There are many visa applicants who have received a visa refusal and then appealed the decision to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) for merits review, only to find that the AAT did not find in the applicants’ favour. If the AAT has affirmed the Department of Home Affairs’ decision to refuse your visa and you believe that an error was made in reaching this decision, you may be able to apply for a judicial review.

The Global Talent Independent visa has attracted a lot of attention as it is the first of its kind in Australian immigration. There are 5,000 available places per year.

The global talent visa program is a new initiative by the Department of Home Affairs to attract highly skilled workers from target sectors to Australia.

This visa is a fast-track to Australian permanent residency and will be a great visa pathway for high achievers around the world. The government hopes that the work of these individuals will provide a boost to the Australian economy.

This is an older article. Click here to learn the criteria for the Global Talent Visa

As Australia tries to restart the economy post-pandemic, the Morrison government will reset the permanent migration cap in its October budget. Acting Immigration Minister Alan Tudge wants to use the newly launched Global Talent Independent program to attract 5,000 of the world’s most talented high-tech migrants each year, with fast-tracking to Australian permanent residency.

This is an older article. Click here to learn the criteria for the Global Talent Visa

The Australian Government recently announced three new visas for innovation:

1. Global Talent Independent (GTI)
2. Global Talent Employer Sponsored (GTES)
3. Supporting Innovation in South Australia (SISA)

Why the Global Talent Independent Visa?

Launched in November 2019, the Global Talent Independent program aims to attract highly-talented candidates who are at the top of their field in high growth industries. To entice these talented candidates, the Australian Government have designed the GTI program with the follow key features:

• Priority processing, with decisions being made from one week to two months.
• Permanent residency straight away
• No age limit
• Free to work for any employer
• No sponsorship requirements
• No SAF levy to be paid
• Access to Medicare and other government benefits

Global Talent Visa as a substitute for Employer-Sponsored Visa

The key areas of problems include:

• The Skilling Australia Fund (‘SAF’) levy has made it very expensive for employers to sponsor workers.
• The work experience requirements are very difficult for prospective migrants to meet. The current work experience requirements are:
  • two years post-qualification experience for the Temporary Skills Shortage 482 visa
  • three years full time experience for the Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional 494 visa

Global Talent Independent Visa vs Regional Migration

Global Talent Independent Visa vs Trades and Agricultural Labourer Positions

The Global Talent program focuses on high-tech related and highly paid skills sets. This is a positive and there are definitely some shortages in relation to such highly skilled tech-related positions. However the most consistent areas of shortages are not in relation to high-tech positions, but are in trades and also agricultural labouring positions.

Trade Occupation Shortage

There have been consistent shortages in relation to trade occupations such as electricians and diesel mechanics. These shortages are reflected by the fact that these occupations I consistently on the medium-term (long-term) skill shortages lists for migration purposes. You will also find that many states do not add any extra conditions for sponsoring these occupations, whereas Degree level and often management focus positions often require many additional requirements to meet state sponsorship.

Agricultural Labour Shortage

The shortage of Australian agricultural labourer positions is well documented over many decades. This gap has been partially field by the Pacific Islander and also backpacker visas. However the need to address the low wages and seasonal nature of this work has never really been addressed by the Federal Government. As a result, there is a consistent and ongoing shortage in this area.

The shortage in this area is set to increase over the next couple of years, as the effects of the Coronavirus will stop the constant flow of backpackers that have been coming to Australia up until recently. The number of backpackers that are already in Australia will not be sufficient to complete all the work and their incentive to keep doing the job is decreasing over time. This is an article for another day, but there is an argument for the introduction of a government subsidised and regulated base level wage for agricultural labour during the Coronavirus times. Such a move would decrease the dependence on foreign labour which is currently almost impossible to access. It would also provide more stability for the sector and allow people to live in regional areas, bringing great economic benefit to these regional areas.

Global Talent Independent Visa in 2020-2021 – Opportunity for Permanent Residency

The Global Talent Independent Visa is the most successful of the three visas for innovation.  The opportunity to attract global talent has been increased by the COVID-19 pandemic. This is due to the global increase in unemployment rates as a direct impact of the COVID-19. Prior to the global pandemic, these highly-skilled candidates might not have been looking to migrate to Australia. With the Coronavirus under control, Australia has become an even more attractive destination compared to other nations where COVID-19 has proliferated.

Minister Tudge hinted at the potential development of the GTI program as an integral part of the Australian migration program for the 2020-21 migration year, post-pandemic. 

