Australian Skilled Migration Visa - Megathread

Jax34

mandrake04 wrote: »

They cant cancel your visa etc, and they don't seem to chase after you but I think when people say its only a moral obligation they tend to be the ones doing it. Have seen people complain that its unfair on other sites as some people get SS for the likes of SA and then move straight to WA or NSW.




Its only a matter of time before they crack down on it as it skews the whole point of a state migration plan.

I'd say you are right Mandrake, it certainly wouldn't be my preference to misuse a visa.

Lucifer-0

Two of my friends got the visa for SA, after a year one of them was struggling for work so decided to look into moving to Sydney.

They got advice from a migration agent as they didn't think they could move until after two years. The agent told them it was no problem at all.

Lucifer-0

Hi.

I'm applying for an ICT skills assessment. Looks like I need all my job references.
This is going to be a real pain. Does anyone have any experience with this. Do I 100% need a reference from each of my jobs?

I would find it hard to track down all of my managers, and as for my last job at home, I don't want to ask them for a reference as I told them I could be home soon and left it open for a possible return if needed.

Any suggestions?

rambo85

Hello,

Just looking for some help on what visa I should apply for and what my chances are of getting it, I have been to oz on a WHV for 2 years from 07/09, when I came home I went to college for 3 years and got a degree in software development and have been working for the past year, I would like to return next year, I have a sister who is a resident and is married to an Australian, would she be able to sponsor me? Would a 457 visa be a better route?

Thanks for the reply's!!

Alanhooly

I'm sure to most people on here this will seem like a noob question but in relation to skilled work - I have a 2.1 Level 8 Honours degree in Business with Sports Management, does this make me a skilled migrant or does that only apply to say engineers, carpenters etc. etc. who have specific trades & skills?

Probably a silly question but no harm in asking

Alanhooly

Just had a quick look at the skilled migration list, doesn't look promising. That is the problem with not having a specific degree.

mandrake04

Alanhooly wrote: »

I'm sure to most people on here this will seem like a noob question but in relation to skilled work - I have a 2.1 Level 8 Honours degree in Business with Sports Management, does this make me a skilled migrant or does that only apply to say engineers, carpenters etc. etc. who have specific trades & skills?

Probably a silly question but no harm in asking

Definitely doesn't make you a skilled migrant, only a skilled visa does that.

You need a skills assessment which also requires relevant experience to supplement your qualification, also you need to meet the other criteria as well and score at least 60 points.

You then find a relevant occupation and submit a Expression of Interest, you might then be invited to apply for a skilled visa.

catbear

Hi Folks

We'd been due to finish up on 457s at the end of October but we've just been offered sponsored residency through ENS. I've done some searching around and established that the employer nomination can be lodged at the same time as employee and that decision ready applications can be granted in as little time as three months. We have to get Vetacess and garda clearance though but we have everything else ready to go.

Has anyone been granted PR via decision ready recently and how long did it take? I ask because while out employer wants to sponsor us I'm concerned about what happens if we make our application, get put on a bridging visa but then work dries up. We think is a real possibility and the reason why we'd rather pay the agent fees and not chance the long waiting time by doing it ourselves, some of our friends are waiting nearly a year!

Mellor

catbear wrote: »

Hi Folks

We'd been due to finish up on 457s at the end of October but we've just been offered sponsored residency through ENS. I've done some searching around and established that the employer nomination can be lodged at the same time as employee and that decision ready applications can be granted in as little time as three months. We have to get Vetacess and garda clearance though but we have everything else ready to go.

Has anyone been granted PR via decision ready recently and how long did it take? I ask because while out employer wants to sponsor us I'm concerned about what happens if we make our application, get put on a bridging visa but then work dries up. We think is a real possibility and the reason why we'd rather pay the agent fees and not chance the long waiting time by doing it ourselves, some of our friends are waiting nearly a year!

How long have you been on a 457?
If its more than 2 years you might be able to apply via transition stream, which means no vetassess, and maybe shorter processing.

