Immigration Lawyers and Migration Agents

Your Australian Visa Our Focus

July is the start of the new immigration program year and this is the latest news on the upcoming changes for Australian immigration.

With the Australian Parliament back in motion, developments to the Australian visa programme have been announced in quick succession. Here are two recent news update that will be of interest to many.

Lower taxes, visa application fees and more for Working Holiday Visas holders

On 27 September 2016 The Hon. Scott Morrison MP, Treasurer for the Australian Government, released a media statement announcing a string of changes to the benefit of Working Holiday visa applicants and holders. The changes include:

- Lower taxes for working holiday visa holders

The $80,000 threshold is increasing to $87,000 for the 2016-17 financial year; tax paid calculation is based on the $80,000 threshold.

- Lower visa application fee for the working holiday visas

- A$ 10 million in funding to campaign for and attract youth around the world for the working holiday visa programme

- Allowing working holiday visa employees to stay with one employer for 12 months (instead of 6 months previously) provided the location of employment is different

Employers of working holiday visa holders will also need to register with the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) to withhold taxes at the 19 per cent tax rate. An additional A$ 10 million will be provided to the ATO and Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) to address workplace exploitation of working holiday visa holders.

Working holiday visa holders will need to note that a 95 per cent tax applies for the Departing Australia Superannuation Payment (DASP), which will be effective from 1 July 2017.

New Temporary Visa for Parents to stay in Australia for up to 5 years

Assistant Minister for Immigration and Border Protection Alex Hawke recently announced the Department’s plan to introduce a new temporary visa for parents of Australian citizens, permanent residents and Eligible New Zealand citizens. Under the new temporary visa to be introduced parents who are sponsored by their Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen child will be able to visit and stay in Australia for a period of up to 5 years.

The new temporary visa for parents is planned to be implemented in July 2017 and is currently at a community discussion stage. This means that details about the new temporary visa may change and the confirmed details may only be published closer to July 2017.

Information about the new temporary visa for parents currently includes:

- the validity of the visa is determined by the needs of the sponsor. As such the visa can allow parents to stay for one, three or five years

- the sponsor(child) must have resided in and contributed(be employed and paid taxes) to Australia

- the sponsor will need to demonstrate that they can support their parents in Australia

- the parents will need to have adequate health insurance

- a bond will be required for the duration of the visa validity

As mentioned this visa is currently not in effect and further details will be provided as they become available.

Sources:

1. http://sjm.ministers.treasury.gov.au/media-release/104-2016/
2. https://www.alexhawke.com.au/media/media-releases/new-temporary-visa-sponsored-parents

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

The changes announced for the Working Holiday visa holders are a good direction in attracting skilled youth to visit Australia. The working holiday visa programme provides casual and seasonal workers for the agricultural industry and is a big help to Australian farmers. Making the working holiday visa attractive is important for the agricultural and tourism industry of Australia. The big u-turn to the originally planned backpacker’s tax is helpful for the working holiday visa programme.

The announcement of the temporary visa for parents is also a good direction in allowing families to spend more time with each other. However it is worth noting that in the Productivity Commission Inquiry Report on Migrant Intake into Australia, No.77 released on 13 April 2016, it is noted that the report finds that the contributory fee (currently A$ 43,600) for the subclass 143 Contributory Parent visas are deemed insufficient to cover fiscal costs of granting a parent visa. It is estimated that the fiscal costs for a single parent visa holder ranges between A$ 335,000 to A$ 410,000. Based on this finding we may see a significant increase to the contributory fee soon.

If the contributory fee for parents does increase, it may drive more applicants to apply for the new temporary visa for parents. Check back with Work Visa Lawyers as we will provide you with the latest changes about the parent visas as they become available.

This information is accurate on 30 September 2016

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.

The new financial year for Australia is coming and here are some migration related news you need to know.

• Visa Application Fees (VAC) are increasing on 1 July 2015
• Immigration South Australia (SA) will start collecting fees on 10 June 2015
• Changes to the Significant Investor Visa (SIV) and introduction of the Premium Investor Visa (PIV)

Visa Application Charges for 1 July 2015

If you missed our earlier news entry on the VAC increments, click here to find out more. The new fees apply if you submit a visa application on 1 July 2015 or after, so you can still submit an application now to avoid the fee increase. The increase ranges from 2.3% to 50%.

A word of caution: try not to leave your application until the last day (30 June 2015) for submission. The online system may be flooded and users can experience system outages. A scheduled outage has been announced for Midnight Tuesday 30 June to 7am Wednesday 1 July 2015. ​

Immigration SA now charges fees for state sponsorship effective 10 June 2015

Immigration SA announced earlier that they will start collecting fees for state sponsorship application, following what other states and territories have been doing for a while now. Here is the breakdown of the charges:

Note: A credit card and processing surcharge of 3.2% is charged in addition to the fees listed.

Changes to the Significant Investor Visa (SIV) and announcing the Premium Investor Visa (PIV)

The SIV has been suspended since 24 April 2015, and will resume on 1 July 2015. While the investment amount of A$ 5 million has not changed, the structure of the complying investments has been modified to ensure allocation of investment funds to start-ups, instead of mainly government bonds. Here is the breakdown:

• At least A$ 500,000 in eligible Australian venture capital or growth private equity fund(s) investing in start-up and small private companies (“VCPE”). The Government expects to increase this to A$ 1 million for new applications within two years as the market responds; 

•  At least A$ 1.5 million in an eligible managed fund(s) or Listed Investment Companies (“LICs”) that invest in emerging companies listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (“ASX”); and 

• A ‘balancing investment’ of up to A$ 3 million in managed fund(s) or LICs that invest in a combination of eligible assets that include other ASX listed companies, eligible corporate bonds or notes, annuities and real property (subject to the 10 per cent limit on residential real estate). 

