GeeBee Posted February 14, 2018 Share Posted February 14, 2018 (edited) Hi all, First post. I’ve been trawling various forums for some clarifications on our situation but I just can’t confirm, so I wondered if you can help. My GF is a registered Nurse and has been offered a job arranged through an employment agent (I’m defacto partner). We’re continually hitting delays. Mainly, I think, due to poor comms on the process. Timeline: Sept 2017 - My GF was interviewed and verbally offered a job. - We started the APHRA (Nursing Registration – notoriously slow) paperwork, as requested. Nov 2017 - We had to chase the letter of offer and in Nov 2017 it turned out there were forms to be filled in as a pre-requisite for the offer which we weren’t told about. 1st delay! - We sent APHRA docs off and the employer’s docs, as requested. Jan 2018 - APHRA asked for more docs. Provided later in the month. 2nd Delay! - I realised GF still hadn’t received a letter of offer and asked agent to chase employer. - Employer drafted the offer letter and the 457 visa nomination form but said Labour Market Testing has now probably expired and would need to be re-run (job re-advertised locally). 3rd Delay Feb 2018 - Nomination form received but with errors, so we’ve sent back for corrections. - Nomination form also made reference to 457 Visa and we will not submit the visa app before TSS comes in, presumably requiring new nomination templates which can’t be produced until 1 March (4th delay) Neither recruitment agent or employer really seem to be acknowledging the impact of TSS visa introduction and on the agency’s advice we have not applied for the 457 visa until APHRA comes through. Recently I saw facebook posts from an old friend (doctor) who this week turned up in Sydney to work on a 457. She cited APHRA delays and can’t start work yet but entered on a tourist visa. She also noted she already has her 457 visa though. I’ve since been digging around forums to find if our order of processing is wrong. Questions Why might the agency tell us to wait for APHRA before applying for a visa, if it could have been applied for in tandem? Now both us and the employer will have to pay increased fees for the TSS visa. I’ve since noted forum posts about APHRA’s ‘present [ID] in person’ deadline (in Australia) of 3 months from receiving APHRA ‘registration in principle’. Based on 457 processing times it seems highly unlikely a 457 or TSS visa will be granted within 3 months of our APHRA registration in principle, which I expect to come through in a couple of months. This seems to mean we either have to re-apply with APHRA (more delays) or the GF will have to fly to Australia just to present her ID in person (more cost). Neither agent or employer have made any reference to this. Am I missing something obvious here? Any advice is much appreciated. Edited February 14, 2018 by GeeBee dates on timeline Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeeBee Posted February 15, 2018 Author Share Posted February 15, 2018 23 hours ago, GeeBee said: ... Questions ... I’ve since noted forum posts about APHRA’s ‘present [ID] in person’ deadline (in Australia) of 3 months from receiving APHRA ‘registration in principle’. Based on 457 processing times it seems highly unlikely a 457 or TSS visa will be granted within 3 months of our APHRA registration in principle, which I expect to come through in a couple of months. This seems to mean we either have to re-apply with APHRA (more delays) or the GF will have to fly to Australia just to present her ID in person (more cost). Neither agent or employer have made any reference to this. Well, I've managed to find the following link which refers to the 3 months deadline from Registration in Principle for APHRA. Seems you get refunded for a withdrawal but I may contact them to ask if we can delay the registration somehow, to buy us more time. I don't imagine they get that request very often. http://www.nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au/Registration-and-Endorsement/International/Application-outcomes.aspx#principle If you have met all registration requirements, but only provided the minimum proof of identity evidence with your application (because you were not living in Australia at that time), the NMBA will provide you with a letter providing in principle approval for registration, valid for three months, and detailing the outstanding proof of identity requirements. This does not mean that you are registered. Final registration will be subject to you providing the outstanding proof of identity requirements to the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) in person at your local AHPRA office. ... If you are granted in principle registration and do not provide the identification requirements in person at an AHPRA office within the required three months, we will take it that you have withdrawn your application under section 80(5) of the National Law. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barker Posted February 17, 2018 Share Posted February 17, 2018 (edited) I realise it will be expensive, but you will need to do either one or the other of these. The identity verification is codified in National Law and it's just how AHPRA works. In order for the 457 to be granted, you will be asked for the Registration in Principle document which assures the government that you meet the criteria for registration. The reason people don't apply simultaneously is because incomplete applications are processed slower, and also you have 28 days from the time they ask you to respond with a "IMMI s56 Request for More Information" before they refuse your visa. If for some reason you don't have this registration in principle, you've just been refused a visa and lost your money. Edited February 17, 2018 by barker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DukeNinja Posted February 17, 2018 Share Posted February 17, 2018 Don't waste your time