Applying for an Australian skilled visa is a lengthy and complicated process. The purpose of Australia’s skilled migration program is to fill gaps in Australia’s workforce to grow their economy. This is reflected in Australia’s skilled occupation lists and state sponsorship requirements, both of which dictate who can secure a visa to live and work in Australia.
With covid rocking world economies and threatening global health systems, securing a skilled visa has become more difficult and changes are occurring on a more frequent basis. Below, we outline the most recent changes impacting overseas skilled visa applicants.
As Australian states reopen their sponsorship programs, there is much confusion about who is eligible. Below, we outline the basic eligibility for offshore applicants.
South Australia is open to limited offshore applicants. We have had two clients successfully gain South Australian sponsorship and invitations to apply for their skilled visas in less than 2 weeks!
Tasmania is open to offshore applicants with a job offer. We have had one client successfully secure a job offer, receive an invitation, and lodge their skilled visa within one month.
New South Wales, Western Australia, ACT and Victoria are closed to offshore applicants.
Queensland remains temporarily closed. We do not expect them to open to offshore applicants anytime soon given the current climate.
To summarise, offshore applicants can only apply to South Australia or Tasmania (job offer) for state sponsorship. Options continue to be very limited, and we encourage our clients to take whatever options are available to them (if any).
There is much excitement about states reopening, but the reality is that it generally applies to onshore applicants only. If you want to understand your visa options, then seek advice from a licensed migration agent. We charge just £60 for a consultation with our agent. Determining your exact visa options before spending large amounts of money on the process is advisable.
Skill Assessment Fee Increases
A skills assessment is the first process in securing an Australian skilled visa. Each occupation has a different assessing body with different requirements and fees.
Trades Recognition Australia (TRA) will increase their fees on 1 September 2021. TRA announced this the Federal Budget 2021-22. You can find their latest fees on the TRA website.
Teachers can expect a fee increase on 1 September 2021 also. The Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) will increase their fee from $860 to $1050 AUD.
Vetassess professional occupations – Changes to required evidence
On 9 August 2021, Vetassess changed the way professional occupations evidence their work experience. New forms have been created for selected professional occupations to complete as part of their skills assessment. This is to enable applicants to present their portfolio of work in a more streamlined and concise manner.
Certain applicants must download and fill in the editable form, then log on to the online application portal to upload it as part of the documentation requirements.
The new forms will be used to support skills assessment applications in the below occupations:
Conference and Event Organiser
ICT Sales Professionals
Technical Sales Representatives
ICT Sales Representative
Sales Representative (Industrial Products)
ICT Account Manager
Sales Representative (Medical and Pharmaceutical Products)
Technical Sales Representative nec
ICT Business Development Manager
Farmers and farm-related occupations
For Designers and Draftspersons, you should provide a link to your portfolio or upload samples of your design work.
While Australia is still accepting skilled visa applications, it has become a more difficult and lengthy process. If you would like an honest and professional service then we recommend booking a consultation with an experienced and licensed migration agent. Best of luck!
Visa Go have been amazing from day one in supporting us with our visa application for moving to Australia. Sue was our case officer and has been so patient in answering all of our questions and providing updates along the way. Having someone who we trusted to take care of the process really took the pressure off. The communication is excellent. We were granted our 491 visa yesterday morning!!! We will be using Visa Go when the time comes to apply for our permanent residency 191 🎉☀️
This was one of the most difficult challenges of my life to obtain a regional skilled migration visa for Australia. There were so many obstacles and hurdles to jump due to Covid lockdown and a race against ageism rules of turning 45. I certainly could not have done this without the help of visa go! Managed to secure an Invitation to apply from the Australian Government and with the assistance of my wonderful agent managed to fast track my ITA four days before my birthday! Never give up on your dreams. I now have my visa that can lead to PR thanks to Visa Go! You guys were awesome and really appreciate your help. ☺️
I can’t thank Kimberley and Darren enough for all the time, effort and support they gave us whilst going through our visa process. They answered any and all questions and made such a daunting undertaking much less stressful with all their advice and guidance. Would highly recommend!
We would just like to say a huge thank you to the Visa Go Australia team, especially Sue our caseworker who has been fantastic since the start, everything went smooth through the whole process, we was kept updated and informed along the way. We would definitely recommend and we can’t wait to head down under now our Visa has been granted. Couldn’t of done it without you. Thank you again!
After 4 1/2 years since our first contact with Visa Go Australia, and just over 3 years since starting our process with them, our visa has finally been granted and I cannot thank Sue and Darren enough! We had a very complex skill assessment stage but without Sue helping us with what we had to do, it wouldn’t of been possible without her. I highly recommend using Visa Go if you’re ready to start your journey to Australia or anywhere else, they have made our dreams come true! Thank you Sue, Darren and Kimberley 😁
I would highly recommend visa go. Darren always took the time to answer any questions and help me through the process. Within weeks he had my partner visa submitted and now I have my permanent residency! I couldn’t thank Darren and the team enough 👍
Visa Go Australia are experts in their field. My case officer, Sue, has been very professional and knowledgeable throughout the process providing great customer service, from providing the documents required to promptly replying to all queries. So, to Darren, Kimberley and Sue, thank you all for your support to achieve my Visa.
