publications focus Migration - February 2003 | Migration - February 2003 |
Business Skills Migration
From 1 March 2003, significant changes will be introduced in respect of business skills visas. The changes affect people with the following business backgrounds:-
Business OwnersPreviously, the most common transition for business owners was between the subclass 457 Long Stay Business visa and the subclass 845 Established Business in Australia visa. Persons who had purchased or established a business in Australia on a temporary visa could apply for permanent residence under subclass 845 once the business had been operating for a certain period. From 1 March 2003, 457 holders can either apply for permanent residence under the old 845 category, or as a sponsored business under the new system.Senior ExecutivesSenior executives may enter Australia on the provisional visa. There is no permanent visa for senior executives under the new system, however they may be able to apply for permanent residence under the employer nomination scheme referred to below.Common RequirementsAll of the new provisional visa subclasses require the applicant to be under 45 years of age at the time of application, unless the application is sponsored by a state or territory government, in which case the cutoff age is 55. In some cases the age limit may be waived, if the business is regarded by the sponsoring state or territory government as being of exceptional economic benefit. In addition, all of the unsponsored provisional visas require the applicant to have vocational English. (The provisional visas sponsored by a state or territory government do not have an English language requirement).
Under the new programme, there is no points test for the permanent visas. The annual turnover amount has increased to $300,000.00 and the full time employee requirement has been reduced from three to two. Business Talent VisaThe 1 March changes will introduce a new permanent residence visa – the Business Talent Visa. This visa is for high calibre business owners who have been identified by a state or territory government. The state or territory government must sponsor the application. There is no English language requirement, and the applicant must be less than 55 years of age at the time of application. The applicant must have had a significant ownership interest in a business with a turnover of at least $3,000,000.00 for two of the past fiscal years.
EMPLOYER SPONSORED MIGRATIONRecently some industries in Australia have experienced a shortage of qualified people to fill highly skilled positions. Employers are having to look overseas for candidates to fill those positions, which are classified by the Department of Immigration as being "in demand". The Department's list of occupations in demand currently includes various positions in the health sector, such as nurses, midwives, physiotherapists and pharmacists. IT professionals and accountants are also included on the list. Priority is given to applications in those areas. There are two types of employer sponsored visas, one being a temporary visa and the other a permanent residence visa.Temporary Employer Sponsored Visa The subclass 457 temporary business visa allows an Australian company to sponsor an employee to stay in Australia for up to four years. The first stage of the application involves the approval of the employer company as a sponsor. In sponsoring the applicant, the company is required to give an undertaking that it will, (amongst other things), be responsible for any debts owed by the employee to the Commonwealth, and for any repatriation or medical expenses of the employee. Employers should consider the health insurance issue, when negotiating a salary package. As a temporary visa holder, the applicant is not entitled to Medicare and so it is important that adequate health insurance for the employee and their family is in place. The second stage of the application involves the visa application itself. The application may be lodged onshore or offshore depending on where the employee is located. Since July 2001, the employer no longer has to complete labour market testing to show that the position can not be filled from the Australian labour market. Instead, the position to be filled must offer a minimum gross salary of $34,075.00 per annum. (This amount may vary from time to time as notified in the Government Gazette). The position offered must be a skilled occupation listed in the Government Gazette and the applicant must hold the necessary skills for that occupation. In some cases, the applicant may be required to have their skills assessed by an Australian assessing body. Permanent Visa The permanent residence employer nomination visa involves a similar two stage process as the temporary visa. The main differences between this and the temporary business visa are as follows:-
For details about these and other visas, please contact Emma Swenson on (07) 3292 9726 or
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