The Government has embarked on a review of the skilled migration occupation lists, and will announce new lists in March 2020.

The Department of Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business is responsible for conducting the review, and to support this, will consult with industry, employers, unions and individuals on the occupations required to meet the labour market needs of the Australian economy. This Department will then provide advice to the Department of Home Affairs and other relevant Government agencies.

Consultations will take place between now and December, when the “Traffic Light Bulletin” will be published; its purpose is to identify which occupations have been flagged for a change in status on one of the lists (transfer between Short Term and Medium to Long Term Occupations Lists, or removal altogether). The online formal submission period will then open in December until February, ahead of announcement of the new lists in March 2020.

Ajuria Lawyers encourages all interested clients who would like to be involved in this review, to contact us. As it is 18 months since the last review, it is a good opportunity to provide input on vexing issues related to the occupations lists, and may prompt the Government to bring forward its overhaul of ANZSCO (see separate article).

DISCLAIMER This information is current as of 18 September 2019 and subject to change. The information contained in this publication is of a general nature only. It should not be used as legal advice. To the extent permissible by law, Ajuria Lawyers and its associated entities shall not be liable for any errors, omissions, defects or misrepresentations in the information or for any loss or damage suffered by persons who use or rely on such information. Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.

It often happens that during the course of a 2 or 4 year TSS visa, the sponsor undergoes a re-structure of some kind, whether as a result of a takeover, merger or acquisition. What action is required, and what impact the re-structure has on sponsored employees, depends on a couple of factors, which can be summarised as follows:

Please contact your Ajuria advisor with any query relating to business re-structures, as every situation needs to be carefully assessed and managed.

DISCLAIMER This information is current as of 18 September 2019 and subject to change. The information contained in this publication is of a general nature only. It should not be used as legal advice. To the extent permissible by law, Ajuria Lawyers and its associated entities shall not be liable for any errors, omissions, defects or misrepresentations in the information or for any loss or damage suffered by persons who use or rely on such information. Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.

Recent changes to the passenger system at Australian airports have resulted in dual nationality visa holders experiencing issues when seeking to switch between passports to travel in and out of Australia.

The Department of Home Affairs has confirmed that the passenger system can only link a permanent or temporary visa to the first nationality that is entered into their system (ie the passport that is entered as the primary passport for travel at the time of applying for the visa).

While the Department itself can record a secondary passport for visa holders (and it is mandatory to update the Department once a new citizenship or passport has been acquired), the passenger system at the airport cannot do the same.

On a practical level, this means that if a TSS visa holder whose visa is linked to a passport of one country, subsequently acquires another citizenship and wishes to travel on a passport issued by this second country, then the visa holder is likely to encounter delay on entry to Australia. This situation typically arises when the second passport is a more “desirable” one for travel.

Currently, the only way to ensure smooth travel at the airport is to apply for a new visa linking it to the passport of choice for travel.  This is obviously a very time-consuming and expensive exercise, with a second set of Government and legal fees required to enter a different nationality and new passport details.

Given the increasing eligibility of many citizens for a second or more citizenships, and given the natural preference of visa holders to travel on the passport that will afford the most streamlined and stress-free entry at airports, this is becoming an issue.

Ajuria Lawyers understands that the Department is looking into how the passenger system can be rectified, and we will keep you informed.

DISCLAIMER This information is current as of 18 September 2019 and subject to change. The information contained in this publication is of a general nature only. It should not be used as legal advice. To the extent permissible by law, Ajuria Lawyers and its associated entities shall not be liable for any errors, omissions, defects or misrepresentations in the information or for any loss or damage suffered by persons who use or rely on such information. Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.

Our readers know that we keep a close eye on progress with processing applications for Australian Citizenship.

This month, Parliament was informed that:

• As of end of July 2019, there were 198,477 applications for citizenship by conferral in the pipeline;
• 145,000 applications were approved in 2017-18, up from 81,000 in 2017-18;
• There was also a 53% increase in refusal of applications in 2018-19;
• The time frame for finalisation of 90% of applications is within 24 months;
• The demand for Australian citizenship has increased 177% in 8 years from 2010.

As previously advised, the Government has invested $9 million in systems and staff, including setting up a task force to focus on complex cases and clear the backlog while maintaining the integrity of the processing system.

Ajuria Lawyers will continue to monitor and provide updates as new information becomes available.

DISCLAIMER This information is current as of 18 September 2019 and subject to change. The information contained in this publication is of a general nature only. It should not be used as legal advice. To the extent permissible by law, Ajuria Lawyers and its associated entities shall not be liable for any errors, omissions, defects or misrepresentations in the information or for any loss or damage suffered by persons who use or rely on such information. Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.

Mobile access technology company Kisi has published results of its research on cities around the world promoting the most holistic work-life balance.

Cities were selected based on the availability of reliable data and their desirability for professionals and their families to relocate for work and lifestyle opportunities. A total of 40 cities were selected, and ranked based on a series of factors related to the amount of time a person dedicates to their job:  total working hours, commuting time, holiday leave taken, access to paid parental leave, access to state-funded health and welfare programs, as well as institutional support for gender and LGBT equality, and overall happiness, safety and access to wellness and leisure venues outside of working hours.

The top 15 cities listed were Helsinki, Munich, Oslo, Hamburg, Stockholm, Berlin, Zurich, Barcelona, Paris, Vancouver, Ottawa, London, Toronto, Budapest and Sydney.

Further details of the 2019 research, which is likely to be continued and expanded in the future, may be found here.

