Archive for October, 2009

Skilled Migration Processing Priorities and Critical Skills List

Published by Nora Lamont on Saturday 24th of October, 2009

The Minister has set priority processing arrangements, which apply to the following visas from 23 September 2009:

Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS)

Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS)

General Skilled Migration (GSM) visas except for:

Skilled – Recognised Graduate Subclass 476

Skilled – Designated Area – Sponsored (Residence) Subclass 883

Skilled – Regional Subclass 887.

The following General Skilled Migration visas are affected by priority processing:

Skill Matching Subclass 134
•
Skilled – Independent Subclass 136
•
Skilled – State/Territory-nominated Independent Subclass 137
•
Skilled – Australian-sponsored Subclass 138
•
Skilled – Designated Area-sponsored Subclass 139
•
Skilled – Independent Subclass 175
•
Skilled – Independent Subclass 176
•
Skilled – Regional Sponsored Subclass 475
•
Skilled – Graduate Subclass 485
•
Skilled – Regional Sponsored Subclass 487
•
Skilled – Independent Regional Subclass 495
•
Skilled – Designated Area-sponsored (Provisional) Subclass 496
•
Graduate – Skilled Subclass 497
•
Skilled – Onshore Independent New Zealand Citizen Subclass 861
•
Skilled – Onshore Australian-sponsored New Zealand Citizen Subclass 862
•
Skilled – Onshore Designated Area-sponsored New Zealand Citizen Subclass 863
•
Skilled – Independent Overseas Student Subclass 880
•
Skilled – Australian-sponsored Subclass 881
•
Skilled – Designated Area-sponsored Overseas Student Subclass 882
•
Skilled – Independent Subclass 885
•
Skilled – Sponsored Subclass 886

Under the Ministerial Direction, the following processing priorities (with highest priority listed first) apply:
1. applications from people who are employer sponsored under the ENS and the RSMS
2. applications from people who are nominated by a State/Territory government and whose nominated occupation is listed on the Critical Skills List (CSL)
3. applications from people who are sponsored by family and whose nominated occupation is listed on the CSL
4. applications from people who are neither nominated nor sponsored but whose nominated occupation is listed on the CSL
5. applications from people who are nominated by a State/Territory government whose nominated occupation is not listed on the CSL
6. (i) applications from people whose occupations are listed on the Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL) and
(ii) applications from people who are sponsored by family and whose nominated occupation is not listed on the CSL.
7. all other applications are to be processed in the order in which they are received.

Critical Skills List

ASCO Number Occupation Shortages – Professional
2312-11 Anaesthetist
2381-11 Dentist
4315-11 Electronic Equipment Trades
2312-15 Emergency Medicine Specialist
2129-17 Engineer – Chemical
2124-11 Engineer – Civil
2125-11 Engineer – Electrical
2125-13 Engineer – Electronics
2126-11 Engineer – Mechanical
2127-11 Engineer – Mining
2126-13 Engineer – Production or Plant Engineer
4114-15 Aircraft Maintenance Engineer – Avionics
4114-11 Aircraft Maintenance Engineer – Mechanical
4431-13 Gasfitter
2311-11 General Medical Practitioner
2391-11 Medical Diagnostic Radiographer
2312-17 Obstetrician & Gynaecologist
2383-11 Occupational Therapist
2382-11 Pharmacist (Hospital)
2382-15 Pharmacist (Retail)
2385-11 Physiotherapist
2388-11 Podiatrist
2312-27 Psychiatrist
2122-11 Quantity Surveyor
2325-11 Registered Mental Health Nurse
2324-11 Registered Midwife
2323-11 Registered Nurse
2413-11 Secondary School Teacher
2312-79 Specialist Medical Practitioners NEC
2312-25 Specialist Physician
2312-31 Surgeon
2123-13 Surveyor
2523-11 Urban & Regional Planner
4416-11 Wall and Floor Tiler
2386-11 Speech Pathologist
2391-17 Sonographer
2312-19 Ophthalmologist
2312-21 Paediatrician
2312-23 Pathologist
2312-29 Radiologist
2211-11 Accountant — where the applicant has achieved a score of at least IELTS 7 in each of the four competencies, and/or has completed The Professional Year – Skilled Migration Internship Program Accounting (SMIPA).
Computing Professionals — where the applicant’s specialisation is listed on the Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL).

Critical Skills list as of March 2009. Provided by the Department of Immigration

Only use a REGISTERED Migration Agent

Published by Nora Lamont on Saturday 24th of October, 2009

Registered migration agents are the only professionals in Australia registered by the commonwealth to provide migration advice and assistance. Always make sure to use a registered agent. See the article from today’s Melbourne Age newspaper on what happens to unregistered agents and those who use them:
AN UNREGISTERED migration agent was arrested in a raid at her suburban home yesterday and is set to be charged with multiple migration fraud and identity crime offences over Melbourne’s biggest international student cash-for-certificates scam.
The Chinese-born woman was taken from her Carnegie home by members of the Australian Federal Police Identity Security Strike Team and federal immigration officers. The office of her ”migration and legal service” in Queen Street in the city was then raided and computers and documents seized.
An Immigration Department spokesman said an ”unlawful non-citizen” was also arrested at the Queen Street office.
The spokesman said: ”It is alleged that, for a fee, those involved have been providing clients with fraudulent education qualifications and bogus documentation to support their permanent residency applications.”
It will be alleged that more than 250 Chinese and Indian students in Melbourne were involved and that the paperwork was from education providers and also workplaces.
The Age has learnt that a CBD trades school allegedly supplying the woman with education certificates was recently deregistered after being investigated by state regulators.
In separate cases, students have been charged up to $20,000 for fake certificates from colleges and workplaces they never attend. The students in the latest scam face deportation or detention under migration fraud regulations because they may have used false documents to gain residency.
The arrest yesterday is linked to a series of raids last December in which nine businesses were searched but no arrests made. It was alleged then the central business raided, Hong Yun International in Little Collins Street, was an unregistered migration agency.

New Citizenship Test Launched

Published by Nora Lamont on Tuesday 20th of October, 2009

New Citizenship Test Launched Monday 19 October
The Australian government has instituted a new citizenship test.
The new test includes questions on Australia’s democratic beliefs, laws and government as well as the responsibilities and privileges of citizenship.
The test includes 20 multiple-choice questions and will be conducted in English only. All test questions are from the test section of the revised citizenship test resource book, Australian Citizenship: Our Common Bond.
The new test was developed after an independent review of the old citizenship test last year found that it could be improved by focusing on the pledge of commitment.

People will now need to answer 75 % correct or 15 of the 20 questions correctly to pass – up from 60 per cent under the old test. The mandatory questions have been removed. A person can no longer answer 19 out of 20 questions correctly and still fail the test because they answered one of the three mandatory questions incorrectly.
A citizenship course is also under development to help disadvantaged people, who are likely to struggle when preparing for and sitting a formal computer-based test.

Australian Immigration

Published by Nora Lamont on Wednesday 14th of October, 2009

Lamont Migration now offers you another domain name to access free assessments for all your visa needs including work visas, permanent residency and student visas. Visit LMA at www.lamontaustralianimmigration.com.au

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