Australian Immigration Daily News

The instrument operates, for the purposes of clause 189.233, to specify the minimum amount of taxable income for the corresponding income years for an applicant in order to meet the primary criteria for a Subclass 189 (Skilled – Independent) visa in the New Zealand stream. A Subclass 189 visa applicant’s taxable income must be no less than the specified amount, unless they are a member of a class of exempt applicants.

The instrument also specifies classes of applicants who are exempt from the requirement to meet the criteria of the minimum amount of taxable income for the relevant whole income year. The instrument specifies the evidence that a Subclass 189 visa applicant must provide to support their claim that they are a member of an exempt class of applicant.

The purpose of the instrument is to specify the minimum amount of taxable income for the income year 2018-2019 by inserting item 8 into the table in section 6 of the instrument. The minimum amount of taxable income for income year 2018-2019 remains unchanged from the previous income year 2017-2018 at $53,900 (again - no change).

The minimum amount of taxable income for income year 2018-2019 has not changed from income years 2013-2014, 2014-2015, 2015-2016, 2016-2017 and 2017-2018.

Migration Alliance has discovered a scam currently taking place in the working holiday visa scheme. 

The scam details we have so far:

• For $800, "criminal entrepreneurs" on social media will find a regional company (aka a "farm"). This "farm" perhaps unbeknownst to the farm, will provide payslips to a working holiday visa holder in their first year.   
• Real farms are used by the "criminal entrepreneurs" for the visa applicants 1263 forms "Working Holiday Visa Employment Verification Form". This form states where the  working holiday visa holder completed the 88 days of regional work experience. 
• "Criminal entrepreneurs" rotate the farm names, and use farms that are less popular so as not to draw attention to themselves.  The farm legitimately does employ real workers and they do the right thing by those workers they actually know about. 
• The criminal entrepreneurs steal copies of the farm work contracts, pay slips and PAYG summaries, and then replicate these documents for the visa applicants that are not going to the farm (the fakers).
• The "criminal entrepreneurs" create fake work contracts for and on behalf of the first year working holiday visa holder, who needs to pretend they have worked on a farm.  We are highly suspicious that the farm is not conspiring with the criminal entrepreneurs and that they in fact may have no idea about these scams.
• The scammers say "don't even worry if you are working above board in Sydney or another city because if your visa is decided on the papers, immigration will not do any investigation into your bank statements"
• The "criminal entrepreneurs" lodge the visa applications for the working holiday makers, attaching all the fake documents that they need.  Then they send them a HAP ID and they go to the doctor by themselves to do their health examinations.  A whole host of gmail addresses are used to make these visa lodgements.
• The more sophisticated version of this scam ask the working holiday visa holder to buy a return flight ticket to the rural or regional area so this shows in the bank statement, but they never actually fly there
• The more sophisticated version of this scam provides the working holiday visa holder with instructions to hand-over their physical bank card to a criminal entrepreneur or representative in a major city.  Their "wages" are put into the bank account of the working holiday maker as a cash deposit. This is so there is no trace of the source of the income.  The bank card is then used by the criminal entrepreneur or their representative in the rural / regional area where the farm is located so that the working holiday maker can evidence that they were using the card in Coles, liquor stores, and other places in the regional area.  This is  just in case Home Affairs want to check that the working holiday maker was actually there.  This service comes as part of an add-on at a cost of $200 which makes it a $1000 total fee for the deluxe-scam package.
• Given that the scammers are in control of the bank accounts and physical cards of the working holiday makers, they even put $5000 in the working holiday maker's bank account so that they can demonstrate they have sufficient funds for the second working holiday visa. 
• The scammers advertise in community language sites and SNS services such as Facebook, KAKAOTalk, Line, WeChat, WhatsApp. 
• A working holiday maker is told that they can even clear immigration just because they have an e-passport, by using e-gates.  They are told that if they re-enter Australia after the visa is granted, the gates will always open for e-passport holders.  They reassure the e-passport holder that they can sneak back into Australia for their second working holiday visa, and avoid having to lie to immigration just by using an an e-gate.  

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Source: https://migration.wa.gov.au/services/skilled-migration-western-australia/latest-news

The purpose of instrument LIN 19/198 is to:

a. specify that an applicant seeking to satisfy the primary criteria for a Subclass 590 visa must provide evidence of sufficient funds to meet the costs and expenses of the nominating student, including travel expenses, living costs and course fees; and

b. specify that, for an applicant for a primary Subclass 500 visa, where the applicant’s course is longer than 12 months, but the applicant has less than 12 months remaining, the applicant only needs to show evidence of unpaid course fees to cover the remaining components of the course of study; and