lynney45

To add to the unfairness for 489 visa holders. It seems there is visa application fee refund form that can be completed: https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/departmental-forms/online-forms/covid-19-vac-refund-request but it doesn't mention 489 visa holders in the eligibility criteria

No luck sadly, i applied for exemption around late November and it was rejected. My skills weren’t deemed critical enough to support the countries efforts and economic recovery during the pandemic. Still none the wiser at this point months later. The visa is starting to feel like scrap at this point, that’s my current sentiment.

Hi @lewisant48 i had posted a thread here with similar concerns a while back, in the same boat as you.

Hi Laxmi and Jo.b extremely sorry to hear about your situations also. Afraid i have nothing positive to report at this time, just keeping an eye on government announcements and news articles as to when international borders may reopen. My only lifeline at this point is the concession that JetBlast shared, if the borders open in the first half of 2021 i am hoping i can leverage the concession. If it's the second half of 2021 even the concession won't suffice as my visa will expire before i am able to do the 18 months. I am surprised they haven't offered visa refunds or extensions under the circumstances. Just staying patient for now and checking updates regularly. If you guys hear any positive news on your end also, please do keep me posted. Cheers and good luck!

Thank you so much JetBlast, your support and contribution to this forum is invaluable. This might just be the lifeline i require, will need to study this thoroughly and speak with my MARA agent regarding the requirements and implications in my particular case. thank you so much

Morning guys, i just wanted to feedback that my exemption application was rejected just in case there is anyone in a similar situation: Dear Paul I refer to your request for an exemption from the current travel restrictions for travel to Australia. Your request was for the following travellers: Based on the information provided, your circumstances do not meet the requirements for referral to the Commissioner or delegate. Whilst your occupation is on the Priority Migration Skills Occupation List, you do not have a current employment or an offer of employment in Australia. You are still subject to the travel restrictions and, should you attempt to travel to Australia, you may be refused entry while those travel restrictions remain in force. This assessment is against current COVID-19 travel restrictions and not your entitlement to a visa. It does not affect any future visa application which you may lodge. Any visa application will be assessed on the basis of information available at that time. For further information on Australia’s travel restrictions, please refer to our website at: https://covid19.homeaffairs.gov.au/

Thanks for the reply Marisa, and the understanding. I applied for an exemption as software engineer is on the critical skills list but i doubt it will be approved as i have no employer in Australia yet. I just uploaded my previous employer reference, my java programming accreditation and my under grad and post grad degree certificates and emphasised that the visa will be redundant if i am unsuccessful with the exemption as i will be unable to meet the 2 year visa requirement for PR. Yeah i did read that statement from the PM and that's what has me spooked, i put so much work into this visa, financial expense, and above all dreamed of a life in Oz.... if the exemption is rejected it just wasnt meant to be....if only there was some sort of appeal process for an extension under the circumstances, it just feels like such an oversight....

correction (i meant the visa will expire January 2023) so i need to be able to meet the 2 year visa condition before then, which means arriving prior to January 2021 - sorry for the confusion

Hi my 489 state sponsored visa for South Australia if i do not arrive by January 2021 i will be unable to meet the two year work requirement criteria for PR as the visa expires in January 2022. Is there any way i can emigrate before January? Is the only solution to apply for an exemption to travel? I am from the UK, (i work in software development). If a travel ban is in place until the end of the year my visa i will be unable to emigrate and meet the 2 year requirement for PR. If i am not allowed to travel is there any way i can apply for an extension under the circumstances or apply for a reimbursement or partial reimbursement? I have spent around 6k on this visa.... Thanks for any advice in advance....

