Migration Help
10th April 2010, 03:26 PM
The email that follows is ASPC's most recent advice in terms of GSM application processing
Last updated: 7 April 2010
IMPORTANT NOTICE
Changes to Priority Processing – 8 February 2010
Direction No. 45 - Order of consideration - certain skilled migration visas
The Migration Act 1958 contains powers by which the Minister can consider and finalise visa applications in an order of priority that the Minister considers appropriate. Departmental officers are required to follow this Ministerial direction, which applies to every stage of visa processing.
The Minister for Immigration and Citizenship has set new processing priorities for certain skilled migration visa applications.
The direction came into effect on 8 February 2010 and applies to new applications lodged on or after 8 February 2010, and those already lodged or in the final stages of processing, and replaces the previous Priority Processing Direction (No. 42) which commenced on 23 September 2009.
The new priority processing arrangements apply to the following visa
programs:
• The Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS)
• The Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS)
• General Skilled Migration (GSM).
The following GSM visa subclasses are exempt from the priority processing provisions specified in Direction 45:
• Skilled – Recognised Graduate Subclass 476
• Skilled – Graduate Subclass 485
• Skilled – Designated Area – Sponsored (Residence) Subclass 883
• Skilled – Regional Subclass 887.
Applications for these visa subclasses will be processed in the order in which they are received.
The following GSM applications are exempt from Direction 45:
• applications that have been remitted by the MRT for reconsideration;
• applications where it is readily apparent that the criteria for grant
of the visa would not be satisfied;
• applications by members of the family unit of a person who holds a
temporary or provisional GSM visa (subsequent entrant applications).
• visa applications for a Skilled – Regional Sponsored Subclass 487
visa where the applicant holds a Skilled – Independent Regional
(Provisional) Subclass 495 visa, Skilled – Designated Area-sponsored
(Provisional) Subclass 496 visa, Skilled – Regional Sponsored Subclass 487 visa or Skilled – Regional Sponsored Subclass 475 visa at the time they apply.
The Skilled Migration visa processing priorities
Under the Ministerial Direction, the following processing priorities (with highest priority listed first) apply:
1. Applications from people who are employer sponsored under the ENS and the RSMS.
2. Applications from people who are nominated by a State/Territory
government agency under a State Migration Plan agreed to by the Minister.
3. Applications from people who are nominated by a State/Territory
government agency and whose nominated occupation is on the Critical Skills List (CSL).
4. Applications from people who are neither nominated nor sponsored
under Priority Groups 1,2 or 3 but whose nominated occupation is listed on the CSL.
5. Applications from people who are nominated by a State/Territory
government agency whose nominated occupation is not listed on the CSL
6. (i) Applications from people whose occupations are listed on the
Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL); as well as
(ii) Applications from people who are sponsored by family and whose nominated occupation is not listed on the CSL.
7. All other applications are to be processed in the order in which they
are received.
The complete list of occupations on the CSL is available on the department’s website: http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/general-skilled-migration/pdf/critical-skills-list.pdf
Application Processing Times – GSM Applications
Information on application processing times is published on the department’s website at http://www.immi.gov.au/about/charters/client-services-charter/visas/8.0.htm
If your application is in any of priority groups 2, 3 or 4, it is estimated that your visa application will be finalised within 12 months of your lodgement date. Please note that processing times can be affected by circumstances beyond the department’s control.
If your application is in any of priority groups 5, 6 or 7 and you have applied for an offshore GSM visa or intend to apply for an offshore GSM visa, it is unlikely that your application will be finalised within 3 years of the date of the application.
If your application is in any of priority groups 5, 6 or 7 and you applied for an onshore GSM visa or intend to apply for an onshore GSM visa, it is unlikely that your application will be finalised within 2 years of the date of the application.
Please note that your nominated occupation is the occupation you nominated at the time you lodged your application and cannot be changed.
Application processing times are indicative only and are based on the current visa application rate, the current Priority Processing Direction, and the availability of places in the Migration Program.
Please do not contact the Department to request your application be exempted from the Minister’s Priority Processing Direction. Departmental officers must adhere to the Minister’s Direction and you will be contacted by the Department when your application is allocated to a case officer.
Processing priorities are subject to change. Any changes to these priorities or processing times will be updated on the Department’s website at: http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/general-skilled-migration/whats-new.htm
Priority Processing Exemptions
Visa Subclasses 476, 485 and 887 are exempt from the priority processing changes. Applications under these subclasses will continue to be processed in the order in which they were received by the Department – the following subclass by application lodgement date identifies cases currently being considered:
• Skilled – Recognised Graduate Subclass 476
VF 476 (paper): 24 March 2010
VF 476 (e-lodged): 24 March 2010
• Skilled – Graduate Subclass 485
VC 485 (paper): 5 May 2009
• Skilled – Regional Subclass 887
VB 887 (paper): 26 March 2010
Other Processing News
In addition to the new Priority Processing Direction the Minister has announced other changes to the GSM Program. Information about these changes has been published on the Department’s website at:
http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/general-skilled-migration/whats-new.htm
Applicants for General Skilled Migration (GSM) are strongly encouraged to submit supporting documentation electronically. Providing scanned copies of documents reduces postal and administrative delays in receiving and processing information.
