Immigration and Accomidation Issues

The Government’s immigration policy presently wants more temporary migrants in order to fill labour shortages. This makes sense if the jobs are there and people with appropriate qualifications are willing to fill them. But we can all too easily overlook the supporting infrastructure, such as having enough housing, namely rental accommodation, for these new immigrants.

Rental prices are constantly increasing, and while there are a number of new homes being built, it is far short of what is needed for the expected 400,000 additional people expected by the end of the financial year.

The total number of immigrants to Australia is actually lower than anticipated, due to the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. So, the problem could have been worse. Really, the housing shortage should have been addressed a decade ago. The immigrants are not the cause of the accommodation shortage. Rather, it is a case of the immigrants we need not being looked after with sufficient accommodation.

Many of the immigrants we see in the next year will be returning international students, and a fairly high number of working holiday makers. This is expected to peak over the course of the year, and then taper off as the backlog of potential migrants held back by COVID-19 restrictions all gain entry to the country.

The Government intends to limit the number of permanent migrants to 195,000 per year. It is unclear how this relates to those already in the country on temporary visas. There are an estimated 1.8 million people presently in Australia under the temporary visa scheme. These people need accommodation whether they are on a path to permanent migration or just staying for the duration of their employment.

Presently, about 60% of those accepted for permanent migration were initially on a temporary visa. Only a small number of these were from employer-sponsored schemes. This implies that not too many migrants are filling the labour shortages. At the same time, it also implies that there are a significant number of positions in the labour market for migrants with decent, appropriate qualifications.

Our Immigration Lawyers Sydney are aware of the ever-changing migration situation. There are presently employer-sponsored visas and other opportunities to fill vacancies in the labour market. We look at the best paths to legal immigration.

Immigration Lawyer Sydney

Immigration law is complex and has changed due after Covid restrictions. Consult an immigration Lawyer for the best legal Visa application.

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