The Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Chris Evans, today announced a new Skilled Occupation List (SOL) designed to deliver highly skilled migrants and crackdown on people seeking permanent residency through low-value education courses.

Senator Evans said the list, developed by the independent body Skills Australia and containing 181 highly valued occupations, would ensure Australia’s skilled migration program is demand-driven rather than supply-driven.

‘We intend to fundamentally change the way we target skilled migrants to restore integrity to the skilled migration program,’ Senator Evans said.

‘Through a targeted migration program, the Rudd Government will attract skilled migrants of the highest calibre and deliver people with real skills to meet real need in our economy.’

The new SOL is a critical reform in the Government’s overhaul of the skilled migration program and closes the door on those seeking to manipulate the migration system.

Many American Citizens, Green Card Holders, and H1B Temporary Residents are moving to Australia each year.   Unless you have some sort of collector or classic car, it is just not feasible to import a car.  They drive on the other side of the road, like all English Commonwealth countries.  Well, you could take your car but then you have to get it converted to right-hand drive, unless it is something like a classic like a 1962 Mustang.  This is very expensive.  There are also import duties, road worthy and safety tests, and the usual licensing, registration, and insurance costs.   

When you do arrive in Australia, do be careful about looking the right way when crossing the road, either in a car or on foot.  Every year a few “newbies” get killed or seriously injured because they step off the curb or drive through an intersection while looking the wrong way.  It is such a problem that around the city streets of Sydney they’ve painted Look Right on the sidewalks.  Follow this rule and you’ll be OK: look three times. Look this way, look that way and look this way again.  So if you happen to look the wrong in the first instance this 3-time rule will prevent you from making a mistake.

Whether or not your are importing a car, if you are entering Australia to live and work, you must have a valid work visa.  Find out if you qualify for immigration to Australia. Take a few minutes and complete our FREE online Visa Assessment and you will receive a personalized Visa Report from one of our expert immigration consultants – this is not just another computer-generated report.  You will receive your own detailed Visa Report that will completely outline your visa options, the usual costs, and the next steps to start your application. Completing the Australian Visas Now Online Assessment is free, fast, easy, and carries no obligation.  Click here to find out if you qualify!  http://www.australianvisasnow.com/skilled-visa-free-assessment/

The skills that got you your H1B in the first place are required Down Under!

• No employer sponsorship required
• Quick permanent residency – no waiting period
• Obtain citizenship in as few as 4 years
• Immediate access to government health care and education

Find out if you Qualify for a Permanent Work Visa to Australia!   Australia is looking for all kinds of talent, but especially Engineers and IT Professionals:

Engineers:

• Chemical
• Mechanical
• Material
• Petroleum
• Electrical
• Civil

IT Professionals:

• Java Programmers
• C# Programmers
• Siebel
• Peoplesoft
• Internet Security
• Fire Wall
• Email Security

If you have an H1B in the US, you know that it’s not a path to permanent residency (“Green Card”). You know you can’t ever really settle down, buy a house, raise a family with that feeling that you belong.

If you have H1B issues…

• Your H1B is expiring
• Your H1B is not going through
• Your employer is in trouble
• Or any other cause that you need to look for work outside the US

…Australia is the Opportunity for your Lifetime!

Remember, you must always have a valid work visa to earn income while in Australia.    Acquiring your Permanent Residency Work Visa will help you find a job much faster!   Prospective employers will know you are serious and that you are legally allowable to start to work immediately.  Remember, there are literally thousands of positions available across Australia!

If you would like to find out if you are qualified for an Australian work visa, take our online appraisal now and receive your FREE VISA ASSESSMENT report.    http://www.australianvisasnow.com/skilled-visa-free-assessment/

The demand for Teachers is growing in Australia, while even more Teachers will experience layoffs at the end of this school year.  Most US qualified teachers can move to Australia and will be given immediate Permanent Residency status, with full work rights and full access to Australia’s Medicare Health Benefits.

Are you qualified to teach in Australia? Get your FREE VISA ASSESSMENT!

http://www.australianvisasnow.com/skilled-visa-free-assessment/

Many changes to the Australian Skilled Visa program were announced on February 8, 2010, by the Australian Minister for Immigration and Citizenship. In this post, I have outlined the three most important changes and their impact on the future of Skilled Visa applicants.

1. Revocation of the Migration Occupations in Demand List

The Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL) was abolished. This will not affect skilled visa applications that are already pending with the Department of Immigration and Citizenship. If you are a visa applicant and intend to claim the 15 bonus points for an occupation on the MODL, you will no longer be able to claim these points, if your application was not lodged prior to February 8, 2010.

It is still possible to obtain state sponsorship for an occupation that was previously included on the MODL, since many of the occupations in demand by a state government or territory mirror those former MODL occupations. We expect more visa applicants will be approaching individual Australian states and the two territories for sponsorship, as compensation for the loss of the 15 MODL points.

2. Introduction of a new Skilled Occupations List

It is expected that a new Skilled Occupations List (SOL) will be announced by April, 2010, and it will take effect around July, 2010. The new Skills Occupations List will have a “more targeted list of occupations to better meet the medium and long-term future skill needs of the Australian economy”. The new SOL will be designed to have more focus on high-value skills across more popular professions and trades. The new Skilled Occupations List should closely follow the former Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL) and the current state sponsored occupation lists. It is our expectation that there will be occupations on the current SOL that will be excluded from the future SOL.

3. Points Test to be reviewed

The general skilled migration points test will be reviewed during 2010. Since it takes several months to complete the pre-application tasks such as getting a suitable skills assessment and taking the IELTS exam (English language test), our advice to those who currently score sufficient points  http://www.australianvisasnow.com/skilled-visas/points-test is not to delay. Those who currently score sufficient points, for any of the general skilled migration visa classes, and who have an occupation on the present Skilled Occupations List  http://www.australianvisasnow.com/skilled-visas/eligible-skilled-occupations,  should get started on the process right away.

Changes in immigration policy indiscriminately open and close windows of opportunity and timing is critical. The entire world is currently experiencing an economic crisis and the changes announced in the Australian immigration policy reflect this fact. Australia is not closing the doors to general skilled migration, but rather adopting a more targeted approach to selecting migrants with the skills that best satisfy the demands of the new Australian economy.

Please contact us at http://www.australianvisasnow.com/contact-us if you have any questions or would like us to check your current eligibility for an Australian skilled residence visa.