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Hi there ! I could have written your post myself....so frustrating. I am a Dr but a PhD one. I went to Australia on a temp visa 10 years ago and was so silly that I didn't try the PR while I was there. Since then, my only dream is to go back... I do not have enough point for a 189 visa so I did not even lodge it. My job category has been recently added to the MSTOL but only for few states and only for a limited number. So I have lodged a 190 visa with 80 points (+5 with state sponsorship). Clock is ticking as well as I will turn 40 soon and I will be losing points... The only way to increase my points is the English test. I missed Superior English by only 1 points out of 90 on 2 out of the 4 test category... I am still kicking myself. I was decided to to it again and then the COVID-19 invited himself to the party.... lockdown, borders closed (had to go in another country for the English test). So frustrating. ACT is one of the state sponsoring my job category but we decided not to do it simply because there is only little chance that my husband can find a job with the job he has. And mine as well actually. I am a biotechnologst but working in pharma companies and I could'nt find my kind of job in ACT. It was very hard and still is as I have mixed feeling about trying everything I can but creating a situation where only one of us can have a job he is passionated about is hard... Contrary to you, I am absolutely certain that with my job category it is not easy to be sponsored by an employer, no matter the years of experience that I have. I have seen jobs available and reached out to the HR department of the company and it was everytime the same answer: no, we do not sponsor (costly and timely not advantageous)... Good luck for your application.

Hi Ausvisitor, Thanks for your reply. About how to get higher points... I guess my only chance is/was to improve my English score. I am so annoyed with my PTE score as I got L82, R78, S80, W78... A 79 on each band would have given me 10 more points...if only the average was considered. I did it end of January and had to go to Italy as there is no center in my country. I was preparing to sit the test once more but.... COVID19 disturbed the entire world. Borders are closed. There is no way I can do that in the next couples of weeks/months. Then I enquired about the language accreditation... but gosh, you need to pass pre-requirements tests before sitting the test, meaning you need some work to prepare and again, sitting the test won't be possible. And that is to improve by 5 points... Don't get me wrong, I have done everything possible to prepare my application and maximize my chance. The process was exshausting. So many letters from a lot of employers, official translation, certification by a lawyer, 3 English tests, hired an agent to ensure I wasnt doing any mistake. I keep my fingers crossed for a reopening of the borders (which would mean that the bastard is disappearing). But I am thinking, if I improve once more my English, let say in July/August, again, my EOI would need to be updated. And my EOI date would be August 2020... knowing in December I will lose 10 points. It means I would have 3 months with a max points possible and I am wondering what are my chances to be invited during this very short 3 months timelines.

Thank you very much for your very clear reply. I am applying on the Biotechnologist category. There is a limited number available (ceilling at 1 000 for the overall Life Scientist category I think). I am also on a tracker and it seems like it is rare to get an invitation for this category. I think I saw only 82 invitations granted. I have 80 points (+5 if state sponsorship). I was happy with my points number but it seems like it is not enough... Any life scientist on this forum who can provide some inputs or any other person who has experienced that as well ? Thank you all

Good evening all, COuld you please tell me which date is the final one for the EOI submission ? I submitted an EOI for NSW on July 08th, 2019. Then I updated my points on January 30th, 2020. I got zero contact. I am wondering if the effective date of EOI is Jan 2020 or July 2019 ? Also another question. When processing time is mentioned, is it from the EOI lodge or is it after having received the invitation to apply ? Being desperate.... I am in a race as in December, I will be losing 10 points for the age and there is no way I can gain 10 points on another criteria... Any information will be helpful... Thank you very much.