Skilled migration Australia - More Skilled Migrants to Australia

The Australian Skill Stream of the 2005-06 Migration Program will increase for the eighth successive year, providing up to 20,000 additional places to help meet Australia’s short and long-term labour force needs. This will be within an overall Migration (non-Humanitarian) Program in the range of 130,000 to 140,000 and a Skilled Stream of around 97,500.

To help industry better address migration-related skills and labour issues, the Government will fund the out-posting of ten DIMIA staff to key industry bodies to provide expert support to their members. DIMIA and industry will run joint seminars for employers to help them better understand how to use the employer sponsorship process and to understand their obligations within this.

Other changes to make Australia’s skilled migration arrangements more competitive include:
…More trades and engineering related occupations will be added to the Migration Occupations in Demand List  which provides priority processing and additional points for the general skilled migration points test. The MODL will be reviewed every six months to reflect better emerging labour shortages and further improve targeting.

…Skilled migrants who enter under concessional arrangements if they are sponsored by family in a designated area of Australia will be required to live in that area of the relevant State for a minimum of two years before obtaining permanent residence.

…Working Holiday Makers (WHMs) who do a minimum amount of seasonal harvest work in regional Australia will be allowed to apply for another Working Holiday Maker visa. This will encourage more WHMs to do seasonal harvest work and will also help make the Australian tourism industry more competitive in attracting these valuable tourists.

More about migration to Australia!