Immigration Lawyers and Migration Agents

Your Australian Visa Our Focus

The Global Talent Visa is the Australian Government’s latest passion project with the nation more enthusiastic than ever to attract high-value enterprises and talented individuals to its shores.  A new Taskforce has been created to locate and prioritise high talent individuals, and a new ministerial direction sets out which areas of expertise Australia is looking for.

All you need to know and do when your visa application is refused!

Receiving a refusal notification for your visa application is stressful and places you in a wave of uncertainty. However, quick action is required to resolve your visa status if your visa application was lodged onshore in Australia.

The same can be said if you received a Notice of Intention to Consider Cancellation (NOICC) for your current visa. It is best to quickly address the issues raised in the NOICC, than to challenge the decision to cancel your visa after the decision has been made.

What are the common reasons for a visa application to be refused?

The name for Australia’s immigration department changes every few years and the most recent change was from the “Department of Immigration and Citizenship” (DIAC) to the current “Department of Immigration and Border Protection” (DIBP).

The inclusion of “Border Protection” in the current name gives an impression of “control” and “erecting barriers to entry” to “protect Australian borders”. The impression was also felt by employees at DIBP as a recent internal survey indicated the following:

• there is a "command and control" culture in the Department
• the Department has a "military-style regime"
• there is a “preoccupation with secrecy” and a lack of transparency from the top management
• “a shift to enforcement and a move away from a people and humanitarian focus”

While there were some positives raised in the survey as well with reference to the professionalism, dedication and commitment among staff, the Department is now being perceived as a tough enforcement agency both internally and externally.

Comments by Chris Johnston – Principal Lawyer and Registered Migration Agent at Work Visa Lawyers

How does this affect ongoing visa applications?

It has been observed that in the pool of applications recently submitted to the Department, the assessing case officer has been diligently combing through the documents submitted. Any lack of information or clarity results in a request from the case officer to provide further evidence to support the claims made in the application.

High risk applications could include the following:

• Employer sponsored visa applications where the applicant does not have the qualifications required and is solely relying on references
• Partner visas where there is insufficient evidence to show a genuine relationship. Just submitting a marriage certificate and some supporting statements are insufficient to meet the Genuine Relationship requirements

While this is excellent in capturing and refusing fraudulent visa applications, there are a few issues that arise from this tough stance:

• overall visa processing times will become slower as Department assessment officers spend more time checking documents in detail, and more time on a given case if more information is requested
• some legitimate applications are being asked to provide more information or disprove certain claims when unnecessary. E.g.: an Italian restaurant was asked to prove that they were not a fast food restaurant, even when a Restaurant License was provided in the application

Echoed by some employees of the Department in the internal survey, it is worth noting that the Department is shifting from a people and humanitarian focus to one of enforcement and control. The old Department tagline, “People Our Business” seems to be no longer the focus of the Department in helping eligible visa applicants obtain Australian visas to visit, live or work in Australia.

If you are submitting a visa application to the Department, you should ensure that you have sufficient evidence to demonstrate your claims in meeting the visa application requirements. You will also need to provide quality scans or certified copies of your documents to the Department, to avoid any potential delays or doubts from the assessment officer. Do not attempt to fabricate documents or provide misleading information as you can be served with a Public Interest Criterion (PIC) 4020 violation which will become a big issue in your future visa applications.

While you might have made a genuine error on your application that does not mean you can avoid having the PIC 4020 violation recorded in your Australian visa/immigration history. As such it is extremely important that you do not provide any conflicting or misleading information in your application.

This information is accurate on 6 June 2016

Source:

1. http://www.theage.com.au/national/public-service/command-and-control-immigration-staff-slam-militaristic-culture-20160511-goskdm.html

Do you need help with an Australian visa application?

At Work Visa Lawyers we are experienced in assisting applicants in all matters relating to Australian visa applications. Our areas of expertise include Skilled Migration visas, Business Skills Migration visas, Employer Sponsored Work Visas, Partner and other Family Migration visas as well as the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) Review, Judicial Review and Ministerial Intervention.

If you require further information regarding your Australia visa options you can contact us through:

(08) 8351 9956 or +61 8 8351 9956

or   This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

2018 UPDATES:

Skills Assessments & Occupation Lists for Australian TSS 482 And Employer-Sponsored Permanent Resident VisasSkills Assessments & Occupation Lists for Australian TSS 482 And Employer-Sponsored Permanent Resident Visas

Tougher vetting imposed by Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has led migration to plummet to its lowest since 2007. As reported by the Department of Home Affairs, actual intake fell from 183,608 in 2016-2017 to a staggering 162,417 for the 2017-2018 financial year. Read More. 

How long does a 457, ENS or RSMS visa take to process?

It has been noted that the processing times for the Temporary Work (Skilled) (subclass 457) visa, Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS) (subclass 186) visa, and the Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS) (subclass 187) visa have been getting longer in recent times. While the current Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) service standards list 2 to 3 months processing time for 75% of applications received, the actual processing times for most cases are around 5 months (based on recently submitted applications and comments by business sponsors and visa applicants in forums).

Why is the processing getting slower?