As for how long, nobody can really tell you. I know people who got it in 4 or 5 weeks, others 12 months.

catbear

Mellor wrote: »

How long have you been on a 457?
If its more than 2 years you might be able to apply via transition stream, which means no vetassess, and maybe shorter processing.

As for how long, nobody can really tell you. I know people who got it in 4 or 5 weeks, others 12 months.

Yeah, we're aware of that. vetassess can take six weeks I think which would bring us to within a month of being here two years. About a year ago we talked with an agent they reckoned it could be granted within four months via decision ready. I guess it makes sense to wait until October but we less confident than our sponsors of there actually being work there next year. Would rather get application in as soon as possible, just don't want to get caught out mid air like wile e coyote!

DeclanClune

catbear wrote: »

Yeah, we're aware of that. vetassess can take six weeks I think which would bring us to within a month of being here two years. About a year ago we talked with an agent they reckoned it could be granted within four months via decision ready. I guess it makes sense to wait until October but we less confident than our sponsors of there actually being work there next year. Would rather get application in as soon as possible, just don't want to get caught out mid air like wile e coyote!

Hi Catbear,
You need your application reviewed and signed off by a RMA if it to be processed as a decision ready application.

Regards,
Declan Clune

catbear

DeclanClune wrote: »

Hi Catbear,
You need your application reviewed and signed off by a RMA if it to be processed as a decision ready application.

Regards,
Declan Clune

Thanks Declan, was thinking of contacting you about a quote, we're definitely going via mara agent to be decision ready.

mandrake04

Visa application charges are up 15% on 1st Sep 2013

DeclanClune

mandrake04 wrote: »

Visa application charges are up 15% on 1st Sep 2013

Hey Mandrake,

Do you have a link to where this information is from. I cannot see it on the DIAC website and I contacted the Australian embassy in London and they no record of further fee increases at this stage.

Thanks in advance for clarifying.

Declan

McTeaLover

Hi Everyone
Myself and my boyfriend are thinking of applying for the skilled migration visa in the next couple of months. I am wondering would we really need to apply through an agency like Visa First or would it be easy enough to do it on our own through Australian immigration?
Any advice would be much appreciated

Thanks!

Lellybelle24

McTeaLover wrote: »

Hi Everyone
Myself and my boyfriend are thinking of applying for the skilled migration visa in the next couple of months. I am wondering would we really need to apply through an agency like Visa First or would it be easy enough to do it on our own through Australian immigration?
Any advice would be much appreciated

Thanks!

When I first looked into applying for permanent residency I thought I should definitely go through an agency (having read numerous accounts online of how "complicated" the process is and how people didn't want to have to "deal with" Australian migration officials). On this basis, I contacted two migration companies and when they disclosed their fees, I then decided to go ahead and try to apply for the visa myself. To be honest, if your case is uncomplicated and you don't mind doing a bit of reading and research, the process is very straight forward.The system the Australian government use is pretty much a step by step process and there are lots of guidelines online. My advice would be to do your research and if you feel you meet the requirements, then apply by yourself. Also, read up on online blogs as you will be able to get great tips on applying/mistakes to avoid making etc. I started the process myself in February and was granted permanent residency in June. Best of luck to you both ;-)

john.co

McTeaLover wrote: »

Hi Everyone
Myself and my boyfriend are thinking of applying for the skilled migration visa in the next couple of months. I am wondering would we really need to apply through an agency like Visa First or would it be easy enough to do it on our own through Australian immigration?
Any advice would be much appreciated

Thanks!

