What are the Australian VISA Changes in 2020?

What are the VISA changes for each state?

There have been some recent changes to the skilled and business VISA criteria. This is due to both the Coronavirus situation and the policies of the present Morrison government.

State of NSW

NSW was accepting some VISA applications for subclass 291, but this closed on the 26th of June.

The previous 12 month living and working requirement for the 491 VISA has been lifted. Applicants for this VISA need only live in a designated regional area and have and work in an applicable skill occupation.

State of Victoria

Many Visa presently cannot be applied for.

Presently there are to be no applications for:

– Skilled Work Regional (Provisional, subclass 491)visa
– Skilled Nominated (subclass 190)
– Business Innovation stream (subclass 188A)
– Investor stream (subclass 188B)
– Significant Investor stream (subclass 188C)
– Entrepreneur stream (subclass 188E)
– Significant Business History (subclass 132A)
– Venture Capital Entrepreneur (subclass 132B)

The applications will hopefully be reopened with in a year.

South Australia

Skilled and migration VISA are presently closed, but are scheduled to reopen in August 2020.

Tasmania

The VISA applications remain open for Tasmania, though the quotas have not been set. So applications will be considered, but not nominations will be made for the time being.

Processing times for VISAs

The Department of Home Affairs advises that VISAs will continue to be processed during the CoronaVirus epidemic, though applications are taking a longer than normal due to the shutdowns. This is largely because of the delays in sourcing information and character checks form overseas.

High Income Threshold

The High Income Threshold under the Fair Work Act increased on 1 July 2020 from $148,700 to $153,600.

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Disclaimer: The information in this article is provided for informational purposes only. It does not constitute legal advice and should not be relied upon as such. No individual should take, or refrain from taking, any action solely based on the material contained in this article. While we aim to offer accurate and timely information, we cannot guarantee its accuracy on the date of receipt or in the future. If you require more information or seek relevant legal advice specific to your circumstances, please contact our office.