DISCLAIMER This information is current as of 18 September 2019 and subject to change. The information contained in this publication is of a general nature only. It should not be used as legal advice. To the extent permissible by law, Ajuria Lawyers and its associated entities shall not be liable for any errors, omissions, defects or misrepresentations in the information or for any loss or damage suffered by persons who use or rely on such information. Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.

As many of our readers may be aware, school children around Australia, and indeed around the world, are planning a second ‘School Strike 4 Climate’ on 20 September 2019.

This time adults are encouraged to join the strike. To facilitate this, a ‘Not Business as Usual’ website has been set up to encourage employers to provide leave to those employees who wish to participate.

Ajuria Lawyers is proud to be one of the hundreds of employers around Australia who will participate on 20 September.

DISCLAIMER This information is current as of 18 September 2019 and subject to change. The information contained in this publication is of a general nature only. It should not be used as legal advice. To the extent permissible by law, Ajuria Lawyers and its associated entities shall not be liable for any errors, omissions, defects or misrepresentations in the information or for any loss or damage suffered by persons who use or rely on such information. Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.

Whether based on a visa applicant’s health declaration or formal health check results, an assessment of health is an important part of the visa application process.

Where standard health requirements are not met, and a waiver provision exists, the Medical Officer of the Commonwealth (‘MOC’) assesses the cost to the Australian community for the provision of health care or community services. If deemed to be a “significant cost”, the health requirement is considered not met, resulting in a visa being refused to an applicant, and in some cases, all applicants included in the same application.

There has recently been a change in the policy threshold for “significant cost”, from $40,000 to $49,000, with the time period over which these significant costs are calculated now up to 10 years, or proposed period of stay.

Applicants for permanent residence with ongoing health conditions are likely to receive most benefit from these changes, with the MOC now assessing the costs of services to these applicants over 10 years, rather than for life expectancy.

There appears to be strong public support for such changes, given the number of recent cases where communities have become involved in advocating for the Immigration Minister to intervene to enable a family to remain in their community, where one family member has been unable to meet the health requirement due to the significant cost calculation.

DISCLAIMER This information is current as of 28 August 2019 and subject to change. The information contained in this publication is of a general nature only. It should not be used as legal advice. To the extent permissible by law, Ajuria Lawyers and its associated entities shall not be liable for any errors, omissions, defects or misrepresentations in the information or for any loss or damage suffered by persons who use or rely on such information. Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.

Minister Coleman has also announced details of the Global Talent Independent Program, which promises to fast-track permanent visas for 5,000 of the world’s best and brightest.

Based on advice from a small panel, the focus will be on a number of industries, including IT, infrastructure, agribusiness, resources, advanced manufacturing, medical technology & pharmaceuticals.

The Department of Home Affairs has embarked on a global roadshow to promote and recruit for the program, and will have permanent representation in six countries.

While the criteria will be broad and flexible, with no salary, labour market testing or occupational classification requirements, the target market is most definitely global talent. Endorsement of the applicant’s talent, for example, by a local employer, industry body or academic institution, will be required.

These permanent applications will be fast-tracked and processed within a month in many cases, and the Minister believes that the program will, over time, have a “transformative impact on the Australian economy”.

DISCLAIMER This information is current as of 28 August 2019 and subject to change. The information contained in this publication is of a general nature only. It should not be used as legal advice. To the extent permissible by law, Ajuria Lawyers and its associated entities shall not be liable for any errors, omissions, defects or misrepresentations in the information or for any loss or damage suffered by persons who use or rely on such information. Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.

Ajuria Lawyers is often asked by clients what other services we provide or can assist with. We thought this might be a helpful table. Please contact your Ajuria Lawyers adviser for more information or to set up a time to discuss.

DISCLAIMER This information is current as of 28 August 2019 and subject to change. The information contained in this publication is of a general nature only. It should not be used as legal advice. To the extent permissible by law, Ajuria Lawyers and its associated entities shall not be liable for any errors, omissions, defects or misrepresentations in the information or for any loss or damage suffered by persons who use or rely on such information. Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.

We can expect to hear a lot more about regional visas.

From 16 November 2019, there will be two new regional visas; 23,000 places in the 2019-20 Skilled Migration Program (over 20% of the total) have been allocated to these new visas. The Government has also allocated over $20 million to promotion, processing and compliance relating to new regional visas.

One of the new visas is based on employer sponsorship, providing a pathway to permanent residence for sponsored employees after 3 years.

While there are still a number of important unknowns, employers should consider the following:

• The new definition of “regional” is likely to only exclude Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, the Gold Coast and Perth;
• The list of available occupations is likely to be very extensive, over 670 occupations;
• The position must be located in regional Australia, and be full time, genuine, and likely to exist for 5 years;
• Labour market testing is required to evidence that the position cannot be filled locally;
• Sponsored employees (and any family members) are required to live, work and study in regional Australia;
• The training levy is payable once at the provisional visa stage ($3,000 if business turnover is less than $10 million, otherwise $5,000), and is not payable at the time of the permanent residence application;
• Permanent residence is not based on an offer of permanent and ongoing employment, rather evidence of the applicant’s income, compliance with visa conditions, among other requirements;
• All regional visa applications will be given priority processing.

Should you have an interest in finding out more, please contact your adviser at Ajuria Lawyers.

DISCLAIMER This information is current as of 28 August 2019 and subject to change. The information contained in this publication is of a general nature only. It should not be used as legal advice. To the extent permissible by law, Ajuria Lawyers and its associated entities shall not be liable for any errors, omissions, defects or misrepresentations in the information or for any loss or damage suffered by persons who use or rely on such information. Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.