Have to agree with Lellybelle24 above. Went through the process earlier this year and was granted PR in a few months. It's not that complicated but there will be times when you're filling out forms and wondering what the hell they're looking for (that's when you can turn to Boards.ie!) If you're determined to go for it, I'd advise starting the process as early as you can, as everything takes weeks and time slips by quickly! We tried to have everything ready for when we actually applied so once the case officer was assigned it was a relatively quick decision.
Seriously - read through Booklet 6 from the Immigration website and it lays it out pretty well, if you've any questions I'd be happy to answer if I can.
The steps for me were [1] getting qualification assessed (had an mutually recognised degree so was pretty straightforward), [2] did IELTS exam - I decided to sit the IELTS rather than rely on points from my previous professional experience as I reckoned it was a more straightforward method of 'proving' points than contacting old employers and ensuring that my experience was appropriate etc. Once I got the invite, I uploaded all my info and while waiting for a case officer to be assigned, did my medical and got police certs - they were all uploaded by time case officer assigned so they had all the info needed to make a decision.
For proof of defacto relationship - start gathering your stuff together now as it takes awhile to figure out a way of putting it together and make sense of it!
Best of luck!

McTeaLover

Thanks a million guys that really helps! I will start researching and see what that the story is.

Brainy Smurf

We are using an agent ATM and its a pain having to get the documents together. But I have to get them anyway and they probably gave me a kick up the a$$ to get the stuff together. The agent warned us about the fee changes. I got my ass in gear and we got our application in before Immigration brought in changes - so they saved us a ton of money. Using an agent is more expensive than doing it yourself but if you are using an agent - it is worth pricing around.

dodgylegs

Hi,

We did it without an agent we applied for 190 visa 24th May 2013 - visa granted 2nd July 2013 (we were onshore). Our case was straight forward i.e. easy to prove defacto, no need for ielts, clear evidence already of work experience etc.

Sit down and write a list of all the documents you need to collect, I would recommend getting a colour scanner,, every time you collect a piece of information, scan it and file e.g. defacto folder, work experience folder, medical folder etc. When you get your case officer, everything will be ready to go.

birthmother

Hi John.co, What kind of things do you need to have to prove defacto we are together since 1999 and have two children born 02 & 06. We don't have joint bank accounts but have a joint lease, what else would we need, any help would be great.

john.co

birthmother wrote: »

Hi John.co, What kind of things do you need to have to prove defacto we are together since 1999 and have two children born 02 & 06. We don't have joint bank accounts but have a joint lease, what else would we need, any help would be great.

Proving the de-facto relationship kind of stressed us out the most but in the end didn't prove a problem. We had been told to open a joint bank account as soon as we arrived in Australia and I think this really helped (I used it to show both incomes going into current account, as well as prove household expenses were paid from it - shopping at Coles/Woolies, weekly rent, bonds, car rego etc).[Note: this bank account would only have been in place for about 7 months from arriving to time of visa application]
I think that with two children together and a joint lease, that should make a strong case to be honest! Apart from the joint bank account - we just included anything that had both our names on it and looked official. I stuck in car insurance certs, flights and holiday booking emails and then the holiday photos, photos of both of us together at events like college graduations, weddings and with each others' parents etc. I included a statement about being in a committed relationship (blah,blah,blah) just for good measure.

Think this page on the Immigration website sets things out pretty clearly:
http://www.immi.gov.au/media/fact-sheets/35relationship.htm

Reading through this, I can't see it being much of a problem for you really - though that's only my opinion! I think if you've everything else in order, try and lay it out in a format that's easy for them to check it off the list then it definitely helps.
If you have any other questions, just ask away!
I can recommend getting everything in order as soon as possible, it takes ages to arrange everything in a format that makes sense to a third party reading it.

[For the record, I created a Word document, had a quick statement at the start outlining our relationship and then included photos and scanned documents with a comment on each setting out what the document was showing (joint bank account, flights booking, photos from holiday, college graduation and dates) and then saved as a pdf file. The visa application system allows you to upload documents under heading such as lease, joint bank account etc]

birthmother

Thanks John.co,
We started the process in Jan with an agent paid them 1000 and didn't hear a thing back so lost that money. I started the process myself then even though my partner is the main applicant, got the skills access which took 3 months, then the ielts and just yesterday got the invitation from Southern inland NSW (waiting 5 weeks)to apply for state sponsorship, we have all the documents ready to go just getting the reasons for wanting to go there together (making sure we have a good letter and worded right), will be posting that tomorrow (so wish us luck). We had to go this route because of extra points we needed. We are still in Ireland so not going to open joint bank acc here but hopefully we have enough for the defacto, If you have any advice on the letter of commitment we would be grateful. Will keep you posted of how we get on. Thanks again for taking the time to give your advise it is very much appreciated. Marteen

john.co

birthmother wrote: »