GSM processing offices accept scanned copies of original documents (non-certified) provided they are in colour. If you scan documents in black and white, then they must be scanned copies of certified copies. The valid file types for attaching documents are BMP, DOC, DOT, GIF, JPG, PDF, RTF, TXT and XLS.
Information which will assist you in attaching documents to your application or in emailing them to the department is available on the department’s website at: http://www.immi.gov.au/e_visa/general-skilled-migration-attachments.htm
E-lodged applications
If you e-lodged this application you are strongly encouraged to attach all the supporting documentation to the application in the web-browser. This is the preferred procedure for providing supporting documents for an e-lodged application.
If for any reason you cannot attach documents in the browser then you can email the documents as scanned attachments to: adelaide.gsm.documents@immi.gov.au
Paper lodged applications
If you lodged a paper application you can still provide supporting documentation electronically.
To provide additional documents to the GSM Adelaide office please email the documents as scanned attachments to: adelaide.gsm.documents@immi.gov.au
When emailing documents to the department please ensure that you include an application reference number as the first part of the subject line of your email. You can use either the Transaction Reference Number (TRN) or file reference number for this purpose.
Do not send this office any original documents or provide paper copies of documents attached to the browser or sent by e-mail unless asked to do so by a departmental officer.
MEDICAL RESULTS
If you have undertaken your medical examination at Health Services Australia (HSA), please do not post your medical results to us unless your case officer requests you to do so. Please store your results in a secure place and do not open the sealed envelope.
BRISBANE PROCESSING
Information regarding applications processed in Brisbane can be obtained by sending a blank email to the following email address: gsmb.information@immi.gov.au
CONTACTING US
Email:
• If you have not yet lodged a GSM application then enquiries should be made using the on-line enquiry form at http://www.immi.gov.au/contacts/forms/gsm/pre.htm
• If you have already made an application then all enquiries for the
ASPC and BSPC need to be made using the on-line enquiry form at:
http://www.immi.gov.au/contacts/forms/gsm/post.htm or
Telephone:
1300 364 613 (in Australia) for the cost of a local call; or
+61 1300 364 613 (outside Australia)
Contact Hours: (Australian Central Time): 0900 to 1600 Monday to Friday
LINKS
General Skilled Migration – What's New - http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/general-skilled-migration/whats-new.htm
Critical Skills List - http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/general-skilled-migration/pdf/critical-skills-list.pdf
MH
Last updated: 7 April 2010
IMPORTANT NOTICE
Changes to Priority Processing – 8 February 2010
Direction No. 45 - Order of consideration - certain skilled migration visas
The Migration Act 1958 contains powers by which the Minister can consider and finalise visa applications in an order of priority that the Minister considers appropriate. Departmental officers are required to follow this Ministerial direction, which applies to every stage of visa processing.
The Minister for Immigration and Citizenship has set new processing priorities for certain skilled migration visa applications.
The direction came into effect on 8 February 2010 and applies to new applications lodged on or after 8 February 2010, and those already lodged or in the final stages of processing, and replaces the previous Priority Processing Direction (No. 42) which commenced on 23 September 2009.
The new priority processing arrangements apply to the following visa
programs:
• The Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS)
• The Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS)
• General Skilled Migration (GSM).
The following GSM visa subclasses are exempt from the priority processing provisions specified in Direction 45:
• Skilled – Recognised Graduate Subclass 476
• Skilled – Graduate Subclass 485
• Skilled – Designated Area – Sponsored (Residence) Subclass 883
• Skilled – Regional Subclass 887.
Applications for these visa subclasses will be processed in the order in which they are received.
The following GSM applications are exempt from Direction 45:
• applications that have been remitted by the MRT for reconsideration;
• applications where it is readily apparent that the criteria for grant
of the visa would not be satisfied;
• applications by members of the family unit of a person who holds a
temporary or provisional GSM visa (subsequent entrant applications).
• visa applications for a Skilled – Regional Sponsored Subclass 487
visa where the applicant holds a Skilled – Independent Regional
(Provisional) Subclass 495 visa, Skilled – Designated Area-sponsored
(Provisional) Subclass 496 visa, Skilled – Regional Sponsored Subclass 487 visa or Skilled – Regional Sponsored Subclass 475 visa at the time they apply.
The Skilled Migration visa processing priorities
Under the Ministerial Direction, the following processing priorities (with highest priority listed first) apply:
1. Applications from people who are employer sponsored under the ENS and the RSMS.
2. Applications from people who are nominated by a State/Territory
government agency under a State Migration Plan agreed to by the Minister.
3. Applications from people who are nominated by a State/Territory
government agency and whose nominated occupation is on the Critical Skills List (CSL).
4. Applications from people who are neither nominated nor sponsored
under Priority Groups 1,2 or 3 but whose nominated occupation is listed on the CSL.
