Australian Immigration Daily News

The following is an email received by Migration Alliance from Vetassess which clears up questions that RMAs have asked during our Brisbane conference:

Here is my reply to the following questions I received  at the VETASSESS presentation I gave to Migration Alliance last Saturday in Brisbane.  You kindly offered to arrange for my reply to be forwarded to the agents who attended that presentation.

Questions

1.       Is our Pathway 2 criteria the same as TRA’s?

Answer:  Yes, our criteria is the same as TRA’s as we are required to follow the Pathway 2 criteria specified by TRA.  The TRA website explains this pathway:

Pathway 2, under the Offshore Skills Assessment Program, is for applicants who hold a relevant Australian qualification.

The TRA website advises applicants for a Pathway 2 assessment as follows:

You must submit decision ready* documentary evidence of your skills, employment experience and Australian qualification to a TRA-approved RTO for assessment. The RTO you choose will tell you what documentation is required.

You must demonstrate at least three years full time paid employment in a relevant and directly related trade, including 12 months full time paid employment in the nominated trade in the two years before you lodge your application. Evidence of employment undertaken on a part time basis can also be considered and counted toward the employment requirement on a pro rata basis.
 
If your evidence demonstrates that you have the necessary skills and experience relevant to your nominated occupation, you will be invited to participate in a technical assessment ………….
 
If successful, your TRA-approved RTO will issue you with a skilled migration outcome letter that can be presented to DIAC with your visa application.

If unsuccessful, the RTO will advise you of gaps identified in your skills and experience.

2.       Do Australian trade qualifications  achieved through RPL of employment meet the VETASSESS employment criteria for a Pathway 2 Skills Assessment?

Answer:  The RPL employment will be taken into consideration against the criteria for Pathway 2 criteria (see above). Generally, successful VETASSESS Pathway 2 applicants have worked several years in their nominated trade occupation with recent employment in that trade before they gain an Australian trade qualification.  This employment may have been undertaken on-shore or off-shore.

3.       Can VETASSESS provide a Skills Assessment for an air-conditioning mechanic from Israel?

Answer:  No, under an agreement with TRA, VETASSESS only assesses air-conditioning tradespersons from the United Kingdom.   Applicants in this trade from other countries should contact TRA for advice.

Regards,

Rosemary Woodger
Acting Executive Director
VETASSESS

This instrument operates by specifying classes of persons who are eligible to make an application for a subclass 600 (Visitor) visa to Australia via the internet on form 1419 (Internet).

For more information and further details click here:

http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Details/F2013L01699

Sydney Tafe held a Scholarship Presentation on 18 June 2013 to acknowledge students who were awarded scholarships from the contributions received through 457 Training Benchmarks. Migra

457 business sponsors were invited to the presentation to see first hand how their funds were used. 

Each student told their own story of how the funds have helped them to achieve their potential:    

•    Tim is an Aboriginal student who has overcome personal life challenges and is now studying music.  Tim wants to “help people through music” and volunteers teaching piano at Redfern Community Centre.
•    Adam is a young refugee orphan who arrived in Australia at age 14 with minimal schooling and no English language skills.  Adam wants to be a builder and is now studying building and construction. 
•    Alex has overcome homelessness to follow his goal of studying and working in the field of audio and sound production.
  
Business sponsors can easily become an acknowledged sponsor of a Sydney Institute scholarship for a student enrolled in a course related to their industry.  The following link provides further information:

Craig West is an Australian tax and strategy accountant who has created a great business which focusses on small to medium business owners, and helps them face the four key strategic issues that SME’s face as they grow:

• Raising Capital
• Building Equity
• Protecting that equity
• Extracting the value you have built when you exit.

Craig advises SIV 188 and 888 applicants on businesses in management, taxation and accounting issues, as he has done for his onshore clients for over 15 years.  

Craig has conducted numerous seminars and presentations throughout Australia for Department of Industry, Tourism and Resources, MIA (see photo),  MLC, L J Hooker, the NSW Department of State & Regional Development, NSW Chamber of Commerce and CPA Australia.  Above is a picture taken of Craig at a MIA event this year.

Craig has been an expert adviser with a weekly segment on the Alan Jones breakfast radio program in Sydney and was a founding member of Thought Leaders.

Craig acts as a strategic business and financial mentor for business owners and has written three critically acclaimed books educating business owners on employee incentives, succession planning and asset protection and has recently been invited to complete a PhD in Business Succession Planning at Deakin University in Melbourne.

Migration Alliance is pleased to have forged a strategic relationship with Craig. We believe that the expertise within Succession Plus is a good fit with SIV and other high net worh individuals migrating to Australia.  We look forward to Craig presenting at some future migration agent CPD events across Australia.

DIAC have sent through an update letter to Migration Alliance re Melbourne and Dandenong.

Please find a copy of the letter below:

Letter-to-Agents_Melbourne-and-Dandenong-Counter-Services-are-Changing.pdf