RSMS timeline

[Rangerider33]

Hi everyone,

So after 5 years in Australia on numerous different temp visa's, I have a permanent application lodged, now the waiting begins....

My current visa is nearly off so I will wait offshore, I really hope it won't be long!

Could anyone share any times lines for RSMS or visa's lodged at Paramatta please? My time line is below

x

[torren]

Hi, not sure how many of us are going for RSMS visas, you may not get a huge response! Anyway, my timeline is similar to yours:
27/4 - job offer
13/5 - employer nomination submitted
10/6 - approved
28/6 - visa application lodged (Melbourne)

Waiting for CO....
Sorry this isn't much help as I'm in a similar situation to you but questions about RSMSs never seem to get much of a response, so thought I would let you know you're not alone!

[Rangerider33]

Thanks for your reply Torren,

It is most definatly good to know I am not alone! Keep me update on your progress will you? Our time lines are very similar! Where is your job offer in Victoria? Are you offshore now?

[Sunshinefreedom]

Hi everyone, having lurked on the forum for a while hoping to find anything related to RSMS visas it is great to see a thread at last!

We are about a month behind those who have posted so far, our timeline is:
RSMS 857 (onshore) visa and nomination lodged together on 22/07 (Paramatta)
Receipt of Application on 26/07
Now waiting!

Rangerider, I saw on another of your posts that you are heading to Byron Bay? We are just down the coast in Ballina, interesting to see another RSMS so nearby. What is your occupation if you don't mind me asking?

Hope to hear from more RSMS, it would be good to know what the wait is like at the moment...

[Rangerider33]

Hi Sunshine freedom, great to hear from you! So you are lodged at Paramatta also... all i know so far is that it is taking 3-6 moths due to backlogs as you probably know already. You're in Ballina too!! I am actually living in Tintenbar, although I am leaving tommorow morning back to the UK (Manchester) while my app is processed, I'm really sad to be leaving. My occupation is Fashion Designer, I am working for a Byron Bay clothing label, lovely job :D you? Do keep in touch if you hear anything, I will also x

[Sunshinefreedom]

Don't envy you going back to the UK! Will keep fingers crossed that the backlogs clear quickly so we can all get on with our lives! Hubby is a diesel mechanic working in Lismore- he is the one being sponsored, I am looking for work in special needs childcare/disability care sector, but no-one is interested in employing you before you have permanent residency, as no doubt you have also experienced in the past?!

Anyway, hopefully you will enjoy your UK stay and be able to reutrn quickly when the visa is granted

I'll let you know if we get any more news, safe travels...

[zzzsianzzz]

Hi, not sure how many of us are going for RSMS visas, you may not get a huge response! Anyway, my timeline is similar to yours:
27/4 - job offer
13/5 - employer nomination submitted
10/6 - approved
28/6 - visa application lodged (Melbourne)

Waiting for CO....
Sorry this isn't much help as I'm in a similar situation to you but questions about RSMSs never seem to get much of a response, so thought I would let you know you're not alone!

hi torren

how long was your contract? is it exactly 2 years? or they would only consider those that have at least 2 years at the lodgement period?

its quite critical as im hearing different stories

[geokat]

Hi all, very interesting reading your posts as I have started looking into the RSMS visa.

My situation is:
*Applied for a working holiday visa to move with my girlfriend to Aus (both british) Originally the plan was to live and work for six months, see if the lifestyle suited us then kat would apply for a 175 but then immi took primary teaching off the skills list so we were pretty gutted! :(
*I secured a full time job 3 months before leaving the Uk as a car parts interpreter
*Moved to Aus 6 weeks ago
*My employer didn't realise the working holiday visa has a 6 month restriction so asked HR to email a migration agent to ask if it was possible to waive the 6 month limit so I can continue working there
*Migration agent replied saying i could apply to have it waived after a temporary business visa or a RSMS visa was lodged
*I did some research on the immi website then emailled the agent asking if my job as a car parts interpreter with an apprenticeship completed in scotland would make me eligible for this visa
*She replied saying the rsms would be 'appropriate' for me and would be 'preferable' to the temporary business visa

I have printed out the info and forms to discuss with my boss on monday but just wonder if i am even eligible as most visas have a set list of jobs but I don't see a job list for the RSMS??? Don't even know at this point in time if my company will want to sponsor me!!! Don't know how they will feel about making an application to the regional certifying body and paying any associated fees. Also don't know if the regional certifying body would approve me job!!! So many ifs & buts!!!

Any thoughts based on your own experience would be gladly appreciated :)

[torren]

Hi zzzsianzzz

I haven't started my contract yet. It's a permanent post to start when I have the visa. Sorry, I'm not sure if that helps you much.....your circumstances may be different to mine. Let me know if I have misunderstood or can help in any other way.

[Sunshinefreedom]

Hi Geokat,

I have no qualification to advise you apart from having been there, done that and hoping to get the t-shirt! But for what it is worth I would say yes the RSMS is the best way forward as it gives you immediate permanent residency, which the 457 temporary visa does not. Obviously if you decide Aus is not for you then you can just leave, but at least if you get permanent residency then you have the option...

As far as your employer sponsoring you goes, I would say if they have a problem with paying the fees then you pay them. I think the RCB was around $350 and the Visa itself is about $2500 (but you would have to pay that part regardless). We have paid the fees for our sponsor as to us it is very much worth it, but you never know your sponsor may be quite happy to pay.

Your employer will need to demonstrate that they have advertised your job locally and were unable to fill it from the local labour force (this can be demonstrated by adverts or receipts from advertising and then a signed statement saying that the other applicants were unsuitable and why). They will also need to offer you a 2 year contract at a pay rate that is equal to the award rate and equal to what they pay other employees in the same position.

We found that the hardest thing was getting all the employer's paperwork together, in the end I went into the office (it is my husband who is being sponsored) and helped to prepare all the documents for them- this was definately worthwhile. From experience I would say that if they were willing to offer you the job while you were overseas and you and/or your girlfriend show willing to help with getting the paperwork together and possibly paying the fees then they will probably be willing to sponsor.

As for the job, as long as you have a full apprenticeship, and your employer writes a letter stating that a full apprenticeship is a minimum requirement for the position, and the job is in a 'regional area' (which is just about anywhere except capital cities and the Gold Coast) then the job is suitable for an RSMS visa. There is no job list for the RSMS. My husband is a diesel mechanic and his qualification is a South African apprenticeship, the Regional Certifying Body has approved it, but we are waiting on the nomination approval. A full apprenticeship is equivalent to a diploma- it says so on the Immi website and our agents have previously had visas granted on this basis. :)

I hope this is useful, do let me know if I can help any more, and good luck with speaking to your employer...