Skilled Independent Visa
Subclass 189
(New Zealand Stream)
(Permanent)
Overview
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As a permanent visa, Skilled Independent visa (Subclass 189) – New Zealand stream provides a streamlined process for New Zealand citizens who have lived and worked in Australia long-term to acquire permanent residency.
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Drastically different from the usual Skilled Independent visa (Subclass 189) – Points-test stream, the New Zealand stream involves no points test, Expressions of Interest (EOI), invitation or state/territory nomination and can be applied for directly if eligible.
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You may include your family in your visa application so your entire family can migrate together.
Eligibility
hold Special Category Visa (Subclass 444) and your family members in Australia (if any) must hold:
- a substantive visa; or
- subclass 010 Bridging A visa; or
- subclass 020 Bridging B visa; or
- subclass 030 Bridging C visa
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have been usually resident in Australia for a continuous period of at least 5 years starting on or before 19 February 2016.
have had an annual taxable income of at least $53,900 for at least 3 completed financial years in the past 5 years and one of these years must be your most recently completed financial year (unless exempt)
meet health and character requirements
Special Notes
‘Usually Resident’ Requirement Explained
The place that a person is ‘usually resident’ is decided by taking into account their physical residence (where the person eats, sleeps, has a home) and the person’s intention to make that place their home.
The primary applicant must have been ‘usually resident’ in Australia on 19 February 2016, and continuously up to the time of applying for the visa, they need to be living in Australia for 5 years. This is a two-stage assessment/criteria check which will rely on movement’s records and evidence of residence.
Assessing whether an applicant is ‘usually resident’ may be seen in a variety of factors, including:
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maintaining a home in Australia
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working in Australia
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owning property, business or other interests in Australia
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having family and other ties in Australia
Note:
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Evidence of residence should be considered in conjunction with evidence of income as payment of tax also supports that an applicant has been usually resident.
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Applicants may, in some circumstances, be considered as usually resident in Australia even when they are not physically present in Australia (for example fly-in/fly-out workers).
Location
Applicants may be in or outside Australia at the time of application and visa grant.
Duration of Stay
This is a permanent visa that allows you to stay permanently in Australia. However, its travel facility expires after 5 years so you will need to apply for Resident Return Visa (Subclass 155 & 157) or Australian citizenship (if eligible) if you wish to travel overseas and back to Australia after the expiry date.
Tricks and Common Reasons for Refusal
1 – Unfamiliarity with How the Australian Immigration Works and Its Mentality
In many cases, applicants prepare and submit their supporting documentation in a disorderly way, giving the Immigration a hard time digging through tons of paperwork to get things in the right order when picking up a new visa application. This will potentially lead to endless back-and-forth clarification and explanation, wasting both sides lots of time and can even result in a refusal of Subclass 189 visa.
This is common since applying for a visa, especially a permanent one, is the very first time to most applicants. For this reason, our team have developed our own system for labelling, coding, structuring and, where necessary, cross-referencing documentation so your application can be submitted in the most presentable and logical manner. Making your application stand out among all competitors has been our goal from day one.
2 – Careless Yet Costly Mistakes
Applying for migration is seen as a delicate work of art due to the staggering amount of attention, paperwork, and details involved. A seemingly minor/harmless error such as a typo in your résumé, a date entered wrong, or a tick in the wrong box in the lengthy visa application form can prove costly as the Immigration processes all visa applications strictly in accordance with migration law, in particular Migration Act 1958 and Migration Regulations 1994. Even a small error can be regarded as failing to satisfy a visa requirement and therefore lead to a visa refusal. To minimise such incidents, our team pay extra attention while editing and drafting every client’s paperwork and always proofread and also conduct a final review of documentation before submission.
3 – Applications Not Being Decision-ready
Another common reason for refusal, even instant refusal, for Subclass 189 visa is submitting an application without all the required documentation. This happens when the application was prepared carelessly, or when the applicant was trying to rush an application for whatever reason (e.g. meeting a cut-off date of a major migration policy change which happens almost each and every year and often catches people off guard).
Even with 43 years of team experience, we handle each application cautiously and meticulously like our first to ensure nothing slips through the cracks. Should a sudden change of policy hit and impact you, we are more than capable of advising you how to salvage your application in terms of what documents are mandatory at the time of submission and what can wait so you are never in danger of a straight-up visa refusal upon submission.
Benefits
With this visa, you may:
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migrate to Australia together with your family
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stay and live in Australia permanently
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potentially bring your extended family members to Australia permanently on parent visa or visa intended for other relatives
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access various government benefits, including but not limited to:
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pension
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unemployment and job-seeking benefits
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concession cards for commuting
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benefits associated with new-born baby
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interest-free school loan
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travel overseas and back to Australia without limitations for any purposes (e.g. overseas holiday, visiting family and/or attending family matters in home country)
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access Australia’s public health care scheme (Medicare) which essentially provides free medical consultations, operations and hospitalization for a wide range of medical conditions
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work in Australia without any limitations
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study in Australia without any limitations
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apply for Australian citizenship when eligible
Application Fees
You may include your family in your Subclass 189 visa application so your entire family can migrate together.
First Instalment
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Primary applicant: $825
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Each additional applicant aged 18 or above: $410
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Each additional applicant under 18: $205
Second Instalment
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Main applicant: $3290
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Each additional applicant aged 18 or above: $1645
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Each additional applicant under 18: $825
Please note: you may incur third-party charges, for example, for police certificate and health exam.
Processing Time
Kindly note the processing time constantly varies. Please contact us for update.
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75% of applications: 19 months
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90% of applications: 20 months
Our Unbeatable Services - How Exactly We Make It Hassle-free
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Let’s face it – visa applications are complex, especially when you are not an expert in Australian immigration law - that is Migration Act 1958 and Migration Regulations 1994.
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Simply put – our visa and immigration legal services are truly unbeatable.
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This is because our immigration lawyers and registered migration agents in Melbourne do all of the 40 Things in Our Exclusive 5-step Services for you to:
- give you a stress-free visa application journey;
- maximise your chances of a successful application outcome.
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Can you find such detailed and specific services elsewhere? We guarantee you can’t.
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This way, you know your money really is well-spent.