While there is no official explanation for the delay, the slower processing times might be due to increased screening of applications submitted by sponsors and visa applicants. Since the Independent Review report of the integrity in the Subclass 457 Programme released in September 2014, the Department has been stepping up integrity checks and controls for the majority of applications, especially those with the following characteristics:

• high risk occupations such as Café and Restaurant Managers, Customer Service Managers, Project or Programme Administrators, Retail Manager, etc.
• the applicant is related to the business owner as a family member or relative
• an unusually high salary for a low position to claim English Language Exemption
• the business has a low profit or is making a loss, and yet seeks to employ more people

The Department is definitely concerned with the findings of the Independent Review about the integrity of employer sponsors and employee visa applicants for the employer-sponsored visas. In addition to the slower and more meticulous screening of applications submitted, the Department has also introduced related policy such as the “Payment for Visas Conduct”, which prohibits overseas worker to pay businesses in return for sponsorship, or businesses deducting salaries from the sponsored worker to recover sponsorship costs. You can read more about this in our previous article.

Concerns with Genuine Position for Nominated Occupation in 457, ENS and RSMS visa applications

Applications with the above scenarios are likely to be asked for further information by the Department to ensure that the vacant position is genuine and the applicant meets the requirements for the position with the business. Applications that are asked to provide more documents or information will be assessed more thoroughly by the Department and hence there will be a delay to the processing times with the back and forth of submitting information and douments.

The rise in requests to provide further information are also causing assessment officers to spend more time per application, hence affecting applications that are straightforward genuine and complete when submitted.

What does this mean for the business sponsor and visa applicant?

With the expected delays the business sponsor and visa applicant need to consider the extended processing times to avoid any ill effects to the business operations (urgent need for the sponsored worker) or the visa applicant (leaving current employment too early). Additionally the business sponsor and visa applicant need to cross check before submitting the application to ensure all requirements are met for sponsorship, nomination and visa application. A strong application should be prepared with good supporting documents before submitting to the Department for processing.

Comments by Chris Johnston – Principal Lawyer and Registered Migration Agent at Work Visa Lawyers

While the 457 visa programme has been in the limelight for the wrong reasons and being tightened in recent times, the employer sponsored programme is still an integral part to many businesses in Australia. Australian employers have a genuine need to employ skilled overseas workers to meet business needs to maintain or grow the Australian economy.

With the increased international mobility among skilled workers globally, it is important that the 457 visa programme remains responsive to Australian businesses’ needs and enable efficient operations.

The Department’s commitment to checking and ensuring that the 457 visa applications received are genuine makes sense to avoid abuse of the programme. However the downside of slower processing times may hurt Australian businesses that already show that they genuinely need an employee who has been identified with the right skills and experience to help meet business operational needs. The Department will need to strike a delicate balance between enforcement and delivering a visa application outcome in time for the Australian businesses.

If you have any questions about the 457 visa sponsorship, nomination and visa application, please contact Work Visa Lawyers to ensure your applications are prepared well before applying.

This information is accurate on 18 May 2016

Source:

1. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/opinion/john-durie/small-business-angry-over-section-457-visa-delays/news-story/f53d0b941627c2403cc3abb8d014ce35
2. https://www.border.gov.au/Trav/Work/Work/Subclass-457-Integrity-Review
3. https://www.border.gov.au/about/access-accountability/service-standards/temporary-work-visa-processing-times
4. https://www.border.gov.au/Trav/Work/Work-1

Do you need help with an Australian visa application?

At Work Visa Lawyers we are experienced in assisting applicants in all matters relating to Australian visa applications. Our areas of expertise include Skilled Migration visas, Business Skills Migration visas, Employer Sponsored Work Visas, Partner and other Family Migration visas as well as the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) Review, Judicial Review and Ministerial Intervention.

If you require further information regarding your Australia visa options you can contact us through:

(08) 8351 9956 or +61 8 8351 9956

or   This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Business Sponsorship • Nomination • Training Benchmarks • Nominated Position • TSMIT • Market Salary • LMT • English Requirements • From 457 to PR

The 457 visa is the most common Employer Sponsored visa for overseas workers to start working temporarily in Australia. While the 457 program has the simple objective of filling employment gaps for Australian and overseas businesses, the application process is not straightforward. Watch the video to learn more.

0:40 Number One - Three stages of the 457 application:Business Sponsor application, Nomination application (position) and Visa application.
1:17 Number Two - Sponsor must meet training requirements
1:37 Number Three - Nominated position must be on the CSOL list
2:21 Number Four - Nomination requirements include meeting TSMIT, Market Salary and LMT
3:42 Number Five - Visa applicant must have required skills and English
4:33 Number Six - There are conditions that apply to the Business Sponsor and Visa holder after grant of 457 visa
5:40 Number Seven - 457 offers pathway to Australian PR
6:03 Number Eight - Government Review and recommendations to change 457 to cut ‘Red tape’
6:38 Number Nine - Alternative visas to the 457: If your occupation is not on the CSOL
7:35 Number Ten - Do I need help to apply for a 457?

If you would like assistance with getting a visa in Australia, you can contact us via our email at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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