Visas & Advice Detail
Skilled Independent visas
We look at how Australia’s General Skilled Migration (GSM) scheme operates and how one can qualify for a Skilled-Independent visa
While a Skilled-Independent visa may be the most sought after visa for would-be skilled immigrants – it places no restrictions on where the visa holder settles or whether or not they have to work – not everyone will manage to score the 120 points needed to qualify through this route. If you find this to be the case, you will therefore need to explore one of the other GSM categories.
The first alternative visa you should look at qualifying for is the Skilled-Sponsored visa (subclass 176). Like the Skilled-Independent category, the Skilled-Sponsored visa also entitles the visa holder to permanent residency of Australia, although with certain restrictions. To qualify for this visa an applicant will need to either be sponsored by a relative who is a permanent resident of Australia or one of the country's state governments. If you are hoping to be sponsored by a relative then that family member must either be a sibling, parent, uncle/aunt, or niece/nephew. The sponsor will be required to sign an undertaking which agrees to provide the visa holder with adequate accommodation and / or financial assistance as required during their first two years in Australia, pledge other support, such as childcare, to enable their relatives to attend English language classes (if necessary), and provide information and advice to help their relatives settle in Australia. The two-year period starts from the date the applicant enters Australia as a holder of this visa.
In order to stand a chance of being sponsored by a state or territory government, an applicant will need to have a Nominated Occupation which is included on the state's 'high demand' list. If you are nominated by a government you will need to agree to remain in the sponsoring state or territory for a period of at least two years, keep the state or territory government informed of changes in address details before and after arrival, and be prepared to complete surveys and provide information as required. The pass mark for this visa is 100 points – no matter which kind of sponsorship you obtain – but if you score less than 100 points but more than 80 points your application will be placed in a reserve pool, and will be considered if the pass mark drops. Applicants who are sponsored by a relative receive no bonus points through the Skilled-Sponsored category, but those who are nominated by a state government are eligible for an additional ten points.
If you still don't qualify for a permanent Aussie skilled visa, then another option open to you through the GSM is the Regional Sponsored visa (subclass 475). Unlike the Skilled-Independent and Skilled-Sponsored visas, however, the Regional Sponsored visa only entitles the holder to temporary residency to begin with. The applicant will need to be willing to reside in either a regional or designated area of Australia and once again will need to either be sponsored by a relative or state / territory government. In this instance a relative can be any of those listed above as well as a grandparent of first cousin, and will need to be living in a designated area of Australia. If the words 'designated area' leave you fearing a life in the Outback, miles from anywhere, you need not worry too much. Any area of Tasmania, South Australia, Northern Territory, the Australian Capital Territory and Victoria – including Melbourne – is deemed a 'designated' area for family sponsorship purposes through the 475 category. In fact, the only areas your sponsoring relative must not live in is Sydney, Newcastle, Wollongong (all in New South Wales), the Perth metropolitan region (Western Australia) and the Brisbane metropolitan region (Queensland).
For state / territory sponsorship through this category you will need to agree to reside in a 'regional' part of the sponsoring state. Once again, though, regional does not necessarily mean in the middle of nowhere – Adelaide, the state capital of South Australia, is the largest city to be deemed 'regional' for purposes of this visa.
It is also worth noting that your Nominated occupation need only appear on the federal Skilled Occupations List, and not the in demand list for that particular state.
The regional Sponsored visa is valid for three years, but can be made permanent after two year's residence and one year's employment in a regional or designated area.
In each case the visa applicant must score 100 points. Once again, ten points are awarded for state sponsorship, but for this visa 25 points are given to those who obtain sponsorship from a family member living in a designated area (these points can only be claimed when applying for this visa).
Register for your FREE emigration starter pack
Subscribe to Emigrate Australia. Read more ...