Hi, i have a 489 state sponsored visa for South Australia. I am planning on activating the visa for a 6 week trip then returning back to the UK as i have some minor health issues i need to resolve via the NHS in the UK prior to emigrating officially 1 year later. Can someone please advise whether this 6 weeks visit would constitute towards my 2 year resident requirement? The requirement is that i must reside in south australia for 2 years. I will be staying in Airbnb’s in Adelaide during this total 6 week period. If i keep the invoices for the accommodation will i be able to count these 6 weeks towards my visa condition requiring me to live in Adelaide for 2 years before applying for 887 PR visa? In other words can i count this 6 week visit in Adelaide towards my visa requirement? So that when i do officially emigrate i will only need to live there for a further 1 year 10.5 months (less the 6 weeks that i spent there during the 6 week visit?) Many thanks in advance for any advice

From liasing with my agent i have recently found out that if i meet state sponsorship criteria/conditions on the 489 visa and my visa is about to expire then i can apply for a bridging visa and work in another state while waiting on the 887 being processed. Therefore i won’t have to stay in SA for 11 months during processing time of 887.

That's reassuring NicF, it intils me with some hope. Are you aware of what his specialism/field of expertise is in IT if you don't mind sharing please? Or is he a bit of an all rounder in different areas? Thanks

Good luck with the move hope you find a role where your experience lies. I tried broadening the search criteria and i see there are more generic roles, so i will be applying for those too as i don't expect to find a role in my specialism with such low volume of opportunities there. I am also preparing myself to apply for roles outside of the IT industry altogether just to pay the bills if Adelaide is as difficult to find a job as the sentiment on the forums portrays. Is Seek the career site that has the highest volume of IT roles do you know? I am wondering what the employment prospects are when registering with local recruitment agencies in Adelaide compared to applying directly on Seek? We probably don't have many other options as it will take time to develop and establish a linkedIn network.

I work as a software tester in the IT industry, i have 9 years experience with several major companies in the UK, and hold a masters in computing and information systems, and professional certifications. I am committed to building a new life in Australia, so much so that i appreciate that i will most likely need to make sacrifices and take a step back in my career for 2 years until i meet my state sponsorship criteria in Adelaide to apply for PR then i can hopefully get my career back on track in Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane if PR is approved. I will be emigrating alone. My biggest concern is that when i filter for roles in my profession on seek.com.au i see literally around 5 new jobs per month in my profession. This is very daunting considering Adelaide has a population of 1.2 million. Due to this i am anticipating to find it difficult to find a job in my profession, so therefore i am willing to take any job as long as it pays the bills in order for me to get through these two years. Even then however, i am trying to understand how difficult it is to just get any job that merely pays the bills given the negative sentiment i have seen on the forums around employment prospects in Adelaide/South Australia. I am just trying to gain an understanding so i can prepare for the worst, in case i need to have two years worth of savings prior to migration.

i am wondering if doing that would have any detrimental impact on my 887 visa application outcome?

I should have also asked, if it isn't possible to move to a metropolis area in another state on 489 visa while 887 is being processed. Then is it possible to transition onto a bridging visa while 887 is being processed, then move to a metropolis area in another state on a bridging visa instead of 489?

Hi all, i have read many threads of people on 489 visas for South Australia stating that they are unable to find work, are struggling to get by and are asking questions like 'Can we move to another state as we are unable to find work'. Are employment prospects in Adelaide as bad people portray on these forums? I have could statistics that the unemployment rate in Adelaide is 6.67% as of the first quarter of 2018: https://economy.id.com.au/adelaide/unemployment An unemployment rate of 6.67% is actually quite impressive in comparison to some other cities. So i wonder why so many people complain that they are unable to find work? Perhaps they mean they are unable to find work in their field? Are jobs plentiful as long as you are willing to do any kind of work?

Hi All, as you are aware the rules of the 489 visa stipulate that you must live in a regional area for 2 years and work there for 1 year full time before you can apply for 887. Is it ok to move to another state after satisfying this criteria after the two year period elapses, while waiting on 887 to be processed? As i am aware the processing time for 887 is between 9-12 months currently. I am wondering if it is possible to work in another state on the 489 visa during this processing time until/hopefully 887 is granted? Does anyone know if this is possible please?