Good and efficient services, clear information on what documents to provide and quick answers to my questions. Got two visas approved with Kimberleys help 😊.
Visa Go Australia provided amazing service when applying for a partner visa. They provide great support and advice throughout the process to ensure your application is done perfectly. Kimberley was always very patient answering my questions, and following up on things I missed. I would highly recommend Visa Go to anyone applying for an Australian visa.
Visa Go were fantastic at helping me secure my partner visa . The whole process was very simple and well explained - and I got the permanent residency after only a few months which was amazing. Kimberley was very helpful and supportive throughout the process and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them to anyone!
Kimberley and Darren helped myself and my partner with our Australian residencies and we couldn’t be happier. Even through lockdown Kimberley was attentive and on the ball at all times, my visa process took no time at all! I’ve already recommended friends to visa go as they truly know what they are doing and are there to help and make the process as straight forward as possible. Highly recommend!!!
I used Visa Go to apply for my Partner Visa and I have been super impressed with the service and turnaround time. Kimberley was very thorough with her communication and kept us updated through out the whole process. I can’t recommend the service enough!
My agent with Visa go was Kimberley Chatt. She was fantastic the whole way through. Always had very professional and prompt responses whenever I had a query. I felt like she went above and beyond to help me understand each step of the process. I now have my permanent partner visa in Australia and couldn't be happier. She turned what can often be a long arduous ordeal into a streamlined easy process. I would highly recommend this agency to anyone looking to immigrate to Australia. Thanks again Kimberley!
My Husband and I used Visa Go Australia to support us through our Visa process. Our Visa advisor was Sue, Sue was great from start to finish, always so helpful and replied to our emails and calls so quickly. Our visa process took 11 months (as expected for the visa we applied for) and Sue kept us on track and up to date all the time, extremely organised and always happy to help and provide us with her support. I highly recommend Visa Go Australia, we couldn't imagine trying to go through this process without Sues help and guidance. Samantha Mills
Visa Go provided an excellent service. They were professional, helpful and efficient throughout the visa process and Sue, my designated migration agent, always had words of encouragement to help deal with the tedium of the paperwork. I am a professional and I thought using a migration agent was probably unnecessary. I thought I could manage the paperwork process myself. However, it quickly became clear to me that an agent's assistance was very necessary. Visa Go's knowledge was invaluable and I have no hesitation in recommending their services.
Using Visa Go Australia was the BEST decision we made when planning for our move to Australia. My husband is British and needed an offshore 309 spouse visa. Sue made our life so much easier supporting us every step of the way. I was impressed with her knowledge, every question I had was answered quickly and with confidence. There is a huge amount of time and effort your agent does in the background so that you don't have to. I always felt like a priority and that I was in the safe hands of an expert. Not to mention how kind and friendly the agents are. I would highly recommend this company to anyone - 5 star service!
Visa Go Australia were integral in getting our visas granted, without them the whole process would have been so difficult for us to get everything right, they were always so happy to help no matter how silly the question. They split the process up in to manageable chunks and made sure that we were always ready for the next step which really minimised the stress of it all. Can't thank Darren and Kimberley enough. Calam, Charlie and Rory
Me and my partner Cynthia have successfully been granted our partner visa for Australia and could definitely not have done it without all of the never ending help from Sue. Any visa process is always stressful, yet they helped so much with any problems we had along the way. I can't recommend this company enough! If you're worried about applying for a visa, you can rest assured that with their experience and knowledge, partnered with how lovely they always are even with the smallest of questions that you will be having your visa granted in no time with minimal stress! Thank so much for all your help! Jonas & Cynthia
We were recently granted a PR Visa and the work that Sue puts in in the background is commendable. Darren and Sue have been great to work with over the last 2 years and we were kept up to date the whole way. I would highly recommend anyone applying for a visa to do it through them. They made sure we had all the information at every step of they way and nothing was ever a problem if I called or emailed. Thank you so much to all of the team! Denny, Victoria and Caitlyn
I can not recommend these enough, was with us all the way, even when things got frustrating, no fault of the company, just how long the process takes. You do have to be patient and understand they have to wait on the migration department. It is worth using an agent. They completed a PMV300 for us and are now doing the next stage. It really does unburden a lot of stress during what is a stressful time. Even long after I was given advice and guidance when the job had already been completed. Honest, reliable and understanding. Thank you and keep well all. Marie & Jodie
https://visa-go.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Passport-uk-travel-scaled.jpg8001200Kimberley Chatthttps://visa-go.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/logo-new.pngKimberley Chatt2023-01-11 08:25:322023-01-11 08:36:15How to update passport details with Australian immigration
