AUSTRALIA: September SkillSelect Results

October 11, 2018

Australia’s September 2018 SkillSelect invitations have come and gone, and from the data released by Immigration, it appears that for now they are sticking to the 2500 per month total invites – 2490 for Skilled Independent SC189 and 10 for Skilled Regional SC489 Family Sponsored. By points score, the majority of invitations continue to go to applicants sitting on 75 points (1202 total) – almost double the number of invites sent to those on 70 points. Applicants on 65 points continue to languish in the pool, with no invitations issued.

For the pro-rata occupations, Electronics Engineers points have dropped to 70, with an Expression of Interest (EOI) from November 2017). Industrial, Mechanical & Production Engineers and Computer Network Professionals continue to sit on 70 points minimum, with invitations issued to EOIs submitted back in January 2018. Other Engineering Professionals, ICT Business and Systems Analysts, and Software Applications Programmers remain on 75 points. Unfortunately, Accountants and Auditors continue to require a minimum of 80 points for an invitation, with an EOI lodged back in May 2018.

The latest lot of invitations were issued on 11 October, and at this stage we are really expecting more of the same news for this round.

Finally, following on from previous months, the review of the skilled occupation lists has still not been completed, so there is no news on any potential changes on the horizon. With no update in July, there may be a number of changes to be made in the next expected update in January 2019.

Our Advice

Companies employing foreign nationals in Australia are invited to reach out to their Newland Chase immigration specialists to discuss the impact of this latest round and the potential changes coming to the skilled occupations lists.

For general advice and information on immigration and business travel to Australia, please contact us.