For the new PIV, a minimum investment of A$ 15 million will be required. It will be available at the invitation of the Australian Government only, with potential applicants to be nominated by Austrade. The investor will be able to apply for permanent residence in 12 months’ time, compared to 4 years for the SIV.

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

The new financial year usually brings Visa Application Charge (VAC) increases and changes to the visa programme. The best mentality for Australian visa applications is to submit an application when you are eligible as soon as possible. Do not put yourself and your family at risk of fee increases (which may be significant if you are from overseas) and migration legislation changes. Act now and lodge your application as soon as possible.

Source:

1. http://www.immi.gov.au/pub-res/Documents/budget/VAC-increases-fact-sheet.pdf
2. http://migration.sa.gov.au/resources/faq/application-fees
3. http://www.minister.immi.gov.au/michaeliacash/2015/Pages/significant-and-premium-investor-visas.aspx

This information is accurate on 9 June 2015

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 Migration Review Tribunal, Judicial Review and Ministerial Intervention.

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

(08) 7225 5091 or +61 8 7225 5091

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

Details of the visa application fee increases have been released today and here is a highlight:

• a 2.3% increase for all Skilled Migration, Business Innovation and Investment, Employer Sponsored 457, Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS) visas
• a 5% increase for Parent, Working Holiday, Resident Return Visa (RRV) and Carer visas
• a 50% increase for Significant Investor Visas (SIV) and offshore Partner Visas

The significant increase is seen at the SIV category visa (which requires an investment of AUD 5 million) and Partner Visas lodged offshore.

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

Traditionally the Department of Immigration and Border Protection increases its visa application charges at the end of every financial year. Now is the time for applicants considering submitting a visa application to do so as fees are applicable at the time of lodgement. Some visa applications require other components that may take time to prepare and obtain, such as skills assessment and English exams so applicants are advised to begin as soon as possible to beat the fee increase on 1 July 2015.

Source:

1. http://www.immi.gov.au/pub-res/Documents/budget/VAC-increases-fact-sheet.pdf

This information is accurate on 14 May 2015

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 Migration Review Tribunal, Judicial Review and Ministerial Intervention.

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

(08) 7225 5091 or +61 8 7225 5091

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

 The price of assisting your fiancé, de facto or married partner to obtain an Australian residence visa is getting costlier.  The Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) has announced an increase in visa application charges (VAC) for partner visas.  The 50% VAC increase will be effective 1 January 2015.  Here are the numbers:

• Offshore provisional and permanent partner visas - currently $3085 increased to $4630.00
• Prospective marriage visa - currently $3085 increased to $4630.00
• Onshore temporary and permanent partner visas - currently $4575 increased to $6865.00

This move is expected to provide DIBP with an additional A$373.6 million over four years, for the purpose of funding whole-of-government policy priorities.

At the same time DIBP has announced a planned increase in the intake of refugees for the year 2017-18.

What Do We Think

• The significant increase of 50% in the VAC is in effect a punishment for Australian citizens and permanent residents who have partners from overseas
• There is no promise of better service or shorter process times to go with the increase in fees.  Rather it is 50% higher fees at the same level of service.  From the date of application partner visas currently take approximately 1 year to be granted
• Bringing a partner in to Australia to start a family and contributing to the planned population growth will be more difficult financially

(net overseas migration currently contributes to 60% of Australia’s population growth)
Source: DIBP Fact sheet 15 - population growth

• The VAC increase is similar to what Skilled Migration applicants experienced in July 2013 when fees were changed to charge per person instead of per family application.  Read our previous article here

What Can You Do

• If you intend to apply for a partner visa, submit your visa application before 1 January 2015 to avoid the VAC increase
• If you need information about your current situation and to find out which visa is best for you to bring your partner into Australia, contact a Registered Migration Agent now

Source:

DIBP Website

http://www.immi.gov.au/News/Pages/increase-in-partner-vac.aspx

https://www.immi.gov.au/media/fact-sheets/15population.htm

SBS Website

http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2014/12/15/govt-cash-visas-foreign-love

This information is accurate on the 16 December 2014.  DIBP will change requirements in an ongoing manner and all current requirements must be established prior to lodging an application.

Do You Need Help?

At Work Visa Lawyers we are experienced in assisting applicants with the Family Migration Stream which includes Partner Visa applications.  We can also assist with Skilled Migration visa applications for candidates looking for other options.

If you require further information regarding an application or your Australian visa options you can contact us through:

 (08) 7225 5091 or +61 8 7225 5091 

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

The visa charges for many visas will be raised by approximately 15% from 1 September 2013.

Some examples of the charges are:

For an RSMS subclass 187 this means the base application charge will go up from $3060 to $3520.

Dependent spouse/partner $1530 to $1760.

Dependent child from $765 to $880

For a Contributory Parent (Migrant) per applicant the 2^nd Instalment will go up from $42,220 to $48,550.

Here is a link for the Instrument listing all the changes:

http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Details/F2013L01534/Explanatory%20Statement/Text

Need Help?

If you require further information regarding Australian Visa application charges or your Australian visa options you contact our offices on (08) 7225 5091 or +61 8 7225 5091  

This information isaccurate on the 27 August 2013.  DIAC will change visa charges regularly and you will need to check the current charges prior to lodging an application.