The annual intake of migrants is now a very hot political issue in Australia. The intake went as high as 300,000 and has now fallen to 240,000 and will fall to 145,000 in 2011-2012.

There is a national debate going on right now about the sustainability of population growth in Australia. The government has just appointed its first Population Minister.

The recent May Federal Budget froze the overall permanent migration intake at 168,700.

However there was in INCREASE in SKILLED MIGRATION intake of 5750.

Right now the key to successful and fast tracked migration to Australia is the new high demand list published by the government for skilled occupations. See our earlier blog post on this.

Australian Visa Experts has the expertise and experience to assess your chances of success quickly and if you qualify to get your visa application lodged with minimum delay. If you don’t yet qualify for permanent visa we can assist you to find an employer sponsor to sponsor you on a temporary visa until such time as you qualify for a permanent visa.

The government is tightening up its laws, regulations and policies around migration, so if you truly wish to live and work in this beautiful country you had best move quickly.

We are on standby ready to assist you realize your dreams.

Australian Visa Experts

1. THE NEW SKILLED OCCUPATION LIST RELEASED

The new SOL (Skilled Occupation List) was released on Monday 17^th May. It will take effect on the 1^st July 2010. The current SOL has more than 400 occupations. The new list of occupations, which was announced by the Minister on 17 May 2010, includes 181 occupations. As expected the list has been greatly reduced and occupations such as Cook and Hairdresser have been removed. The new list is available on the Department of

Immigration and Citizenship’s (DIAC) website at: http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/general-skilled-migration/whats-new.html

2.     QUALIFIED MOTOR MECHANICS NEEDED!

Dear Visa Aspirants,

We have been advised by The Department of Economic Development, Tourism and the Arts of Tasmania that they, in conjunction, with a Tasmanian employer are seeking qualified Motor Mechanics. Their preference is for applicants who have had a positive skills assessment and a satisfactory IELTS (English language test) result. We can assist with this process and provide further details (i.e. job description) should you believe you have the skills, work experience and qualifications.

Please contact us for further details.

Australian Visa Experts

There is a lot of debate going on in Australia about how many migrants to take in each year, and who should be given priority for visas.

The two main political parties are arguing over the issue of how many migrants per year is sustainable in Australia.

Business is very concerned that the intake not be reduced so that they cannot find the skilled workers they need if their demand for certain skills exceeds what is available to them from the local employment market.

There is another issue to - the aging population. In 40 years the project more than 8 million Australians will be aged 65 of more. Right now only 3 million are aged 65 or more. So that is a very big increase and it raises concerns as to how aged care will be financed out of taxation if there are not enough younger people in the work force paying tax.

Most commentators agree that Australia cannot afford not to take in at least 180,000 migrants a year.

So this is good news for potential migrants IF you have the right sort of skills needed by Australia now and into the future.

There is also a much bigger emphasis now on having good English speaking skills.

The indications are that the most favored skills needed now and over next decade will be more white collar than blue collar and will favor professionals in manufacturing and administrative roles.

Demand will continue to strengthen for temporary 457 visas.

Australian Visa Experts is offering a paid service to help match qualifying skilled workers with employers to sponsor them under a 457 visa.

If you are interested in such assistance please use our special enquiry form by using FIND A SPONSOR from our Menu.

We look forward to helping you.

AUSTRALIAN VISA EXPERTS

This comes direct from the Financial Review today - one of Australia’s leading newspapers.

LABOUR TARGETS SKILLS SHORTAGES

The federal government is planning a series of training, immigration and infrastructure reforms to address worsening skills shortages as the resources boom adds an expected $92 billion the economy over the next 5 years.

Options being explored include new models for vocational education and on-the -job training as well as more targeted temporary skilled migration to quickly meet industry demands.

Employers and trainees could win new financial incentives to encourage the take up of apprenticeships as part of the overhaul of all state and federal training incentives being considered by a government taskforce.

Now is a good time to be getting the right quality advice to position yourself to take advantage of this change in circumstances and changes in government policy.

Just submit your enquiry from our website and we will get back to you.

If you need a sponsor - lodge your enquiry using our FIND A SPONSOR enquiry template that you will find on our website.

AUSTRALIAN VISA EXPERTS

A recent headline in the Sydney Morning Herald read DOCTORS FLOCK TO AUSTRALIA FOR JOBS.

There were similar ones about  nurses and engineers.

The article pointed out that more doctors, nurses and engineers are migrating to Australia now than hairdressers and cooks.

Times are changing and the skills shortage priorities are changing. What was the big shortage a few years ago is now no longer the main shortage.

The Australian Government is favoring applications from people who have the skills that Australia needs right now the most.

In last 12 months the number of visas issued for hairdressers fell 64% and 53% for cooks; whilst visas for doctors more than doubled.

Approvals for nurses, engineers, high school teachers and welders also rose over last year.

The government is overhauling its skilled migrant immigration laws and policy. It is calling for submissions on how a new points test to grade potential migrants should look. It wants the new system to work better in ensuring that only those who have skills that Australia really needs are allowed to get a skilled migrant visa. It is calling them the “highest value applicants”.

It is more critical than ever now that you use the services of a highly skilled migration agent who is totally abreast these changes.

AUSTRALIAN VISA EXPERTS