Thanks John.co,
We started the process in Jan with an agent paid them 1000 and didn't hear a thing back so lost that money. I started the process myself then even though my partner is the main applicant, got the skills access which took 3 months, then the ielts and just yesterday got the invitation from Southern inland NSW (waiting 5 weeks)to apply for state sponsorship, we have all the documents ready to go just getting the reasons for wanting to go there together (making sure we have a good letter and worded right), will be posting that tomorrow (so wish us luck). We had to go this route because of extra points we needed. We are still in Ireland so not going to open joint bank acc here but hopefully we have enough for the defacto, If you have any advice on the letter of commitment we would be grateful. Will keep you posted of how we get on. Thanks again for taking the time to give your advise it is very much appreciated. Marteen

Hey Marteen, I applied for the 189 Skilled Independent visa so don't have any experience of the state sponsorship aspect of your visa application but since you've got the invitation hopefully that'll be straightforward enough. As for proving your de-facto relationship, I really think it won't be a problem since you have children together. I wouldn't worry too much about writing up the letter, just set out your relationship, keep it simple and clear and throw in a few of the buzzwords they look for "mutual commitment to a shared life to the exclusion of all others", "the relationship ... is genuine and continuing, "live together, or do not live separately and apart, on a permanent basis".
Remember if they're not clear about something, they'll request further information (and in some cases, they ask for certified letters of reference).

I like to think that the person dealing with a visa application is reasonable enough - you'll be sending in an application with all the documentation in English, once it's presented in a clear and coherent format that allows them to tick off all the boxes required...hopefully it'll work out.
Don't forget that once a case officer is assigned and reviewing your application, they will request police certs (usually take two weeks from the Gardai) and also medicals (I did mine over here so not sure of process in Ireland) but these can add on more weeks to your application. We got our police certs and medicals done before being asked for them - this can be risky though as they're only valid for a certain length of time (usually a year) so if the application gets delayed etc, these documents might be out of date.

As for your encounter with the Migration Agent, Immigration services over here are very particular about who can give out advice on immigration - requiring all those involved to be registered with MARA - see here about making a complaint http://www.immi.gov.au/visas/migration-agents/reporting-problems.htm

Best of luck!!

birthmother

Thanks John.co

Slideways

I put in my EOI on the Friday afternoon for both the state sponsored and 189 visas. Got called to apply on Monday for 189

Application in now as it was all ready to go and am doing my medical this week.

My immigration agent reckons 6-8 weeks should see it sorted.

Does this visa require you to leave the country to activate it?

laoisforliam

Only if you applied for it off shore (Which I assume you didn't)

digiman

mandrake04 wrote: »

Visa application charges are up 15% on 1st Sep 2013

I'm getting a migration agent to handle the skills assessment for me and then I am hoping that my employer will do the rest. I want to have the skills part already done so I am just able to apply then for the EOI early next year.

I want to have my partner on the sponsorship also, does this mean I will have to pay $3520 for me and $4575 for her? We are living here almost 2 years now on a 457 and have moved jobs already.

RollerGirl

Has anyone been approved for ENS PR/Visa 186 recently?

If so, how long did it take between the application being lodged and decision/approval?

Mellor

digiman wrote: »

I want to have my partner on the sponsorship also, does this mean I will have to pay $3520 for me and $4575 for her? We are living here almost 2 years now on a 457 and have moved jobs already.

The $4575 fee refers to a standalone partner visa, eg somebody in a relationship with an Australian.

For a defacto on a GSM, I'm not sure if there's a fee right now. I know for ENS a partner fee was brought in this July, which equals 50% of the application fee, just over $1500