More Information on the Global Talent Programs

If you are interested in finding out more about visas under the the Global Talent program, read more here:

• 3 Visas for Innovation - Global Talent Visa Program: https://www.workvisalawyers.com.au/news/all/the-global-talent-visa-program.html
• Global Talent Independent: https://www.workvisalawyers.com.au/news/all/why-the-australian-global-talent-independent-visa-is-so-hot-right-now.html
• Global Talent Employer-Sponsored: https://www.workvisalawyers.com.au/news/all/new-global-talent-visa-as-part-of-tss-482-to-attract-entrepreneurs-to-australia.html
• Supporting Innovation in South Australia (SISA): https://www.workvisalawyers.com.au/news/all/new-south-australian-entrepreneur-visa-processing-times-requirements-checklist-supporting-innovation-in-south-australia-sisa-subclass-408-temporary-activity-visa.html

Do you need help?

Our team of experienced Immigration Lawyers and Migration Agents look forward to assisting you with your Australian visa or appeal.

Based in Adelaide South Australia, we provide Australian Immigration advice to people and businesses from all over the world.

If you require further information regarding your Australia visa options you can contact us through:

(08) 8351 9956 or +61 8 8351 9956 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Sources:

https://www.workvisalawyers.com.au/news/all/the-global-talent-visa-program.html

https://www.workvisalawyers.com.au/news/all/why-the-australian-global-talent-independent-visa-is-so-hot-right-now.html

https://www.workvisalawyers.com.au/news/all/coronavirus-how-will-covid-19-affect-australian-immigration-practice-and-policy-students-skilled-business-family.html

https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/migration-reset-looms-in-budget-as-government-eyes-super-skilled-talent-20200521-p54vcl.html

https://www.itnews.com.au/news/tech-migrants-shun-australias-new-fast-track-permanent-residency-visa-548177

https://www.pm.gov.au/media/press-conference-australian-parliament-house-act-1may20

If you wish to keep up to date with Work Visa Lawyers' coverage on the COVID-19 impacts on Australia’s immigration policy and current visa programs, read our rolling news blog here.

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of having access to healthcare in Australia. If you require medical treatment, the out-of-pocket costs can put you under financial strain. If you reside in Australia and hold a valid visa, read more to find out if you are eligible for Medicare.

To help prevent the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Australian government has used the powers under the Biosecurity Act 2015 to prevent most travel out of Australia.

Travel Ban

The Government has banned Australian citizens and permanent residents from leaving Australia.
This is to prevent Australians from participating in the global spread of COVID-19 and to prevent them from
becoming infected overseas and returning to Australia with the virus (as Australian citizens and permanent residents are not affected by the incoming travel restrictions).
This is an important measure to help facilitate Australia’s plan to reduce the number of cases of COVID-19.

In many cases, this is a second layer of restriction, as many countries have restricted their incoming travel in a similar way to Australia.Australians looking to travel abroad at the moment may find it difficult to enter other countries, even where an outgoing travel exemption has been approved (see below).

Who is allowed to travel?

• Residents of other countries
• Aircraft or vessel crews
• Freight workers
• Essential offshore facility workers
• Travellers on official government business

• Are involved in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, such as aid workers
• Are critical workers
• Require urgent medical treatment which needs to be carried out outside of Australia
• Have urgent/unavoidable “personal business”
• Have compassionate or humanitarian reasons for doing so
• Have a national interest reason to travel

All of these will need to be determined on a case-by-case basis and it is not necessarily clear who will fall within this and who will not.

If you plan to travel overseas in the next 3 months, travel exemption requests can be made here.

What’s the penalty for travelling without exemption?

The mantra of it being better to “ask for forgiveness than permission” doesn’t apply here.

Other considerations

There are also heavy restrictions on travel into Australia.
The circumstances for which you can be exempted from these inbound restrictions are similarly restrictive to those above for outbound travel. In many circumstances, you will need to apply for an exemption to enter Australia or risk having your visa cancelled at the Australian border.

The circumstances for requesting an exemption include:

• Immediate family of Australian citizens and permanent residents
• Persons invited by the Government to assist with the COVID-19 pandemic
• Those providing critical medical services
• Persons with critical skills examples given are engineers, ship crews and specialised medical professionals
• Certain diplomats
• Where there are humanitarian or compassionate circumstances
• An exemption must be applied for in the border restriction exemption webform, and a positive outcome must be received before travelling.

Do You Need Help?

