Australian Immigration Daily News

Are Australia’s migration laws too rigid and inflexible?

Are they applied in a way that is too rigid and inflexible?

Do they leave too little room for compassion, or for unforeseen circumstances truly beyond an applicant’s control?

It is now a Schedule 1 requirement that the applicant must not have turned 45 at the time of invitation to apply for the visa.

It seems that the Treasury and DIBP may not be singing from the same hymn sheet. A person of 45 years of age is a long way from retirement age, and will contribute potentially another 25 years of skilled labour to the Australian economy (and to their superannuation funds).

The visa system does not exist in isolation; it sits in a system of markets such as the local labour market, and increased longevity. Australia’s Future Tax Review discussed an increase in the preservation age for superannuation to 67 years to be phased in from 2024. For immigrants, there could be a greater need to work for longer to make up for a potential shortfall in retirement income through Australian superannuation.

On Friday, the Government released new Legislative Instrument revising the age requirement for Points Tested Subclass 189 visa.  The same instrument also clarifies GSM Pathway for NZ Citizens on the basis of residing in Australia for a period of five years.  The paradoxical nature of this announcement is unfortunate. On one hand, this is unwelcome news for applicants who are 45 or over as they will no longer be able to meet the associated age requirement.  On the other, NZ citizens may apply for GSM with lesser restrictions.

Applicants who are 45 and over

The Instrument confirms that applicants for a 189 visa assessed from 1 July 2017 must be under 45 years of age at the time of receiving an invitation to apply.  No doubt, this is placing further restrictions on permanent visa options (or lack of) which are currently available to skilled migrants wanting to migrate to Australia.  Subclass 189 applicants who have lodged an Expression of Interest and are/will be 45 or over at the time of Invitation, will no longer be able to meet the age requirement for this visa.  Applicants who are impacted may be eligible for another visa including State Nominated permanent residence or permanent residence via the Employer Nomination Scheme.

Does it seem to you that the Department is running a small “cottage industry” involving cancelling visas on character grounds?

If you have a look on Austlii, you can certainly get that impression!

Cases before the Tribunal challenging cancellations by delegates of the Minister. Judicial review applications in the Federal Court against decisions made personally by the Minister to cancel, or to refuse to revoke cancellation decisions made by delegates. Appeals to the Full Court from decisions of the Federal Court dismissing judicial review applications against cancellation decisions.

There is no doubt that the removal and addition of occupations to the List is somewhat of a mystery.  Unfortunately, the short answer is that there is no way to predict whether a particular occupation will remain on the List for the following financial year.  However, it is important to understand how decision is made to keep or to remove a particular occupation.  The understanding of the review process is now more important than before given the Government’s recent overhaul of the Temporary Visa Framework.

The Consolidated Skilled Occupations List (SCOL)

This List has been significantly condensed from 651 to 435 occupations, with 216 occupations removed. The Consolidated Sponsored Occupation List (CSOL) has been renamed to the new Short-term Skilled Occupations List (STSOL) and will be updated every six months based on advice from the Department of Employment.