Book Now Q: What have foreign aircrew, graduate students and employer sponsors have in common?
A: They are all subject to changes to the Migration Regulations on 18 April 2015 – and surprise surprise most of the changes are nice (unless you’re a foreign airline staff or flight coordinator)!
Here they are and they are effective from 18 April 2015*:-
Foreign Flight Crew
The number of domestic flights that foreign aircrew holding Special Purpose Visas are allowed to work on will be reduced. This will mean a limit of two connecting domestic flights for foreign air crew and one connecting domestic flight for positioning foreign air crew. The Immigration Minister’s reasoning is that this “ensures that opportunities for Australian workers on domestic flights are protected”.
English Test Expiry
If you’re applying for a visa where an invitation to apply for the visa is required (such as a Skilled Independent Visa) there are changes to the expiry date of any English test results you may have. The English tests can now be taken withing 3 years of your invitation to apply, not 3 years from the date of application for your visa. This is a much better idea because it eliminates tests expiring between your invitation to apply for the visa and lodging your visa application.
Relaxed English Language requirements for Subclass 485 and Subclass 476 visa applicants
Whilst not fully explained as yet, there will be lower English language requirements for Subclass 485 Graduate Work Stream and Post Study Work Visa and Subclass 476, Skilled Recognized Graduate. Currently, applicants for these visas require Competent English which is a score of 6 in each component of the IELTS. The new scores needed for these visas will be released by the Minister later, but we expect that an average score will be prescribed rather than a specific score for each aspect of the English tests. We anticipate that the scores required will be a minimum of 5 – 5.5 in each component with an average of 6 altogether, which will give a lot of applicants some wriggle room with their test results and take a lot of pressure off. We will keep you posted on the actual detail of these changes.
Easier Health Requirement for Subclass 485 Visa Applicants
Subclass 485 Temporary Graduate visa applicants will also no longer be required to show that they have booked a medical examination at the time of application for their visa.
Extended Notification periods for Approved Sponsors
There will be new extended time frames for approved sponsors to notify certain changes to the Dept, such as business detail changes, changes in sponsored employees work duties or termination of employment etc. The new period is 28 days, which is a great improvement on the current ten day notification requirement.
Call Australia Here We Come a call on +61 39573 5200 or complete our contact form and we’ll arrange a consultation to assess your prospects of success with this visa type (Fees apply).
*As a result of the Migration Amendment (2015 Measures No. 1) Regulation 2015
