Australia’s states and territories have been easing certain visa conditions as they compete to attract the best skilled migrants.
What is state sponsorship?
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Many migrants are sponsored by employers for a visa to stay in Australia generally. But state and territory authorities can also nominate skilled workers for visas under the State Nominated Migration Program, and they are increasingly relaxing their criteria to make it easier for people to apply.
Workers sponsored by state authorities don’t have to be tied to a particular employer but they do have to be aged under 45 years old. There is also no guarantee of a job in the state, so they have to find their own position.
Successful applicants are given a permanent visa allowing them to live in the country indefinitely in the case of the Skilled Nominated subclass 190 visa, or provided with a pathway to become a permanent resident after working in regional areas as part of the Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) (subclass 491) visa. A small number of visas are also available for those who own their own business.
Western Australia
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WA now has the third largest allocation of state-nominated spots after NSW and Victoria, with 5,350 subclass 190 visas and 2790 regional visas available. More than 100 extra jobs were added to its skilled occupation list this year, bringing the total to 276.
Mr McGowan says other temporary measures will also be introduced, including waiving the $200 application fee, halving the requirement for an employment contract from 12 months to six months, and reducing the requirements for applicants to show they have sufficient funds.
Extra English requirements for professional and manager positions will also be removed, and work experience requirements will be reduced.
The temporary changes will be implemented over the next month.
For more information, please visit www.goldmedalvisa.com.au or call us on +61 (3) 8849 0666.
Victoria
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Victoria has the second highest number of state nominated visas available with a quota of 11,570 places for 2022/23. It has the highest number of subclass 190 visas (9,000), as well as 2,400 regional visas and 170 business visas.
The state has expanded its eligible list of occupations to include more than 420 jobs on the Commonwealth’s skilled list. It will also allow applicants living overseas, as well as those already living in Victoria, to apply for its visas.
For more information, please visit www.goldmedalvisa.com.au or call us on +61 (3) 8849 0666.
Queensland
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The list of eligible occupations in Queensland has been expanded to include 114 occupations in 2022/23. Overseas applicants will also be able to apply for the first time since the emergence of COVID-19.
A spokesman for the Training and Skills Development department said the Queensland Government had requested a higher quota of state-nominated visas than in previous years, to “allow us to nominate more migrants to meet critical skills needs”.
This year it will have 3,000 subclass 190 visas, as well as 1,200 regional visas and 235 business visas.
For more information, please visit www.goldmedalvisa.com.au or call us on +61 (3) 8849 0666.
South Australia
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SA has already opened applications for its sponsorship program, with more than 500 occupations eligible. It will also select overseas applicants who have lodged an expression of interest on the SkillSelect database.
SA has been allocated 2,700 subclass 190 visas, as well as 3,180 regional, and 70 business visas.
For more information, please visit www.goldmedalvisa.com.au or call us on +61 (3) 8849 0666.
Northern Territory
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The Northern Territory is one of the few jurisdictions that won’t accept applications from those living overseas. It also asks that successful applicants agree to live and work in the NT for at least three years.
The applicant’s occupation must be included as one of the more than 420 jobs on the Commonwealth’s skilled list, but the NT also points to a shorter list of more than 200 jobs that are in demand in the territory.
For more information, please visit www.goldmedalvisa.com.au or call us on +61 (3) 8849 0666.
New South Wales
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NSW has the largest allocation of state-nominated positions, with more than 12,000 places.
A spokesperson for Investment NSW said it had developed simplified nomination criteria to “improve the client experience and streamline application processing” this year.
The spokesperson said the occupation list was still under development and would be published on the NSW migration website in the coming weeks.
“Following the publishing of the list NSW will begin accepting applications for nomination,” the spokesperson said.
For more information, please visit www.goldmedalvisa.com.au or call us on +61 (3) 8849 0666.
Australian Capital Territory
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The ACT’s occupation criteria are very broad and include more than 420 jobs on the Commonwealth’s skilled list.
It has 800 subclass 190 visas available, another 1,920 regional visas and 10 business visas.
For more information, please visit www.goldmedalvisa.com.au or call us on +61 (3) 8849 0666.
Tasmania
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The program in Tasmania expects to open imminently for registrations of interest from people who are currently working in any skilled role related to their skills assessment, before opening more generally in October.
Priority will be given to those working in a critical role and then those on Tasmania’s list of more than 250 skilled occupations (up from more than 120 occupations last year) who have also worked in the state for at least two years.
But the Tasmanian Government says all occupations on the Commonwealth’s broader skills list would be eligible for consideration for the large number of expected remaining places.
Anyone who has lived in Tasmania for at least two to three years may also be considered for the established residence pathway if they have solid Tasmanian employment experience, subject to available nomination places which will be allocated according to the priorities stated above.
For more information, please visit www.goldmedalvisa.com.au or call us on +61 (3) 8849 0666.
