Home Affairs has released the first SkillSelect round invitation results for the 2018-19 program year.

The invitation round to apply for the Skilled - Independent (subclass 189) and Skilled - Regional (Provisional) (subclass 489) was conducted on 11 July 2018. This month there were 1000 Independent 189 Visa invitations while only 10 Regional 489 Visa invitations sent. The total number of positions planned for the 2018-19 Skilled Independent Visa remains at 43,990.

Invitation rounds are anticipated to run on the 11th day of each month. Dates for the rounds are subject to change but expect the points to remain high at 70 points or higher within this program year.

Top 5 Occupation Invitations

Higher Points Required for Minimum Cut-Off - 70 points

For the majority of occupations within the 189 Independent Visa the minimum points required is set at 70 points. For the skilled regional sponsored 489 the minimum points required is 80 points. When the minimum requirement is 70 points or more it reflects that the overall level of competition is higher for the same amount of skilled visa positions.

Comments from Chris

There has been a significant tightening of requirements in relation to the temporary work visas including the subclass 482 Visa. We have also seen tight requirements for the RSMS 187. 

The Skilling Australia Fund is also going to provide a strong disincentive for employers to sponsor. More on SAF here. As a result, the ability of applicants to lodge employer-sponsored visas is going to be much lower. People who previously would have considered temporary work visa’s and Permanent residency employer-sponsored visa’s will most likely be putting their attentions towards the Points-based Visas such as the 188 and 489 Visas.

The Skilling Australian Fund (SAF) will also lead to less employer sponsored visas as employers may not be willing to do an application. The planned allocation of potential applications for Employer-Sponsored Visas in the 2018-19 migration program is 48,250 Visas. So, there may be a large number of people who previously would have done an ENS or RSMS looking to do 189 or 489.

Skilled - Independent (subclass 189)

The Independent 189 Visa has a minimum requirement of 70 points. As a result, there were 1000 Independent 189 Visas granted in July.

Independent 189 Visa Point Acceptance Rate:

• 572 visas granted to applicants with 70 points
• 273 visas granted to applicants with 75 points
• 107 visas granted to applicants with 80 points
• 46 visas granted to applicants with 85 points
• 2 visas granted to applicants with 90 points

Skilled - Regional (Provisional) (subclass 489)

The Skilled Regional 489 Visa received a very low amount of invitations for the July 2018 round. There were only 10 Regional 489 Visa invitations offered by home affairs.

Regional 489 Visa Point Acceptance Rate:

• 7 Visas granted to applicants with 80 points
• 3 Visas granted to applicants with 85 points

Comments from Chris

If the number of invitations offered remain low, which seems likely, then the Regional 489 Visa will not be a very viable option for most applicants. There would have to be several hundreds, if not thousands of Regional 489 Visa expression of interest (EOI) in the system at that moment. If the current level of invitations remains consistent throughout the year, we may only see 120 total 489 Visas granted for the 2018-19 program year.

More Struggles & Stress for Accountants and Auditors

Unfortunately, the struggle continues for those hoping to apply for an Independent 189 Visa as an accountant. The minimum points required for accountants is currently set at an all-time high of 85 points. Auditors, company secretaries, and corporate treasurers are also seeing a high minimum requirement of 80 points.

Comments from Chris

I have previously written about the struggles faced by accountants and at that time the points were only raised to 70. See previouse articles here. Since then the points have just kept going up. So, if accountants are not close to achieving the minimum required points then they may need to consider alternative ways of pathways, such as employer sponsorship or state-sponsored visas.

75 – 80 Points Required for Engineers

The minimum required points for engineers has also been set rather high at 75 points. Last year at this time each engineering occupation only needed to fulfil a minimum requirement of 70 points.

Comments from Chris

Much like accountants and auditors, there was a jump in minimum point requirements for engineers. Engineers may want to also consider alternative pathways such as employer sponsorship or state-sponsored visa pathways as well.

ICT, Programming, & Related Occupations

With Information and communication technologies (ICT) professionals, and related occupations being in high demand there are a large number of invitations being sent, but this also means there is a lot of competition.

Comments from Chris

At this time last year ICT only needed a score of 75 points. Software and Applications programmers along with Computer Network Professionals only needed a score of 70 points. Due to the spike it is recommended that these occupations might also want to consider employer sponsored or state-sponsored pathways.

 There are a number of ICT Occupations on NSW lists, unlike on the SA lists,so there are opportunities over there. 

Upcoming Invitation Round

As mentioned, the Invitation rounds for Skilled - Independent (subclass 189) and Skilled - Regional Provisional (subclass 489) visas will be run once a month. Invitation rounds are anticipated to run on the 11th day of each month but dates for the rounds are subject to change.

Invitation numbers in each round may vary depending on the number of applications being processed by the department.

Expect more changes and more difficult requirements for independent, employer, and state-sponsored visas as the competition for these phases will be high, in particularly, for those occupations that cannot get through the 189.

We have already seen a number of changes from states including the ACT Tasmania and South Australia in relation to sponsorship required months for the 190 and 489 Visas.

Do you need help with an Australian visa application?

At Work Visa Lawyers we are experienced in assisting applicants in all matters relating to Australian visa applications. Our areas of expertise include Skilled Migration visas, Business Skills Migration visas, Employer Sponsored Work Visas, Partner and other Family Migration visas as well as the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) Review, Judicial Review and Ministerial Intervention.

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

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Sources

https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/trav/work/skil#tab-content-2

https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/busi/Empl/skillselect#tab-content-3

https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/about/corporate/information/fact-sheets/20planning

https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/WorkinginAustralia/Pages/12-july-2017-round-results.aspx

https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/WorkinginAustralia/Pages/11-july-2018-invitation-round.aspx

https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/trav/visa-1/489-

https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/trav/visa-1/189-