SJB123

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HOT OFF THE PRESS. News from DIBP. Grandfathering for 457 visa holders as at 18th April 2017, you will STILL be eligible for temporary transitional pathway to permanent residency after 2 years (not 3) with your current employer.

This includes the above 45's....announced at a migration conference by DIBP, supposedly being published next week..........

On 14/10/2017 at 00:28, Saugat said:

There is no way that existing 457 will be assessed under new rules because the term "granfathering " in terms of law itself  mean unaffected by the new rules. Plus some of the occupations of the existing holders are out of new list and some have moved to short term or completely out of the list. If you are thinking under new rules it will be three years for transition to PR thats impossible . Now, in this latest new update if they have said under transitional arrangement existing holder will still be allowed to transition into PR i am certain they mean  it's under the same old terms and condition. Fingers crossed.

What about existing 457 visa holders with a job on the mltssl who are over 45 I wonder..there is no mention anywhere about the prospect of us 45+ year olds having our conditions grandfathered, despite being below the upper limit when our visa was granted?? Anyone??

Hi everyone,

Our family is in a really complicated situation so please bear with me (apologies for a long post!!)

I have been on here before asking people to sign our petition on change.org (message me if you want to sign it)

So our situation is this (in as concise a way as I can put it): we came to Australia on a 457 visa in December 2016 with my husband as primary applicant, and we live in Perth WA. It was all going well until the news broke in April this year of the 457 visa being abolished and with it the age limit to be able to apply reducing to 45. Unfortunately my husband is 46, and our chances of being able to apply for PR will in effect vanish by March 2018, 9 months before hubby is eligible to apply on the TRT 2 year stream. He was unable to apply by direct entry before July due to not enough post grad experience, and unable to apply via the regional sponsored as Perth is no longer regional  

So it looks like our days in this beautiful country are numbered and our lives are being destroyed, all over 9 poxy months!! Yes there is a chance that existing 457 visa holders conditions will be grandfathered, but 1) we dont know if that will happen 2) when it will be announced for sure and 3) I havent heard that this condition accounts for those in the 45+ age bracket...

Now onto me...I am 38, been a housewife for the past 5+ years, having before worked in the family business in the UK. Prior to that I was a lab technician, with about 8 years experience but I dont have any qualifications whatsoever having gone into lab work almost straight from school. I was advised that I could be eligible to apply for PR from a regional sponsored visa, as I would only need over 3 years of experience in place of any formal qualifications....cos a regional visa is not skills assessed.

BUT....that would mean I would not only need to get an employer to sponsor me on a full time job for at least 2 years IN A REGIONAL AREA....but during the time it takes to process hubby would have to stay in his 457 visa sponsored job IN PERTH until my visa was granted (around 14 months)!!! Now I know a lot of people would say "stuff that" but at the moment we are willing to try absolutely ANYTHING to stay here...

That being said, it leads me to my question. How on earth do I go about getting someone to sponsor me on a regional visa?? Is there any websites, forums or can anyone point me in the right direction?? I have no idea of where to start, most jobs I have seen on SEEK and other job sites require formal qualifications or certificates, and over 95% of them are in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth or Brisbane (all metropolitan areas). I've applied to a few but no response as yet...

And while on the subject, has anyone got a regional sponsored job with no qualifications, how did you do it, where did you go and what was the application process?

Oh and one final thing....I need to have a sponsored position in place by March 2018 as life science technician (closest to my job) is on the short term list and will no longer be able to apply after then.

Can anyone help?? The easiest thing obviously is if we know for sure that my husband can apply for PR due to our conditions being grandfathered, then I wouldnt have to relocate and leave my kids and husband behind for over a year, but we need a back up plan if hubby cant apply, and this is our back up plan  

Thanks in advance xxx

1 hour ago, ali said:

Sorry, I don't know your history but are you eligible to apply for an Independent PR visa?