5. Applications from people who are nominated by a State/Territory
government agency whose nominated occupation is not listed on the CSL
6. (i) Applications from people whose occupations are listed on the
Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL); as well as
(ii) Applications from people who are sponsored by family and whose nominated occupation is not listed on the CSL.
7. All other applications are to be processed in the order in which they
are received.
The complete list of occupations on the CSL is available on the department’s website: http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/general-skilled-migration/pdf/critical-skills-list.pdf
Application Processing Times – GSM Applications
Information on application processing times is published on the department’s website at http://www.immi.gov.au/about/charters/client-services-charter/visas/8.0.htm
If your application is in any of priority groups 2, 3 or 4, it is estimated that your visa application will be finalised within 12 months of your lodgement date. Please note that processing times can be affected by circumstances beyond the department’s control.
If your application is in any of priority groups 5, 6 or 7 and you have applied for an offshore GSM visa or intend to apply for an offshore GSM visa, it is unlikely that your application will be finalised within 3 years of the date of the application.
If your application is in any of priority groups 5, 6 or 7 and you applied for an onshore GSM visa or intend to apply for an onshore GSM visa, it is unlikely that your application will be finalised within 2 years of the date of the application.
Please note that your nominated occupation is the occupation you nominated at the time you lodged your application and cannot be changed.
Application processing times are indicative only and are based on the current visa application rate, the current Priority Processing Direction, and the availability of places in the Migration Program.
Please do not contact the Department to request your application be exempted from the Minister’s Priority Processing Direction. Departmental officers must adhere to the Minister’s Direction and you will be contacted by the Department when your application is allocated to a case officer.
Processing priorities are subject to change. Any changes to these priorities or processing times will be updated on the Department’s website at: http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/general-skilled-migration/whats-new.htm
Priority Processing Exemptions
Visa Subclasses 476, 485 and 887 are exempt from the priority processing changes. Applications under these subclasses will continue to be processed in the order in which they were received by the Department – the following subclass by application lodgement date identifies cases currently being considered:
• Skilled – Recognised Graduate Subclass 476
VF 476 (paper): 24 March 2010
VF 476 (e-lodged): 24 March 2010
• Skilled – Graduate Subclass 485
VC 485 (paper): 5 May 2009
• Skilled – Regional Subclass 887
VB 887 (paper): 26 March 2010
Other Processing News
In addition to the new Priority Processing Direction the Minister has announced other changes to the GSM Program. Information about these changes has been published on the Department’s website at:
http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/general-skilled-migration/whats-new.htm
Applicants for General Skilled Migration (GSM) are strongly encouraged to submit supporting documentation electronically. Providing scanned copies of documents reduces postal and administrative delays in receiving and processing information.
GSM processing offices accept scanned copies of original documents (non-certified) provided they are in colour. If you scan documents in black and white, then they must be scanned copies of certified copies. The valid file types for attaching documents are BMP, DOC, DOT, GIF, JPG, PDF, RTF, TXT and XLS.
Information which will assist you in attaching documents to your application or in emailing them to the department is available on the department’s website at: http://www.immi.gov.au/e_visa/general-skilled-migration-attachments.htm
E-lodged applications
If you e-lodged this application you are strongly encouraged to attach all the supporting documentation to the application in the web-browser. This is the preferred procedure for providing supporting documents for an e-lodged application.
If for any reason you cannot attach documents in the browser then you can email the documents as scanned attachments to: adelaide.gsm.documents@immi.gov.au
Paper lodged applications
If you lodged a paper application you can still provide supporting documentation electronically.
To provide additional documents to the GSM Adelaide office please email the documents as scanned attachments to: adelaide.gsm.documents@immi.gov.au
When emailing documents to the department please ensure that you include an application reference number as the first part of the subject line of your email. You can use either the Transaction Reference Number (TRN) or file reference number for this purpose.
Do not send this office any original documents or provide paper copies of documents attached to the browser or sent by e-mail unless asked to do so by a departmental officer.
MEDICAL RESULTS
If you have undertaken your medical examination at Health Services Australia (HSA), please do not post your medical results to us unless your case officer requests you to do so. Please store your results in a secure place and do not open the sealed envelope.
BRISBANE PROCESSING
Information regarding applications processed in Brisbane can be obtained by sending a blank email to the following email address: gsmb.information@immi.gov.au
CONTACTING US
Email:
• If you have not yet lodged a GSM application then enquiries should be made using the on-line enquiry form at http://www.immi.gov.au/contacts/forms/gsm/pre.htm
• If you have already made an application then all enquiries for the
ASPC and BSPC need to be made using the on-line enquiry form at:
http://www.immi.gov.au/contacts/forms/gsm/post.htm or
Telephone:
1300 364 613 (in Australia) for the cost of a local call; or
+61 1300 364 613 (outside Australia)
Contact Hours: (Australian Central Time): 0900 to 1600 Monday to Friday
LINKS
General Skilled Migration – What's New - http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/general-skilled-migration/whats-new.htm
Critical Skills List - http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/general-skilled-migration/pdf/critical-skills-list.pdf
MH