If you meet the circumstances to request for a travel exemption, contact us for assistance. We have successfully obtained travel exemptions for our clients.

Contact us on +61 8 8351 9956 or email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

Sources

There are no shortages of negative news during the COVID-19 pandemic. At Work Visa Lawyers, we aim to take a positive approach. Below are six visa options that you may be eligible to apply for during these uncertain times.  

The Global Talent Independent Visa is a hot new initiative by the Australian government to encourage highly skilled workers to migrate to Australia.
We are seeing great interest in this visa from skilled professionals in Australia and around the world.

Click here to learn the criteria for the Global Talent Visa

The Global Talent Independent Visa is great for many reasons, including:

• Very fast processing
  
  
• Straight to Australian permanent residency visa holder status
  
  
• No expensive Skilling Australians Fund levy
  
  
• No need for a job offer in Australia
  
  
• Access to Medicare

Global Talent Independent Visa Processing Time

Australian permanent visa processing times can often be more than 12 months, sometimes up to almost 2 years. The GTI visa has one of the fastest processing times of all Australian permanent visas. 

At the Law Council's Immigration Law Conference on 20 March 2020, respresentatives from the Department of Home Affairs stated that applications under the GTI program are being given priority processing. Processing times vary from 2 day to 2 months with many being decided in one to two weeks!

Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs David Coleman has also signed Ministerial Direction no 85 in November 2019. Direction no. 85 enables the Department of Home Affairs to give priority processing for the Distinguished Talent cohort (subclasses 124 and 858) to “support the responsive processing of applicants that are identified as highly desirable by Government.”

The GTI program uses the Distinguished Talent subclass 858 and subclass 124 visas, but provides a new pathway to these by invitation.

Global Talent Post-Coronavirus

The recent Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has shown how important Australian permanent residency visa status can be for receiving support in difficult times
and the right to enter Australia. The GTI program allows for the grant of a permanent visa in what is likely to be the fastest time of any program.

Acting Immigration Minister Alan Tudge has hinted at the potential development of the GTI program as an integral part of the Australian migration program for the 2020-21 migration year, post-pandemic. 

The Australian Government is keen to ensure its 5,000 spots are filled in the 2019/20 migration program year, which ends on 30 June 2020, so it is important that you get into the program while you can. 

If you are interested in coming to live in Australia and meet the high income threshold, the Global Talent Independent Visa Program is a great opportunity for
highly skilled individuals to migrate to Australia. It’s easy to see why the program is so hot right now!

Read more about the Global Talent Independent Visa on our website

Do you need help?

Our team of experienced Immigration Lawyers and Migration Agents look forward to assisting you with your Australian visa or appeal.

Based in Adelaide South Australia, we provide Australian Immigration advice to people and businesses from all over the world.

If you require further information regarding your Australia visa options you can contact us through:

(08) 8351 9956 or +61 8 8351 9956 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Sources: 

https://minister.homeaffairs.gov.au/davidcoleman/Pages/global-talent-program-business.aspx

https://www.workvisalawyers.com.au/news/all/the-global-talent-visa-program.html

https://www.workvisalawyers.com.au/news/all/immigration-focus-on-the-global-talent-visa-post-coronavirus.html

Principal Chris Johnston walks you through how to put together a quality Partner Visa Application

to give yourselves the best chance for a sucessful and speedy visa processing time.

Support for International Students 

International students in Australia are ineligible for the welfare payments and income supplements that were recently announced by the Federal Government. Currently, the JobSeeker and JobKeeper schemes are accessible by Australian citizens, permanent residents and subclass 444 visa holders.

Income assistance has not been provided to international students at the federal level. The following state governments are stepping up to help students facing financial hardship during these unprecedented times:

South Australia

The South Australian Government has announced a new $13.8 million International Student Support Package for South Australian-based international students. There are three components to the package:

1. Public Universities - University of Adelaide, Flinders University & the University of South Australia

The South Australian Government will match funding by the state’s three public universities to allocate to their international students.

Students studying at one of the three universities can apply for support by contacting their university.

• University of Adelaide: https://www.adelaide.edu.au/covid-19/student-information/student-support-package
• Flinders University: https://students.flinders.edu.au/coronavirus-information
• University of South Australia: https://i.unisa.edu.au/students/scholarships/hardship-fund/

2. Other International Students

Other students not studying at a public university will be given a $500 emergency cash grant. Eligibility criteria are still being formalized but the grant will be available to the following students through the Department of Human Services:

• English language students (excluding students on packaged programs with one of South Australia’s three public Universities)
• Vocational Education and Training (VET) students
• Higher education students studying with one of South Australia’s private higher-education institutions

Register your interest here and the link to the application form will be sent to you as soon as it is available.