No, unfortunately not, as the age limit for any independent visa is now 45, which is why we started this petition.

Can I count on your support??

Thanks in advance 

34 minutes ago, sparkymalarky said:

signed. wish you luck

Thanks for your support!! 

If you wish, post the link on your facebook wall 

Thanks again xx

Just now, Starrynight said:

I've shared it and asked everyone to help. Fingers crossed

Thanks again xx

1 minute ago, Starrynight said:

Me too.  Don't want to go back. I've signed the petition. Is there a way to forward to all fb friends in one click?

Thanks so much for your support Starrynight!! I'm not sure about the facebook thing, maybe try posting the link on your facebook wall, make it public if you can?? No clue with technology 

3 minutes ago, Starrynight said:

Yes I know Good luck with it. It will be August next year for us hopefully.

Thanks, you too. I'm terrified at the prospect of going back to the UK and really hope they see sense for us, we are human after all..

Sorry to keep endlessly plugging our petition, but if theres any chance you could forward it to your family, friends, as many people as you can think of and ask them to sign it I would be really grateful, if it makes a difference/grants us so called "old duffers" an exemption it'll be worth it and I'm willing to try anything to stay in the country I now call home  

https://www.change.org/p/peter-dutton-give-me-the-chance-to-apply-for-pr-from-a-457-visa-granted-before-age-limit-dropped-to-45 

12 hours ago, Quoll said:

No Reception in WA - try this https://www.education.wa.edu.au/web/our-schools/enrolling-in-school

She won't be doing it again because she hasn't done it yet. It pays to forget all you think you know about education levels.

The school year does run from January to December. Kids don't change school year level during the year. It's just a different cut off date in each state which is different from UK. Forget UK and go with the flow, settle into the age cohort and it'll all be good.

Reception is known as pre primary here, playgroup/pre school is known as kindergarten (kindy).

Your March born 4 year old will start in pre primary in late Jan/early Feb  

Just now, Starrynight said:

Hi Verystormy,

SJB123 is not saying that. We know you need a skills assessment for the direct entry route. We both know it is 2 years for the other route...and we were eligible to apply after 2 years under that route, before the age limit was changed.

Youre right Starry night. I dont know why its so hard for people to understand that....the only route available for us would have been the 2 year trt anyway, which doesnt need a skills assessment....I am hoping that we are still able to follow that route next December

https://www.change.org/p/peter-dutton-give-me-the-chance-to-apply-for-pr-from-a-457-visa-granted-before-age-limit-dropped-to-45?recruiter=775352431&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=share_email_responsive 

Thank you in advance 

5 minutes ago, VERYSTORMY said:

At the moment I don't believe so. However the system is going to get some refinement in March when the 457 replacement is announced.

This from https://migrationdownunder.com/457-visa-changes/

Existing 457 visa holders are unaffected by the change and can continue to apply for permanent residency after two years of employment with the same employer via the Temporary Resident Transition stream.

Is this not grandfathering rights for existing 457 visa holders??

2 minutes ago, SimonandSian said:

Thank you so much. That's very reassuring. 

 

Hadnt really thought about uniforms but presume we will we will be able to buy when we have enrolled as we arrive 11th Jan (a few weeks before school starts)

 

out of interest, with the school years being slightly out of sync - do children generally resit the first term of the school year they are in?

No problem. Most schools have dedicated uniform shops, it will usually tell you where to buy uniforms from if you check the school website.

The school year over here is a bit weird, I assumed it would run January to December to coincide with the summer break, but it actually runs July to June. To put that in context, if for example your child was born in July and started Year 2 in September in the UK, by the time you arrive in Australia the following January they would actually only be starting in Year 1. Kids born September through to June restart the same year they were in in January.

Sorry if that sounds confusing...it took me a while to get my head around it!!

