Too late?

[Cheshirepoms]

Hi All
Immy21 I share your feeling of disappointment! We are just starting out on this process and, it seems, we have left it much too late. I did an online assessment based on my profession and passed. The company rang me yesterday, but told me there is insufficient time to lodge a visa application before my 45th birthday. We rang the Australian High Commission and they said it was just about possible, but I have two weeks!! They sent me the skills assessment booklet but on the criteria in there I don't have enough points. I did a different online assessment last night and passed again. Has anyone any ideas or am I flogging a dead horse?

[Welshtone]

Would be very difficult to get a skills assessment through in time - depends which assessing body and, if you have no relatives to sponsor you it will need to be a 60 point occupation on the Demand List. Send me your c.v. and I'll assess you immediately and then let you know whether you can get an assessment done in time.

Regards



Tony Coates
MARN 0635896

[Gollywobbler]

Hi UKgreens

What is your occupation? It is sometimes possible for people of 45 or over to get into Oz via the employer-sponsorship route. It may be necessary to start with skilled 457 visa, which is a temporary visa, but that can be used as a pathway to permanent residence via an ens or rsms visa as I understand this (which is only vaguely, admittedly.)

Also, whereabouts are you hoping to settle in Oz? We have another member who was in er despair about 3 weeks ago, but I've had a PM from him today telling me that he now has 3 job offers from employers who are willing to sponsor him for migration.

It is much too early to think of giving up on your dream, therefore, I'd say.

Cheers

Gill

[Cheshirepoms]

Hi Gill
Thank you so much for taking the trouble to reply to me. Everything you have told me is very helpful.
I am a School Bursar and Office Manager. I did try my application on the occupation of Finance Manager (better points score), which is essentially what I do, but the job spec mentioned stocks and shares and I have no experience in that field! I have a London Chamber of Commerce and Industry Diploma in business administration and I think this rates a little bit higher in terms of Australian qualifications. I know we were told the LCCI is recognised in OZ. I am currently studying for a first year degree in School Business Management and hope to qualify in August
I have spoken to the Australian High Commission who sent me the booklet, but I can't seem to get enough points on my self assessment, although two migration agents told me I had enough points.

My biggest problem is my age. If only I had applied 6 months ago. We have ummed and aahd for about three years!! We want to move to South Australia, as a large number of our family members are out there. I guess he who hesitates is lost!

My heart was in my boots this morning, but I am feeling a bit better after replies from kind members of this site.

Regards

S

[Gollywobbler]

Hi S

Have you read the DIAC website to within an inch of its life? If not, try here, I suggest:

http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/index.htm

Focus on the visas for employer sponsored workers, because the age limit can be waived with those if a strong enough case for doing so can be made.

You might find that you would have to get a 457 temp visa to start with, but those can lead to an ENS or an RSMS visa, I believe. I have also heard it said that the more remote the place you are willing to go to, the easier it is to say that the case is exceptional. It isn't for life, only for a few years, I believe.

Hope this helps

Gill

[Cheshirepoms]

Thanks again Gill
It is very kind of you to go to the trouble of sending me all these details. I will certainly read and re read the website you recommend.
We are not looking to leave UK just yet, but had hoped the five year visa we could had hoped to apply for would have given us the flexibility to go in 2 to 3 years time. I guess we may have to rethink. Do you happen to know what the age cut off is for applying to go with a job offer?

Regards

Stephanie

[Gollywobbler]

Hi Stephanie

I'm not a migration agent and I know very little about skilled visas myself. I've seen threads on this and other forums in which Agents have told people that 45-50 is often not too much of a problem, but I think after that it really does get difficult unless one does something really obscure for a living and searching the whole of Australia wouldn't produce you.

You would really need to speak to a migration agent with experience of getting skilled visas for people of 45 or over, I think.

Phil Olsen or Welsh Tony might chip into this thread and tell us about their own experiences in this area. Their information would be better than mine.

Cheers

Gill

[maggie]

hello, just wanted to say that it is possible to get out there if you are over 45. I am 48, and have a job offer from a hospital in queensland. They are sponsoring me for a year intially, with a promise of a rolling contract. Once we are there we hope to upgrade our visa from a temporary working visa to a permanent one. There isn't much information about over 45's but it is actually possible if your job is on the SOL list. We know that there is a chance we may not get an upgrade in our visa but sometimes you have to take a chance. So we're going to go for it, our medical is next week, and then hopefully all being well we should get a decision in the near future. I hope that this is of some use to you, good luck, maggie and adrian

[Cheshirepoms]

Thanks Maggie for your kind reply. I think this might be the only way we could possibly go. The trouble is we don't want to go right now and the other visa would have given us 5 years as long as we activated it. My job is on SOL as an associate professional so I guess it is possible someone may want to employ me.

[Gollywobbler]

Hi Stephanie and Maggie

Thanks for the input, Maggie. It always helps when people in Stepanie's position hear from somebody who is actually migrating despite being over the age limit. The seem to put a lot of nurses on 457 visas to start with, but the minute they discover that the nurse is good at the job, they can't wait to get them onto an ENS visa instead, in the hope of keeping the nurse till s/he retires. I'm in touch with a Mum whose daughter is a nurse in Brisbane. Originally her employers said they would consider her for a permanent visa after 2 years. However, they started the PR process after the daughter had only been in Oz for 13 months and the PR visa was granted just before the second anniversary of her arrival in Oz.

I think, Stephanie, that you are probably going to have to accept that the longer you delay making a visa application, the harder it is likely to be for even the most willing employer to get you into Australia.

Also, the idea that one can get a PR visa, validate it and then wait 5 years before moving to Oz is a strategy that is laden with risk. For one thing, if you leave it till the last minute to move, you would have a devil of a job to get even a 3 month Resident Return Visa and only a dire family crisis, necessitating a short time away from Australia on compassionate grounds, would be likely to persuade them to grant even a 3 month RRV. They can't stop anyone from leaving Australia, but they do not have to let tham back in unless they get the RRV before leaving Oz. For more information about RRVs, please see here:

http://www.immi.gov.au/migrants/residents/155/index.htm

One doesn't have the option, really, of waiting more than 3 years after validation, because a five year RRV is far better than trying to get ad hoc 3 month ones, I reckon.

Why do you want to delay moving to Oz? It is because of your children's education? How old will the eldest one be in 3 to 4 years time if this is the reason? Once children get to 18, it can be awkward to get them into Oz as dependants, so you may need to be a bit careful about that too, I suspect.

Nothing is easy with this visa-game, I can tell you!!!!

Cheers

Gill