Permanent residency or Long stay in Australia to work. The Occupations list is very wide and is about 400 occupations and has all of them that are listed in current and old SOL.

2) Regional sponsored Migration scheme: You have an Employer from regional Australia who is ready to sponsor you for a Permanent residency or long stay in Regional Areas to work. The Occupations list is very wide and is about 400 occupations and has all of them that are listed in current and old SOL.

3) State/Territory Migration: Applicants who do not have an employer to sponsor or do not have an occupation listed in the New SOL can also migrate to Australia through a State Migration Plan which is approved by the Minister. Every state in Australia will have their own Occupations Demand list as per the current Labour Market. If you have your occupation listed in their demand list, you are very much eligible to file your visa application under this category. Currently, none of the states have released their state migration plan and is expected on or after 1st July 2010.

I received your contact from Priscilla who is currently handling my case for Australia Immigration. 

My application is complete and filed with Immigration authorities on 29th Jan 2010.

I would like to take this opportunity to commend Priscilla on the good work she has done in filing my papers. Her approach is very very thorough, professional and prompt. This is exactly what i would look for as a client and i really appreciate her commitment to the case.

 I hope you have more people like her in your organization so you continue to offer best services to clients.

 Best Wishes

-Sidharth

The Migration Advisory Committee’s recommendations aim to maintain the Tier 1 skilled migration route to attract the ‘”brightest and best” to come to the UK to work.

The main UK immigration recommendations include:

• People with an undergraduate degree as their highest qualification should be allowed in under Tier 1 general route, subject to high previous earnings;
• The points available under the Tier 1 general route are updated to ensure the most highly skilled immigrants are admitted;
• The initial leave to remain entitlement under the Tier 1 general route is reduced from three to two years, with a three year extension subject to evidence that the individual is in highly skilled employment.

Chair of the Migration Advisory Committee, Professor David Metcalf, said the Tier 1 UK Visa was an important immigration route for the UK economy which should be maintained and improved.
 
“The recommendations that we have made will ensure that the system is robust enough to deal with the changing global economy and that the UK remains attractive for foreign investment,” he said.

The UK government’s objective for Tier 1 is to attract and retain immigrants who will increase the skills and knowledge of the UK workforce, while maintaining labour market flexibility.
 
To achieve this, the Migration Advisory Committee recommends that all four routes of Tier 1, general, post-study work, entrepreneur and investor, are retained.

=====================================

Hi Rahul, Kanchan

Just few minutes back….. I  got  my VISA stamped… received all the documents and stamped passport.

Thanks a tone for all your help and support.

Warm regards

AJ

=====================================

 Dear Kanchan/Suresh,

 Good News…

 Got the VISA today…

 Thanks a lot for your guidance

 I will send the scanned copy by Tuesday.

 Regards,

 SK

Please find the attachment for the Visa scan copy. 

It’s been really a very good experience with y-axis.

I have been started interacting with Y-Axis to move forward, and consultancy/guidance given by Pooja and Sridhar was really beyond Professional level. 

I am very much satisfied & happy till the moment and expecting same level of commitment from JSS team. 

Regards,

AK

My previous experience with visa consultant was not good enough.

But with you and Y-Axis the procedure is really well supportive. Special thanks to you, Pooja.
Regards
N.Patel

Legislation changes are being pursued to increase the basic rate of living costs under the Migration Regulations from the previous rate of $12 000 per year. Subject to approval by the Governor-General, it is proposed that these changes will come into effect from 1 January 2010.

Under the proposed new regulations, prospective Student visa applicants and their family members must have access to the following funds to meet the living costs requirements:

$18 000 per year for the main student
$6300 per year for the student’s partner
$3600 per year for the student’s first child
$2700 per year for every other child; and where required

The Visa applicant must also be able to demonstrate that the funds they are relying upon to meet the costs of studying in Australia will be genuinely available to them during their stay in Australia.

The governments rational for increasing the cost of living threshold is down to the fact that the living cost requirement of $12 000 per year was first introduced in 2001. While this amount was an immigration integrity measure and was not intended to be indicative of the real cost of living in Australia, concerns have been expressed that this figure did not adequately prepare students for the realities of moving to Australia to study. By increasing the living costs requirement students will be better prepared to live and study in Australia.

The support that is currently available in Australia to domestic students and estimates made by Australian Education International (AEI), suggest $18 000 per year more accurately reflects the real costs of living in Australia. However, international students are encouraged to undertake their own research into the cost of living in Australia, taking into consideration their own circumstances before making a decision on whether to study in Australia. Prospective students should refer to the AEI ‘Study in Australia’ website for more information on the cost of living in Australia.

What must students do to show that the funds are genuinely available?

Under the changes proposed for 1 January 2010, officers of the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) assessing Student visa applications will have the discretion to consider a Student visa applicant’s circumstances to determine if the student genuinely holds the funds to which they claim to have access.

This includes checking:

• a prospective student’s previous financial and immigration history
• the employment history of the student or the person providing the student with financial support
• the source of the income used (for example, cash assets or a bank loan).

Where there is doubt about the student’s ability to access their claimed funds in Australia, the prospective student may be requested to provide further information in support of their application. For example, students relying upon a bank loan may need to show that these funds have been deposited into a bank account to which they have unrestricted access, and that they have the financial capacity to service the loan both before they depart for Australia and once they arrive.