This week’s migration bulletin highlights —
1. Tasmania’s Subclass 491 quota tightens further — the latest figures
2. Canberra continues issuing invitations this week! The top eight occupations invited so far this financial year!
3.Certain parent migrationvisas can be exempted from onshore grant requirementsnow in effect! Engineering skills assessment extends the validity period for English test results.
4. Australia considers shortening the 14-day quarantine, with home quarantine possibly on the table! “Hopefully international travel will be in reasonably good shape by next year!” Victoria resumes international flights!
5. This week’s roundup — visa grants, invitations, skills assessments and citizenship processing progress
1. Tasmania’s Subclass 491 quota tightens further — the latest quota figures
The Tasmanian government held another briefing session this week, updating state nomination figures up to 24 March, with most of the focus still on Subclass 491.
491Of the 1,400 places allocated for this financial year, 1,031 have already been issued,leaving only 369 remaining, while the pool still has a backlog of more than 1,250 applications,with around 70 more coming in each week (if applications close on 11 June, roughly another 600 will come in, bringing the total to around 1,850).The state government says it has no current plan to close applications, but there’s no guarantee applications lodged between now and June will be processed — at present, the state expects to finish processing applications lodged before 28 March within this financial year.
190As for that, 458 have already been issued,with 542 remaining, and a backlog of 360 applications still in the pool,with around 30 more coming in each week(if applications close on 11 June, roughly another 300 will come in, bringing the total to around 700), competition will still be fierce, but better than for 491.It’s expected that processing will largely be completed within this financial year,and the state government also says quota usage overall is tracking within their planned expectations.
Our advice: if your visa timeframe allows, especially for Subclass 491 applicants, try to build up sufficient competitiveness before lodging. For Subclass 190, the data still shows supply and demand relatively balanced, but current processing remains very strict and a good number of applications are being refused — you can still try lodging, and if refused this financial year, you may need to pin your hopes on the new financial year.
As for the new financial year,the state official saidquotas and requirements are expected to be similar to this financial year, with no changes expected unless driven by federal requirements.
For more details, see:State nomination quotas and invitation processing — the latest update! Will Tasmania adjust its requirements in the new financial year? Canberra’s most-invited occupations! State officials respond!
For consultations or to find out more, add our customer service contact below
2. Canberra continues issuing invitations this week! The top eight occupations invited so far this financial year!
As usual, Canberra’s state nomination program continued issuing matrix invitations this week, with 22 Subclass 190 and 42 Subclass 491 invitations issued to general applicants.
Accounting:lowest score to receive a 491 invitation was 110, and 110 points for 190 (we have accountants invited on lower scores, so the state government may have made an error)
Civil engineering:lowest score to receive a 491 invitation was 60 points
ICT occupations 2611/2613/2621/2631/2632:for those invited,the lowest score to receive a 491 invitation was 60 points, and the lowest scores to receive a 190 invitation clustered between 75 and 90 points
Early childhood education:lowest score to receive a 491 invitation was 65 points
Chef:lowest score to receive 49 was 85 points, lowest score to receive 190 was 70 points
This round’s invitation numbers were relatively low, so scores naturally rose; once numbers increase again the scores are expected to come back down — the next round is due next week.
Canberra’s formal nominations are also being processed quickly — after lodging formal documents, many applicants have recently received formal nomination invitations within a week. See the #Weekly Invitations Roundup# below for specific examples.
At the migration briefing hosted by the Migration Institute of Australia (MIA) on 12 March, the ACT government’s segment couldn’t display its slides due to technical issues — the slides were distributed to attendees this week, adding some supplementary data:
The top eight occupations receiving the most formal nominations are as follows:
Aside from registered nurses, who lead by a wide margin in both 190 and 491,second and third places both go to computing-related fields, followed by civil engineering, then accounting.Canberra sets a monthly cap for each occupation group, so the number of invitations is naturally capped as well.
While you’re hesitating, others in the same field are securing invitations without even needing to reach 90/95/100 points —so if your occupation has already been “called out,” watching round after round of steady invitations, watching your peers in the same field land their visas one after another — doesn’t it make you want to act? Start with the first step: tap the QR code below to contact our customer service and arrange your points assessment!
3. Certain parent migrationvisas can be exempted from onshore grant requirementsnow in effect! Engineering skills assessment extends the validity period for English test results.
