Search Results for: Australia

September 22, 2016

Subject to final approval from the Governor-General, significant reforms to the temporary activity visa framework will be made on 19th November 2016. The proposed changes include creating a new single sponsor class to replace the six existing sponsor classes, removing…

September 21, 2016

As part of the 2015 National Budget, the Australian Federal Government proposed to tax the earnings of Australian Working Holiday Visa holders at a much higher rate than Australian nationals. The delayed tax proposal, scheduled to come into operation on…

September 1, 2016

On 31st August 2016, the High Court of Australia ruled that a determination by the Minister for Immigration pursuant to subsection 9A(6) of the Migration Act in December last year ('IMMI 15/140') was invalid. The Ministerial Determination allowed foreign workers employed…

June 10, 2016

Changes to Subclass 457 Accredited Sponsorship Criteria 457 sponsors with a long history of good dealings with the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) are eligible to apply to become Accredited Sponsors. The benefits to acquiring accredited status include;…

April 28, 2016

457 Visa Processing Delays The Department of Immigration and Border Protection"s Melbourne Office has recently provided an update on visa processing with a focus on the Temporary Work (Skilled) visa subclass 457 unit. Many of our clients have experienced delays in…

March 1, 2016

The Australian Government announced on 19th February that, as of 1st July 2017, there will be a separate pathway for New Zealand citizens to apply for permanent residency and then Australian citizenship. Who is Eligible? New Zealand Special Category Visa…

February 12, 2016

The Home Office have announced that the "Immigration Health Surcharge" will be extended to Australian and New Zealand nationals coming to the UK as well as those already in the UK looking to extend their stay. The announced change is…

January 27, 2016

Certain Chinese nationals applying for work visas to Australia will no longer require Labour Market Testing (LMT) under the terms of the China Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA), which is due to come into effect on 20th December 2015. Exemptions…

December 17, 2015

Visa Reforms to Attract and Retain Innovative Talent The Minister for Immigration and Border Protection, the Hon Peter Dutton MP, has announced that a new Entrepreneur visa will be introduced in the second half of 2016. The Entrepreneur visa is…

November 11, 2015

From 20th November 2015, new health policy will apply to applicants for Australian visas. The Department of Immigration is restructuring the country risk levels from three groups to just two – lower and higher risk and removing concessions for 457…