Australian Immigration Daily News

The following email has been received this afternoon from the AAT:

Further to Deputy President’s email of 22 July 2020, two optional, online forms are now available on the Migration and Refugee forms page of the AAT website: an expedited decision request form and a withdrawal form. 

The expedited decision request form, which can be accessed on this web page, will allow  representatives and applicants to make expedited decision requests in accordance with the COVID-19 Special Measures Practice Direction. The form is designed to guide users as to the types of cases that are ordinarily considered suitable for an expedited decision, broken down by visa type. Documentary evidence can be directly uploaded when using the form however representatives should also provide a statement detailing why they consider the case suitable for an expedited decision. 

Earlier this year Skill Select launched EOI Dashboard which was quickly removed due to a number of concerns including exposing sensitive data.

The Department has undertaken a review of the SkillSelect Dashboard to ensure that there is no reasonable chance of an individual being re-identified from the EOI statistics.

The dashboard is now available again and can be accessed via the Department’s SkillSelect web page and comprises a comprehensive library of historic and current statistics in relation to Expressions of Interest (EOIs).  The dashboard is a one-stop shop for SkillSelect EOI statistics and is freely available on demand, without any need to formally request the statistics and wait for such a request to be processed. Bypassing the FOI process will significantly reduce delays in obtaining the same information as has previously been provided in response to FOI requests.

As mentioned in our earlier articles, temporary visa holders do not need an exemption to depart Australia. They can leave at any time, as long as border restrictions in their home country allow them to return.

Commercial flights are available in several major airports across Australia. These airlines are currently operating flights departing Australia:

Airlines flying include:

Australia has always been an international student hub and COVID19 had a major effect how students maintain their stay in Australia.

According to the Department of Education and Training Student visa holders contribute $40 billion to the Australian economy and support around 250,000 jobs.  It is therefore paramount that we keep a pathway for students open where it is safe to do so.

As announced last week, international students will be able to extend their visa-free of cost, those who hold a student visa but are offshore will be eligible to apply for a post-study work visa (485) are some of the changes announced to student visa arrangements announced by the government.

Australian Borderforce has made a number of changes to temporary visa holder arrangements during the coronavirus crisis in order to protect the health of the community.

It should be noted that employers are still required to abide by all relevant Australian workplace laws. Overseas workers, including international students, have the same rights under Australian workplace law as all other employees.

Below are some of the industry sectors where COVID 19 changes have been implemented: