NettyHodgy

On 02/05/2021 at 03:55, Alan Collett said:

Hi Annette.

I reckon you're likely to be in the mix for visa grant before the end of the current program year on 30 June 2021.

We had a 188A case granted very quickly last week, within an hour of documents being emailed to the delegate at the Business Skills Processing Centre.

Best regards.

Wow, within an hour, I could only dream of that happening to us. Well. we are back sat waiting for our documents to be assessed so just praying we are on the home straight ans not set for another 3 month wait

Me again

So having now submitted answers/documents to our allocated Case Officers 3rd S56, the 3rd one being received literally 48 hours after the 2nd regarding dependency of my child, any want to send me positive vibes that I'm nearing the end of this whole process  or could I seriously be now waiting a further few months? Our first S56 was to request Medicals and Police Checks so they have already been submitted?

As always, appreciate any thoughts/comments good or bad guys

Annette  

Thank you to everyone who assisted me on this Post. I do truly appreciate your experiences and replies in helping me with my recent request from the Case Officer.

Everything has now been submitted so back to the waiting game for however long that maybe 

Thank you again 

Thank you Alan, most appreciated. I had done exactly that and used a spreadsheet rather than the 1139a form itself. My query lies mainly with the what figures I enter in the Business Ownership section of the 1139a form, do I enter the turnover, value of the business in the Asset Value, then liabilities, what do enter here to create the Nett Asset value?

Again I appreciate all the assistance I am getting on here right now, thank you so much  

Thank you Steve I truly appreciate your guidance. I have obtained a Surveyors reports by a certified RICS Surveyor for all properties, I'm think now I have included all our properties on the 2018 & 2019 years I'm going to need to include them again so will just attached a manual extension to the 1139a form in order to list all the properties included within the Portfolio?

I'm very cheeky to ask, but one more question, on the SALPS form it has a section for "Business Ownership" what figures are needed to be entered in this secton, ie Asset value, liabilities etc? I have already provided our Accounts together with Taxation liabilities paid etc separately? 

Thank you again for all your super helpful advice

Steve/Ken thank you very much for your replies. I now have a Certificate of Compliance, letter from our Accountants advising of UK Taxation requirements etc, and full signed accounts with HMRC Tax notices included which I'm hoping will be sufficient to comply? The frustrating thing is we turnover in excess of $4 million dollars a year so it's not like we are borderline to the amount required to fulfill the criteria.

May I also ask if you could advise me a little further please?

I have also now been asked to submit a 1139a form (Asset & Liability) for the 2020 year. In the Real Estate section it only allows for 6 properties to be entered, we own significantly more and I can't locate a continuation sheet on line anywhere, do I simply amalgamate the property liability/Asset Value figures and use a schedule attached to the form to show the properties in question including the Mortgage Statement etc?

Thank you in advance, I appreciate your assistance so very much.

53 minutes ago, rammygirl said:

Have your accountant send them a statement that clarifies that audited accounts are not required in the UK and that you have complied with all uk regulations etc. worth a try and if they still insist........

I assume you are not using an agent, as they would know for sure. Sometimes a CO will ask not understanding but they may have tightened up.  

Hiya, yes. We're just waiting for the CO to respond. Our Accountants have suggested maybe a compliance certificate to be issued? Just hope they respond before the 28 days as I could be working on getting the books audited now !! 

Hello All.

We have now had a further S56 from our Case Officer who has advised our "unaudited" accounts are not acceptable and that audited accounts are required. Has anyone else ever received such a request? In the UK companies under a £10 million turnover are never audited, is there a way round this with a "compliance certificate" or something similar?

We have looked into having them audited but are looking at thousands of pounds to have this done?

I'm really deflated by this, we use a very professional independent accountancy firm and exceed by over £2 million the turnover demands for a 188a Visa.

Any reassurance or advise would be welcomed.

Thank you 

The Business Visa's work a little different in that you send your documents to the business support centre in Adelaide via email you don't upload to your Immiaccount. I have resent them twice now thought just to be sure.

Hey All

Just looking for a little thought on my position.

We have Business Investment Visas lodged (188a) and back in January was allocated a CO and received a S56 notice requesting us to obtain Medicals and Police Checks. We submitted and completed the same around the 12th February but since then have heard nothing?

Any thoughts guys on how long I could be waiting to hear further?

I was initially advised within 28 days they would assess my case, then was advised it could be March/April.

Just seeking opinions as we really feel our lives are on hold right now having geared up for leaving beginning of March

Thank you all

4 hours ago, sony784hk said:

Got 188a approval today

total time frame 24 months 

Congratulations yay !!!

May I ask how long it took from uploading Medicals/Police Cert to grant?

Annette

34 minutes ago, Asif Shaikh said:

Hi 

i received additional documents request from CO on 25 November 2020 and submited 18th December 2020 but still no update from CO. 

Anyone idea expecting processing time after additional documents almost 3.5 months completed? Can anyone give me idea

Hi Asif. Are waiting on a 188a Business Visa too?

Annette

Hi Guys. So 8 weeks after uploading Medicals and Police checks after CO contact I'm still sat waiting, is this normal?

Should I be concerned?

Annette  

14 minutes ago, Aswell said:

as long as you got a CO look after your case it shouldn’t be long.  When did you lodge your visa?

 

Yes we have an allocated CO. We lodged back in 2019. I was truly hoping the thought of it being looked at with 28 days upon receipt of medicals/police checks would be correct.

On 28/09/2020 at 09:53, RSkea said:

Hi All,

Our 188a visa was granted on 25 September 2020. From start to finish took 24 months. 
 

Good luck to all still in the queue. Hang in there.

Ronel 

Hello Ronel.

Please may I ask from requesting Medicals from your CO how long did it take to be granted your Visa? We were contacted to complete medicals/Police checks and submitted them over on the 8th February, crossing our fingers we hear sometime real soon.

Kind regards

Annette

Hi Folks.

Just looking for a little advice and reassurance.

Back in early January we were allocated a CO and Medicals/Police Checks requested. No additional information was requested and we therefore uploaded the certificates and completed the Medicals before the due date being the 8th February 2021.

My question is, does anyone have any past experience as to how long we could be waiting to have the Visas granted? I am presuming if they had any additional requirements it would have been included or requested before the S56 to complete Medicals etc..

Thank you in advance all

Annette

2 hours ago, Steve Elliott said:

HI Netty,

Firstly, I would take the published time lines with a piece of salt. Based on several communications from DHA and the Australian Government, a higher priority is being placed on visas. This is reflected in the increased quota for 2020-2021 and travel exemptions being granted to grant recipients. I am certainly seeing an acceleration in business visa grants and invitations in recent weeks. 

Your comments re circumstances changing is common however Government is unlikely to budge due to this as many applicants are in similar situations. I would strongly suggest you back to your agent to seek their opinion on this. Not knowing what your business it is and why the act Government is desperate for such businesses, perhaps again you could confer with your agent as to possible avenues which may be open to you in this regard. Obviously with a child at University, you also need to be mindful of the definition of a dependent child.

 

I hope you ffind this useful

Thank you Steve. I appreciate you taking the time to reply.

i didn't know whether a letter of support from the ACT Government would benefit our application being accelerated, or if ultimately we are just in a long pile of applications which they process regardless in date order?

Kindest Regards

On 06/10/2020 at 11:12, Steve Elliott said:

Hi All 

There were widespread fears the business and investment migration program might be heavily cut back in response to Covid. These fears are unfounded and thankfully the Government has seen sense and realised that a key driver to recovery is investment, including successful offshore business owners and investors. 

So, tonight's news in the budget will come as a relief to many.  Just announced in the budget is an effective doubling of the program to 13,500 places from 7,260. Comments from the minister are below. As ever, the devil will be in the detail and I suspect the 188a may well have a limited life expectancy as funds in a State Government bond really do not do anything for the economy. I suspect there will be a greater focus on business ownership and investment in businesses as opposed to debt. I'm sure details will be out shortly. For those who have already lodged an a visa application the proposed changes will almost certainly not apply to you!

"The program will have a strong focus on attracting the best and brightest migrants from around the world, with a tripling of the Global Talent Independent program allocation to 15,000 places and an increase in the Business Innovation and Investment Program (BIIP) to 13,500 places. The BIIP will also be streamlined and reformed to ensure that investments are targeted at Australian venture capitals and emerging small and medium size businesses to support the economic recovery." 

I will post more details as they emerge.

Hello Steve, would you happen to know how I can somehow escalate/promote a Visa application to Case Worker Allocation stage?

I have a lodged my application with the ACT, however at the point of invitation the time scale was estimated at 18 months, as this has now increased to 36 months it changes our options completely as should we have to wait this long our family situation will be change considerably due then pending examinations and university/college programs being in place etc..

Having spoken to the ACT they are desperate for our type of business NOW, can we get backing from anywhere, can we contact anybody to discuss our situation?

Any advice would be apprecaited

Thank you 

Hello Steve, would you happen to know how I can somehow escalate/promote a Visa application to Case Worker Allocation stage?

I have a lodged my application with the ACT, however at the point of invitation the time scale was estimated at 18 months, as this has now increased to 36 months it changes our options completely as should we have to wait this long our family situation will be change considerably due then pending examinations and university/college programs being in place etc..

Having spoken to the ACT they are desperate for our type of business NOW, can we get backing from anywhere, can we contact anybody to discuss our situation?

Any advice would be apprecaited

Thank you 

7 hours ago, Steve Elliott said:

 Hi Netty

Did you actually lodge a visa application? I know that sounds like a dumb question but the invitation would come from the ACT as they are your nominator.  When you say "halted", what do you mean exactly?

Assuming you made a valid visa application, I doubt there would be any grounds your case could be expediated unless (I'm guessing here) you could demonstrate a clear benefit to Australia which is directly related to the Covid recovery. Even then, it would need to be exceptional. Unfortunately, pretty much everyone is in the same boat and there are many hundreds, even thousands of business visas which have been in the system for well over 18 months. 

Thank you Steve. Yes we submitted our full application in May but as yet it's still just showing "received". I was hoping you wasn't going to say another 18 months  

I guess we just sit and wait this out.

Thank you again

On 28/09/2020 at 09:53, RSkea said:

Hi All,

Our 188a visa was granted on 25 September 2020. From start to finish took 24 months. 
 

Good luck to all still in the queue. Hang in there.

Ronel 

Hi Ronel.

May i ask, once you were allocated a case worker how long did you visa take to be finalised from that point? We have our State invitation and have submitted our application now in full back in May?

Thank you 

Hi Steve. May i ask a question?

We received our state invites for the ACT back in May but due to COVID our application was halted. I hear things are now begin to move again, is there anyway of requesting for our application to be expedited and allocated a case worker. Once allocated a case worker roughly how long does the process then take? 

Thank you in advance