From this week, 24 March, parent migration applicants under Subclass 103/143/173 who are unable to depart Australia can, if they meet certain conditions, be exempted from having their visa granted while onshore. The conditions to be met are:
— the application was lodged before 24 March 2021;
— the applicant needed to be in Australia on 24 March 2021;
— the visa is granted after 23 March 2021;
— the visa is approved before the special exemption period ends (end date not yet determined);
— after grant, the visa holder is not in immigration clearance status while in Australia
Similar exemption requirements apply for offshore approval of Subclass 804/864 visas.
Currently, the Subclass 143 Contributory Parent visa is stillprocessing applications lodged up to June 2016 for now.This week wehad a Subclass 103-to-143 grant: a queue-based Subclass 103 parent visa lodged in 2014, converted to 143 in mid-2020, received a request for further documents on 12 January, and was granted on 24 March.
You can alsokeep an eye on the Subclass 870 visa for parents wanting to stay in Australia long-term, which is being granted within two months of lodgement,for onshore applicants who want to avoid the hassle of repeatedly renewing a visitor visa, this option — valid for up to 10 years in total, granted in 3- or 5-year blocks with one further renewal available — is worth considering.
If you’d like to enquire about parent visas — whether for a short stay in Australia or for migration — contact us via the QR code below to arrange the most suitable option.
Engineering skills assessing authority EApreviously only accepted English test results within a 2-year validity period,but from 1 March 2021, the accepted validity period has been extended from 2 years to 3 years — meaning English test results within 3 years (including IELTS/PTE/TOEFL iBT) can now be used for an EA skills assessment application.
Worth noting: EA’s English requirement for engineering occupations is generally at least a bachelor’s degree plus Competent English. If you complete an engineering bachelor’s degree, a 2-year master’s course, or a PhD within Australia, the English requirement can be waived.
4. Australia considers shortening the 14-day quarantine, with home quarantine possibly on the table! “Hopefully international travel will be in reasonably good shape by next year!” Victoria resumes international flights!
Brendan Murphy, Secretary of the Australian Federal Department of Health, has most recently said that as vaccination among Australians progresses,home quarantine or a shortened hotel quarantine period could replace the current mandatory 14-day hotel quarantine for those returning from overseas, and as global vaccination programs progress, broad international travel may also resume next year.
As vaccination gradually becomes widespread, the Australian government will begin progressively examining what (new) border and quarantine measures will be needed — “for example,Australia may consider shortening hotel quarantine periods or increasing the use of home quarantine, particularly for people who have already been vaccinated.the situation around reopening the border is expected to be complex and tricky — it’s still unclear how long protection from any given vaccine will last,but he hopes international travel will be in reasonably good shape by next year,though it’s too early to say for sure right now.
The two-way trans-Tasman travel bubble between New Zealand and Australia also progressed this week — Australia amended its emergency biosecurity determination on Monday so that anyone who has stayed in Australia for at least 14 days can “travel directly to New Zealand”, and New Zealand’s Cabinet also held its main discussion on the issue,with the Prime Minister saying it was “getting close,” with the announcement of a start date expected around 6 April — so both governments are now in the final stages of finalising the details.
In addition, Victoria also announced this week that from8 Aprilit will resume international flights, initiallyaccepting 800overseas arrivals per week, then from15 April increasing this to 1,120 people.
News on overseas arrivals keeps improving step by step — if you’re a student or migrant who doesn’t want to miss the first-hand, authoritative news on returning to Australia, join our dedicated“2021 Looking Forward to Returning to Australia” information-sharing groupwhere we share official and authoritative information on Australia’s border settings — add the QR code below,and note: “Looking Forward” (qídài), to request to join the group.
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5. This week’s roundup — visa grants, invitations, skills assessments and citizenship processing progress
A recent roundup of Newstars’ visa grants and invitations across all categories — press and hold below to view it,the webpage will keep being updated, so we strongly recommend yousave and bookmark it!
