PA/06/17 18 April 2017
Australia announces reforms to temporary skilled visas
The Australian Government today announced changes to employer sponsored temporary skilled work visa arrangements designed to ensure that the programme better meets Australia’s skills needs.
The announcement includes changes to the current visa for temporary skilled workers (the 457 visa) which will be replaced by a new temporary skill shortage work visa by March 2018.
The new visa will have two streams: a short-term stream allowing entry for up to two years, and a medium-term stream allowing entry for up to four years, similar to the current 457 visa.
Australia’s High Commissioner to India, Harinder Sidhu, emphasised that the entry of skilled workers is vital to Australia’s economic growth and prosperity, and ongoing success requires constant calibration to ensure the best outcomes for Australians and temporary skilled workers alike.
“India provides the highest number of temporary skilled workers to Australia of any country; eight out of the top 10 occupations for Indian 457 visa holders (as at December 2016) were IT professionals,” Ms Sidhu said.
“The occupation list for the four year visa includes IT professionals, so there continues to be visa options for skilled Indian nationals.”
Further information on these reforms is available on the website of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection: www.border.gov.au/Trav/Work/457-abolition-replacement.
The details of the new occupation lists commencing 19 April 2017 can be found here: http://www.border.gov.au/Trav/Work/Work/Skills-assessment-and-assessing-authorities/skilled-occupations-lists