Also where we are you need at least a 1 year lease to enrol, not sure if its the same with all schools though

On 4/21/2017 at 03:19, SimonandSian said:

Hi all, 

 

We are lucky enough to have our 189 VISA granted and are planning on moving over to Perth December/January in time for the new school year to begin in February.

 

I was just wondering if anyone had any advice or experience trying to get a school place sorted for a little one before moving to the other side of the world!? 

 

We are fairly certain on the area we want to settle as it is close to family and friends, but that still depends on available rentals etc. I am presuming we have to try to get something sorted before the schools break up in December but am really unsure how to go about this and would love some advice from anyone who has been in a similar situation. 

 

Many thanks  

Hi, 

We moved to Perth last December and I arranged our kids schooling a week or so before they were due to start (primary and secondary aged) as schools were shut before then. They all started on the first day of term no problems. Just make sure you sort out uniforms and kids over here also need their own books, stationery, etc, just be sure to ask for the list of requirements  

Thank you in advance 

On 9/16/2017 at 23:48, VERYSTORMY said:

I do feel for you and your family, but as someone that was on a 457 can't sympathise.  The 457 has a big clue in the title. Temporary. Even without these changes there are many reasons that could have prevented you from gaining PR such as the occupation being removed. If you look through the forum the overwhelming advice has always been to 457 holders to assume you will return at the end of the visa and not seek homes. 

With all due respect we were well aware before we made the move that 457s were temporary. Yes we knew there was a chance we wouldnt get PR from a 457 and it was NOT a decision we took lightly. We made an informed choice to move down under, as my husband has a permanent job contract and many people before us have successfully converted a 457 to PR after the obligatory 2 years. 

May I ask what is your situation now, having been on a 457 visa, am I right to assume you are now a permanent resident?

3 hours ago, Starrynight said:

Hi,

Thanks for the message. I know... it is just awful. Certain people on here keep preaching it's a temporary visa and disregarding the fact it had a route attached to it!! It makes me so angry that these people continue to comment (not helpful), when it is obvious we had a genuine pathway that has been changed mid way through. If the job came off the list then maybe I would accept and understand, but changing the age limit is something different. We were, and still are, sure this will resolve itself, so stay positive and think of this as a glitch that will come to light and be honoured before it passes through parliament!!! Keep in touch.

 

Hi Starry night,

I understand completely. We came over 4 months before the changes and are 9 months short on the temporary residence transition stream. I think this pathway is what most people convert to PR from a 457 (direct entry wasnt an option for us before July anyway) not on the assumption of PR, but on the realistic chance of PR!!

Existing 457 visa holders should have grandfathering rights, surely?? I hope you are right that this is resolved!!

2 hours ago, VERYSTORMY said:

Sorry, but there was never a true path from a 457 to PR. You had to apply for - and be eligible - for a totally new visa. All the 457 allowed was that a person applying via company sponsored PR would need a skills assessment if they worked for two years for an employer. 

I doubt they will raise the age ceilings again, in fact if anything it looks like more restrictions are coming in including a possible age ceiling for 457 visas of 45. 

You dont need a skills assessment for the 2 year temporary residence transition stream, just direct entry.

Before anyone asks, direct entry wasnt possible for us before July 1st  

Hi Starry night,

We are in the exactly the same position as you, my husband is primary applicant on our 457 and aged 46..we came over in December 2016, so we wont hit the 2 year requirement till December 2018. 

My husbands job is on the MLTSSL and he has a permanent job contract with his employer, we have spent our life savings, sold our house, car, and everything else getting over here and if we had to return to the UK we would have to start all over again with nothing, for what, the difference of 9 months???

We knew that PR wasnt guaranteed but thought we had a decent chance of getting it, but now its increasingly unlikely it will happen.

We have started a petition on the change.org site in the hope that our case will be looked at. Please go to the link below and sign it if you can, and forward it to as many people as possible.

I wish you and your family all the best and hope all existing 457 visa holders get the chance for PR, regardless of their situation  

http://chn.ge/2w3hPqY