State nomination invitation / GTI invitation statistics
ACT (Canberra) state nomination
Lodged 2020/10/15, invited for 491 on 2021/03/23, 221111
Victorian state nomination
Lodged 491 ROI application on 2 March 2021, lodged formal documents on 23 March 2021, and received formal state government nomination that same day, 23 March (Agricultural Technician, 65+15)
Lodged state nomination application on 1 February 2021 (having already received a ROI invitation earlier), invited for 190 state nomination on 25 March 2021 (Social Worker (272511), 90+5 points)
Tasmanian state nomination
Lodged state nomination application on 29 January 2021, invited for 491 state nomination on 26 March 2021 (Interpreter (272412), 55+15 points)
NSW state nomination
Lodged state nomination application on 15 March 2021 (having already received a pre-invitation earlier), received formal 190 state nomination on 24 March 2021 (Developer Programmer (261312), 100+5 points)
South Australian state nomination
Lodged 17 February 2021, invited for 190 on 25 March 2021, registered nurse (254499), 80+5, single, onshore
Lodged 11 February 2021, invited for 190 on 25 March 2021, social worker 272511, 60+5, with spouse, onshore
Lodged 10 February 2021, invited for 190 on 24 March 2021, Engineering Technologist (233914), 65+5, with spouse, onshore
Lodged 8 February 2021, invited for 190 on 23 March 2021, Mechanical Engineer (233512), 85+5, with spouse, onshore
Lodged 12 February 2021, invited for 190 on 23 March 2021, Registered Nurses nec (254499), 90+5, single, onshore
Lodged 8 February 2021, invited for 190 on 23 March 2021, Developer Programmer (261312), 75+5, single, onshore
Lodged 24 February 2021, invited for 491 on 23 March 2021, finance manager (132211), 85+15, with spouse, onshore
Lodged Nomination application on 8 February 2021, invited for 491 state nomination on 23 March 2021 (Accountant General (221111), 70+15 points)
Queensland state nomination
Lodged 491 EOI on 5 February 2021, invited to lodge state government nomination application on 22 March 2021 (Civil Engineer, 65+15)
Western Australian state nomination
None this week
Northern Territory state nomination
None this week
GTI invitations
None this week
This week’s grant progress and analysis
Subclass 189 Skilled Independent
Lodged 15 January 2020, granted 23 March 2021 (Electrical Engineer, 90, single, onshore)
Lodged 6 November 2019, granted 24 March 2021 (External Auditor (221213), 85 points, with secondary applicant, lodged onshore, granted onshore)
Lodged 24 July 2020, granted 24 March 2021 (Telecommunications (263311), onshore)
Subclass 190 Skilled Nominated
Lodged 6 November 2020, granted 23 March 2021 (NSW, 90+5, Biomedical Engineer, single, onshore)
Lodged 30 April 2020, granted 23 March 2021 (WA, 75+5, Mining Engineer (excluding Petroleum), main and secondary applicants onshore)
Lodged 29 May 2020, granted 28 March 2021 (Canberra-nominated 190 accountant, main and secondary applicants both onshore)
Lodged 11 March 2020, granted 20 March 2021 (Accountant General (221111), 70+5 points, lodged onshore, granted onshore)
Lodged 22 February 2021, granted 24 March 2021 (Engineering Technologist (233914), 85+5 points, lodged onshore, granted onshore)
Lodged 23 April 2020, granted 27 March 2021 (Accountant General (221111), 80+5 points, lodged onshore, granted onshore)
Lodged 23 March 2020, granted 26 March 2021 (Accountant, TAS-nominated, 75+5 points, lodged onshore, granted onshore)
2020/2/20 lodged; 2021/3/26 granted (Accountant, TAS-nominated, 65+ 5 points, lodged onshore, granted onshore, with spouse)
2020/2/19 lodged; 2021/3/24 granted (Accountant, TAS-nominated, 65+5 points, lodged onshore, granted onshore)
Lodged 2021/02/22, granted 190 on 2021/03/26, 233213, main and secondary applicants onshore
Lodged 2020/03/17, granted 190 on 2021/03/20, 261111, main and secondary applicants onshore
Lodged 2020/03/24, granted 190 on 2021/03/20, 241411, main and secondary applicants onshore
Lodged 2019/03/15, granted 190 on 2021/03/22, 263112, main and secondary applicants onshore
Subclass 491 new regional / Subclass 489 old regional nominated visas