asking AHPRA for an extension of the 3 months. I did, with my reason being I couldn't leave my heavily pregnant wife by herself and fly to Aus just for the ID check, and I got a flat no, and the National Law spiel. Ended up paying £1500 for a week in Australia. Not to mention the loss of income from not working that week as I was freelance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeeBee Posted February 19, 2018 Author Share Posted February 19, 2018 Thanks both. I had a chat with some migration agents and employment agencies for nurses at an exhibition. Even they had conflicting information on the process but some things are a little clearer. I'm now of the understanding it's not the AHPRA registration we're waiting to come through to apply for the visa, but the employers visa nomination form (which we had received but sent back a couple of weeks ago as it had errors). We've dropped a note to all parties just to make clear that if the nomination and our visa isn't submitted by the end of the month there will be considerably higher fees for everyone when we apply for the TSS. This probably isn't feasible but if there's a chance we may as well do it. My understanding is that if we submit the initial application and pay the 457 fee, we upload the supporting documents after straight after. Anything not quite ready will be uploaded over the following week or two in March (so long as it's not essential for the application). But if we miss the deadline, we just apply for the TSS and take the financial hit. AHPRA time limits With regards to the AHPRA registration in principle and the 3 months limit to confirm identity: It sounds like it is what it is. A trip to Australia to confirm the identity is probably going to be due. What's disappointing is that nobody has raised this and it was probably always on the cards. It seems that unless you're lucky and your visa comes in within 3 months of the AHPRA registration in principle, anyone applying for AHPRA should budget and plan holidays to make this (pretty ridiculous) trip to Australia to confirm identity. One agent said a lady flew to Australia to do this and was told 3 weeks later the form had been filled in wrong and she had to fly out and do it all again! The AHPRA time limit used to be 12 months, which gave plenty of time to complete the AHRPA and then visa processes sequentially. The 3 month limit just breaks the process and you have to work around it. A migration agent gave some good advice: She said don't think of the process is logical. The reason it doesn't seem to make sense is because it's not logical. You're [we're] not doing anything wrong, you just need to work through it as best as you can. All the above is just my current understanding of the process (which seems to change weekly) so please correct me if I'm wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jade Mortlock Posted February 19, 2018 Share Posted February 19, 2018 (edited) 10 hours ago, GeeBee said: Thanks both. I had a chat with some migration agents and employment agencies for nurses at an exhibition. Even they had conflicting information on the process but some things are a little clearer. I'm now of the understanding it's not the AHPRA registration we're waiting to come through to apply for the visa, but the employers visa nomination form (which we had received but sent back a couple of weeks ago as it had errors). We've dropped a note to all parties just to make clear that if the nomination and our visa isn't submitted by the end of the month there will be considerably higher fees for everyone when we apply for the TSS. This probably isn't feasible but if there's a chance we may as well do it. My understanding is that if we submit the initial application and pay the 457 fee, we upload the supporting documents after straight after. Anything not quite ready will be uploaded over the following week or two in March (so long as it's not essential for the application). But if we miss the deadline, we just apply for the TSS and take the financial hit. AHPRA time limits With regards to the AHPRA registration in principle and the 3 months limit to confirm identity: It sounds like it is what it is. A trip to Australia to confirm the identity is probably going to be due. What's disappointing is that nobody has raised this and it was probably always on the cards. It seems that unless you're lucky and your visa comes in within 3 months of the AHPRA registration in principle, anyone applying for AHPRA should budget and plan holidays to make this (pretty ridiculous) trip to Australia to confirm identity. One agent said a lady flew to Australia to do this and was told 3 weeks later the form had been filled in wrong and she had to fly out and do it all again! The AHPRA time limit used to be 12 months, which gave plenty of time to complete the AHRPA and then visa processes sequentially. The 3 month limit just breaks the process and you have to work around it. A migration agent gave some good advice: She said don't think of the process is logical. The reason it doesn't seem to make sense is because it's not logical. You're [we're] not doing anything wrong, you just need to work through it as best as you can. All the above is just my current understanding of the process (which seems to change weekly) so please correct me if I'm wrong. Sadly you are not the only one going through this. My company have completely changed the way we manage our recruitment process with international nurses. We actually provide them a 'conditional letter of offer' at interview stage so that they can have assurance as soon as the AHPRA is approved they can lodge the visa application. We also thankfully have priority processing status with the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) meaning it only takes 1-2 weeks to be approved. I really am sorry to hear that the process has been so stressful. Being an Australian myself I can promise you it is all