To clarify, my agent informed SA that i had applied with Vic at EOI, and SA still invited me to apply for state sponsorship

Thanks for the heads up. My migration has informed them, and vice versa for Vic, you are asked when applying 'Have you applied to any other states'. I can imagine this didn't help in my application with Vic. However i will lose 5 points in 6 months time when i turn 33 and this won't cut it with SA as i can only apply in the high points category. So i had to lodge two applications simultaneously, with Vic being my first preference and SA as a last resort, so now i need to proceed with SA it seems as Vic have closed the door.

I have received an invite from South Australia also after submitting my EOI there. I wanted to hear the decision from Victoria first though. Applying to SA is a last resort, but i don't have any other choice at this point. It is disappointing as i have to incur thousands of pounds worth of costs all over again for a state sponsorship application with SA. I also had a look on seek.com.au and there are less than a handful of jobs for my occupation in the entire state. If i am approved for the 489 visa with SA i will have to take a significant step back in my career for 2 years by the looks of things until i can transition to an 887 visa and move to Brisbane, Sydney, or Melbourne at that point to get my career back on track. A lot of sacrifices will need to be made by the looks of things, i feel quite apprehensive about the 489 visa in SA.

I just heard back from my agent today she said this: "These appeals deal with visa refusals - you do not have this as you have not applied for a visa. You have a refusal with the Victorian government and there is no appeal process." So basically because i was refused from state sponsorship i am not eligible to lodge an appeal, i would only be eligible to lodge an appeal if i was rejected from for the visa application by DIBP. I am shocked at how difficult it is to get approved for Victoria, my break down is as follows: 6 years Software Testing experience in the IT industry in the UK for several major companies, including test automation experience 2 first class degrees (BSc IT, MSc Computing & Information Systems) PTE Academic Level English Maximum points for age (32) Points would also have been attained for state sponsorship I can't remember to hand the points allocation for each of the above as i am in work at the minute, but they total 80 points, the PTE academic gets you 20 points by the way Horsemad, this made a significant difference to differentiate me in the high points category.

Hi all, my 190 visa was rejected for Victoria yesterday. I sent an EOI and received an invitation for state sponsorship. I awaited 2 months and they got back to me with a rejection. I had high points, 80 in total. I am a software tester in the uk with 6 years experience. I applied through an immigration agent and everything in my application was honest and complete. They rejection was just a generic rejection. I am wondering if it is worth appealing due to Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT)?Can you please advise if it is worth lodging an appeal?Please see generic rejection below..."Following a review of the application, we regret to inform you that your client has not been selected for visa nomination by the Victorian Government. Your client’s application for Victorian Government state nomination was reviewed individually and assessed with a focus on their ability to address a number of criteria, including: § ability to meet the minimum eligibility criteria, § demand for particular skills and expertise, and ability to find work in Victoria, § the suitability and transferability of qualifications, skills and experience – including any specialist capabilities – to the needs of Victoria’s labour market, § ability and commitment to establishing themselves, and any dependents, in Victoria § the number of nomination applications received relative to the number of nomination places available for the occupation. Victoria receives a high number of very strong applications for state nomination and only the very highest calibre candidates with the strongest skills, experience and opportunity for finding work in Victoria’s labour market are selected for Victorian state nomination. The Victorian Government uses independent industry panels to provide advice on the suitability of applicants to Victoria’s labour market. These industry representatives also provide advice on the demand for individual applicants’ qualifications, skills and experience, and prospects for employment in Victoria. While your client’s application demonstrated their ability to meet the minimum eligibility requirements for Victorian state nomination, other applicants were able to more adequately demonstrate their suitability for employment in Victoria. Your client is entitled to reapply for Victorian Government nomination six months after the date of this email, provided the occupation remains on Victoria’s occupation list, and your client meets any other relevant criteria. See our website for further information on nomination requirements: LiveInVictoria.vic.gov.au."