Curious

Bit of an update for those in a similar position to me... I don't know how valid the source is, but gives me some hope...

Marina Brizar, head of corporate and private client at immigration law firm Playfair Visa and Migration Services, said there was a grace period for people currently on 457s to apply for permanent residency. The changes to residency eligibility will not kick in until March 2018, so 457 holders have until then to submit their residency applications. In a statement, the Department of Immigration and Border Protection confirmed this.

"Existing 457 visas will continue to remain in effect until they expire. As is currently the case, a 457 visa holder who wishes to remain in Australia beyond the validity of their current visa, must apply for a new visa before their current visa expires," a department spokeswoman told HuffPost Australia.

"Existing 457 visa holders and applicants as at 18 April 2017 will continue to have access to existing employer sponsored pathways to permanent residence. Further details will be published on the Department's website in due course."

5 minutes ago, EVELYN said:

Would you mind me asking when is your two years TRT point, is it before Mar. 2018? As I recall, the FACT SHEET TWO did mention something about the changes after Mar. 2018 such as "permanent residence eligibility will be extended from two to three years." It really looks like that this could affect TRT steam applicants after Mar. 2018.....

Yeah that's a good point... My two years is in July of this year so I fall within that timeframe. Anyone outside of that should probably call Immigration for further clarification

7 minutes ago, millski88 said:

I did not ask that exact question as it is not applicable to my situation. However, in my opinion it would not be an issue. I say this because the material introducing these new lists stipulates that they are applicable specifically to future ENS 186 Direct Entry Stream applications, whereas the TRT stream is not mentioned.

I believe this is because the TRT stream would also be restructured/re-named for those after introduction of the new temporary visas in March 2018. By the sounds of it, in the meantime the TRT stream would remain governed under the previous rules for those already on a 457 visa (as by it’s nature it is exclusively for those already on 457 visas), due to this ‘grandfathering agreement’.

Please understand, I did not get this information from the Department, this is purely my opinion and speculation.

Thanks for your response!

I have contacted immigration and got a call back just now - they have confirmed your thoughts. She put me on hold and spoke to her manager and confirmed that the changes only refer to those wishing to enter via the direct entry scheme and not through transition to 186 - thank goodness for that, it was a sleepless night!

16 minutes ago, millski88 said:

*Update for Weds morning*

I just got off the phone with the Department. The rep told me there is no change to current 457 holders applying for 186 via the TRT stream.

Thank the lord.

cheers ✌?

Hi, does this also apply to those who are sponsored under an occupation that has been removed from the list?

Many thanks in advance

4 hours ago, EVELYN said:

Does a grandfather agreement means that current 457 visa holders can still apply for permanent residency after two years of working?

I'd love to know the answer to this too, especially since my 457 sponsorship category is being removed from the approved list as of tomorrow - anyone know the answer to this??