4 April 2020 New Zealanders on SC 444 visas and who arrived before 26 February 2001 are eligible to access Australian welfare payments and the JobKeeper payment. New Zealanders on SC 444 visas and who arrived after 2001 have access to the JobKeeper payment. Those who have lived in Australia for 10 years or more also have access to JobSeeker payments for […]
25 March 2020 The Department has further updated the online information, documentation required and forms to apply for exemptions to the travel restrictions for: NZ citizens usually resident in Australia Immediate family members of Australian citizen or permanent resident Transiting travellers Additional exemptions may be applied for from the Commissioner of the ABF for: Foreign nationals travelling […]
20 March 2020 Travel Restrictions From 9pm tonight AEDT, the 20th of March, the following restrictions come into force. Permanent Residents, Citizens and their Immediate Family members Citizens and Permanent ResidentsThere are no restrictions on Permanent Residents, Citizens or their immediate family members, and they can continue to enter Australia. They are however subject to […]
16 November 2019 The government has recently changed the English Language requirements of the subclass 186 Visa, by removing the 5 years full-time study in English as an exemption for the 186 Temporary Residency Transition (‘TRT’) stream. The effect of this is that for those lodging a subclass 186 TRT visa on or after the […]
17 February 2020 The Department of Home Affairs has agreed to relax and broaden the conditions for holders of Subclass 417 and 462 WHM visas to allow them to assist in the bushfire recovery without breaching visa conditions. the time a WHM can now work with the same employer has been extended from six months […]
16 November 2019 All applicants from outside Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane will be able to access regional points, for State and Territory Nomination and Family Sponsorship and for regional study purposes. The table below highlights the regional areas. Definition Locations Regional incentives Major Cities Sydney Melbourne Brisbane NA Cities and major regional centres Perth Adelaide […]
16 November 2019 When the 16 November 2019 changes to the points test come into effect, the Department of Home Affairs has confirmed that: SkillSelect will automatically update points for all Expressions of Interest (EOI) in submittedstatus. EOIs in draft status will not be updated, as no points have been attributed at this stage in the system There […]
24 October 2019 From 24 October 2019, applicants will need to show they have access to a higher level of funds or income to cover annual living costs in Australia. The increased costs/income are as follows: Living costs For a 12 month period, applicants must show: $21,041: main applicant $7,362: partner or spouse $3,152: for […]
2 August 2019 The High Income Threshold under the Fair Work Act increased on 1 July 2019 from $145,000 to $148,700. Applicants relying on meeting this threshold for an ENS or RSMS age exemption must ensure that the relevant threshold is met for each of the three requisite years.
29 July 2019 Changes have occurred to the Schedule 4 Conditions 4005 and 4007 calculation of significant cost to the Australian community for the provision of health care or community services. The policy threshold for significant cost has been increased from $40,000 to $49,000. The time period over which these significant costs will be calculated […]
The Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS) Subclass 187 will close from 16 November 2019. The RSMS subclass will remain open for applicants who: on 20 March 2019, held a Temporary Skill Shortage (Subclass 482) visa in the Medium-term stream, or was an applicant for a Temporary Skill Shortage (Subclass 482) visa in the Medium-term stream […]
The States and Territories have issued their final invitations for the Subclass 489 visa with the last date for invitations to be issued being 10 September 2019. Visa applications can continue to be lodged up to 15 November and the 489 program will be closed from 16 November when the replacement Subclass 491 visa opens.