3. School Students

Homestay families of school students in South Australia will receive a one-off $200 payment to help support accommodation for school students.

Northern Territory

On 3 April 2020, the Northern Territory Government announced the Worker and Wellbeing Fund to support international students who have lost their jobs or have had their income reduced due to Coronavirus restrictions.

How to Apply 

Contact Red Cross on +61 403 987 018 to access emergency relief and support

For more information, read the factsheet here.

Victoria 

International Students Emergency Relief Fund

International students experiencing financial hardship may be eligible for relief funding by the Victorian government. Payments of up to $1,100 will be made to eligible students.

How to Apply

If you are enrolled in a public university or TAFE, contact the student support services team of your education provider to apply. Click here for more information.

If you are enrolled in a private education provider or college, click here to apply. Check if your education provider is eligible here.

Rent Relief Grant

The Victorian Government has established an $80 million rental assistance fund to provide rent relief payments of up to $2000 to Victorians experiencing rental hardship due to the coronavirus pandemic.

To be eligible for the grant you will need to have:

• Registered a revised rental agreement with Consumer Affairs Victoria
• Have less than $5,000 in savings (excluding superannuation)
• Have an income of less than $1,903 per week before tax
• Be paying more than 30% of your income in rent

You will also need to show a significant change in your financial circumstances such as loss of employment or working hours and/or pay reduced by 20% or more.

How to Apply

Click here to lodge an online application.

Working for Victoria Program

The Victorian Government is creating job opportunities for international students through its $500 million Working for Victoria program. In addition, the state government is facilitating online training to enhance skills as part of the program. There are two types of training offered:

• do a free short online training unit in an area where Victorian employers are currently looking for workers
• do a free TAFE course that leads to a recognised qualification in an area where Victorian employers are likely to be looking for workers as the economy recovers. (Tuition is free, but you may need to pay materials and student services fees.)

How to Apply

International students with working rights are eligible to apply. Register online on Sidekicker for job opportunities and training availabilities.

Australian Capital Territory

On 20 April 2020, the ACT announced a $20 million Jobs for Canberrans fund to provide employment opportunities with the ACT Public Service. To be eligible to apply for roles, people must have lost their job, or have been significantly impacted as a result of COVID-19.

Priority for jobs will be given to those who are ineligible for existing Federal Government support, including international students.

How to Apply

Register for an account here to be notified of vacancies and apply for jobs.

These are the current job opportunities under this program: https://www.myaccount.act.gov.au/casualjob/s/vacancies

Tasmania

On 22 April 2020 the Tasmanian Government unveiled a $3 million package to support 26,000 temporary visa holders affected by the Coronvirus pandemic in Tasmania. These visa holders include students, fruit pickers and skilled workers.

The package is to be rolled out in four stages:

1. One-off payment of $250 for individuals and up to $1,000 for families who are experiencing immediate financial hardship as a result of the Coronavirus
2. Emergency relief funds to non-governmental organisations that assist temporary visa holders
3. Financial support and travel advice for temporary visa holders who can return to their home country
4. Help employers retain their temporary visa holding employees

How to Apply

Visa holders wishing to access the assistance grants or are wanting to return to their home country should call the Public Hotline on 1800 671 738

New South Wales

On 15 May 2020, the NSW government announced a $20 million temporary funding package for stranded international students.

The package includes:

1. Crisis accommodation through student accommodation or homestay providers 
2. A 24/7 internatioanl student support hotline (call 13 77 88) to offer free legal, medical/mental health advice and emergency support
3. Free subscriptions to the 'My Legal Mate' student app which is available in many languages

Accommodation is available to international students with genuine need and meet all of the following criteria:

• have been evicted or are faving imminent eviction
• have evidence of being laid off employment
• have less than $1,500 in savings and no other avenues of support

How to Apply

International students in need can call 13 77 88, the NSW Government hotline to find out more.

Students can also contact their education provider to be referred to crisis accommodation support programs, such as the International Student Support Network through the Australian Homestay Network.

Summary and Comments by Chris Johnston, Lawyer and RMA:

The 11 April 2020 Skillselect round is the first round after the closure of the borders on 20 March 2020.

So it shows us the policy direction of the Government. The direction is to cut skilled migration dramatically.