Lodged 20 July 2020, granted 23 March 2021
Lodged 18 February 2021, granted 20 March 2021 (Engineering Technologist (233914), 55+15 points, with secondary applicant, lodged onshore, granted onshore)
Subclass 887 Skilled Regional (permanent) visa
None this week
858GTI Program
Lodged Subclass 858 visa application on 26 February 2021, granted 26 March 2021 (offshore)
Employer sponsorship
Lodged Subclass 186 visa application on 16 February 2021, granted 23 March 2021 (Podiatrist)
Subclass 600 onshore visitor visa
Lodged 12 January 2021, granted 24 March 2021 (onshore)
Lodged 25 November 2020, granted 25 March 2021 (onshore)
Lodged 27 November 2020, granted 26 March 2021 (onshore)
Lodged 6 January 2021, granted 26 March 2021 (onshore)
Lodged 16 November 2020, granted 22 March 2021
Lodged 9 February 2021, granted 24 March 2021
Lodged 9 December 2020, granted 25 March 2021
Lodged 11 March 2021, granted 23 March 2021 (offshore)
Subclass 500 Student visa
Lodged 10 December 2020, granted 22 March 2021 (onshore)
Lodged 14 January 2021, granted 22 March 2021 (onshore)
Lodged 9 March 2021, granted 22 March 2021 (offshore)
Lodged 16 December 2020, granted 23 March 2021 (onshore)
Lodged 8 March 2021, granted 22 March 2021
Lodged 1 March 2021, granted 23 March 2021
Lodged 21 January 2021, granted 25 March 2021
Subclass 485 Graduate Work visa
Lodged 3 December 2020, granted 22 March 2021
Lodged 18 September 2020, granted 25 March 2021 (with spouse)
Lodged 26 February 2021, granted 26 March 2021
Lodged 30 July 2020, granted 26 March 2021
Lodged 19 August 2020, granted 20 March 2021
Lodged 26 February 2020, granted 23 March 2021
Lodged 1 March 2021, granted 25 March 2021
Partner migration
Lodged Subclass 820/801 visa application on 25 June 2019, 820 granted 22 March 2021
Lodged Subclass 820/801 visa application on 27 June 2020, 820 granted 22 March 2021
Lodged Subclass 309/100 visa application on 12 February 2020, both 309 and 100 granted simultaneously on 22 March 2021
Lodged Subclass 309/100 visa application on 21 June 2019, both 309 and 100 granted simultaneously on 23 March 2021
Lodged Subclass 820/801 visa application on 28 June 2019, 820 granted 24 March 2021
Lodged Subclass 820/801 visa application on 21 February 2019, both 820 and 801 granted simultaneously on 25 March 2021
Lodged Subclass 820/801 visa application on 24 March 2020, 820 granted 26 March 2021
Lodged 6 March 2020, granted 22 March 2021 (820 and 801 granted together)
Lodged 21 December 2018, granted 23 March 2021 (820 and 801 granted together)
Lodged 7 May 2019, granted 25 March 2021
Lodged 10 April 2020, granted 25 March 2021
Subclass 802 Child visa
None this week
Parent migration / visas
Lodged Subclass 870 long-stay-in-Australia visa on 1 February 2021, granted 22 March 2021
Converted to 103 on 12 June 2020, granted 143 on 24 March 2021 (103 converted to 143; the 103 was originally lodged on 3 October 2014)
Subclass 155 Resident Return visa
Lodged 25 February 2021, granted 25 March 2021
Subclass 408 visa
Lodged 5 March 2021, granted 20 March 2021
Travel exemption applications
Lodged travel exemption application on 17 March 2021, approved 24 March 2021
Lodged travel exemption application on 24 March, 021, approved 26 March 2021
Condition 8503/8534 waiver
None this week
This week’s skills assessment processing progress
CA (accounting-related)
Lodged 17 March 2021, 24 March 2021
CPA (accounting-related)
None this week
EA (engineering-related)
None this week
VETASSESS
None this week
AITSL (teaching-related)
None this week
ACS (IT-related)
Lodged 5 February 2021, completed 22 March 2021
ANMAC skills assessment (nursing-related)
Lodged 4 February 2021, completed 26 March 2021
NAATI Recertification (translation/interpreting-related)
None this week
AIQS (quantity surveying-related)
None this week
AACA (architecture-related)
None this week
If you can’t find the data category you’re interested in — meaning there’s none this week — you can click intothe “Migration Weekly Bulletin” collectionat the top of the article to view past bulletins and find the relevant data.
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