worth it. I hope you are very well taken care of when you finally arrive in Australia Kind regards Jade Edited February 19, 2018 by MaggieMay24 Removing employer reference (unauthorised advertising) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nabila islam Posted March 5, 2018 Share Posted March 5, 2018 hello all plzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz help me I am from outside of Australia and applied for 457 in 2017 I haven't much knowledge about visa detailing sooo plzzzzzzzzzzzz help me its been almost 10 month I had applied but immigration didn't take any update my immi.shows just "receivedd" status how can I make fast my visa proccedure? although my application form had some mistakes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeeBee Posted March 18, 2018 Author Share Posted March 18, 2018 Ok so just to update this thread: We decided to have a go at getting a 457 visa in before the TSS, purely on the cost saving though we were assuming processing time would be longer in tge end due to the 457 back log. After a mad rush we got everything together our side for the end of feb, only for the employer to be unable to submit the signed nomination form because the Labour Market Testing, required for nurses even on the 457, had not conculded. Given they noted the need for LMT in late Jan it couldve been completed in time but we'll wait and see how long it takes. Of course there is the risk the job may go. Ahpra reg is principle was received about a week ago with the expected 3 months to present in person. We asked for an extention, they said no. If the job still goes ahead we,ll ask again in a couple if months. We are expecting to send my GF out to Oz for a week in may to complete the Aphra registration. We figure even if the job falls through, haviing Ahpra reg for a year will make finding another nursing job easier. So now we wait for LMT to conclude and apply for the TSS visa if there is still a job at the end of it. theyre gonna have to process at least some tss visas while going through the 457 backlog because theyll need to check the process works. Thats my thinking anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harriet.Frances Posted April 8, 2018 Share Posted April 8, 2018 On 18/03/2018 at 13:36, GeeBee said: Ok so just to update this thread: We decided to have a go at getting a 457 visa in before the TSS, purely on the cost saving though we were assuming processing time would be longer in tge end due to the 457 back log. After a mad rush we got everything together our side for the end of feb, only for the employer to be unable to submit the signed nomination form because the Labour Market Testing, required for nurses even on the 457, had not conculded. Given they noted the need for LMT in late Jan it couldve been completed in time but we'll wait and see how long it takes. Of course there is the risk the job may go. Ahpra reg is principle was received about a week ago with the expected 3 months to present in person. We asked for an extention, they said no. If the job still goes ahead we,ll ask again in a couple if months. We are expecting to send my GF out to Oz for a week in may to complete the Aphra registration. We figure even if the job falls through, haviing Ahpra reg for a year will make finding another nursing job easier. So now we wait for LMT to conclude and apply for the TSS visa if there is still a job at the end of it. theyre gonna have to process at least some tss visas while going through the 457 backlog because theyll need to check the process works. Thats my thinking anyway. May I ask who you got to notorise the identity documents..and what did you send? Just the passport? I am due to fly out 27th April to submit my form in person but I was thinking maybe I should post it first in case I have filled it out wrong (likely hahha!). TIA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeeBee Posted April 9, 2018 Author Share Posted April 9, 2018 10 hours ago, Harriet.Frances said: May I ask who you got to notorise the identity documents..and what did you send? Just the passport? I am due to fly out 27th April to submit my form in person but I was thinking maybe I should post it first in case I have filled it out wrong (likely hahha!). TIA My GF arranged for the docs to be notorised and can't remember off the top of my head exactly which documents (I don't want to give you duff info - best to check the instructions). We paid for a notary public to notorise them. It was a couple of hundred quid I think. Rip off. Either AHPRA or the job agency had told us to get the AHPRA docs notoriased rather than certified by a solicitor. However for most of out visa application docs we had them certified by a friend who's a solicitor. You've taken a different approach to us. We posted the application in advance but we have to fly out to confirm identity. I'd suggest you read up on everything any any differences between applying in Australia compared to the from abroad. I'd definitely see if you can confirm you've met the ID check requirements when you're there in person. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harriet.Frances Posted April 9, 2018 Share Posted April 9, 2018 4 hours ago, GeeBee said: My GF arranged for the docs to be notorised and can't remember off the top of my head exactly which documents (I don't want to give you duff info - best to check the instructions). We paid for a notary public to notorise them. It was a couple of hundred quid I think. Rip off. Either AHPRA or the job agency had told us to get the AHPRA docs notoriased rather than certified by a solicitor. However for most of out visa application docs we had them certified by a friend who's a solicitor. You've taken a different approach to us. We posted the application in advance but we have to fly out to confirm identity. I'd suggest you read up on everything any any differences between applying in Australia compared to the from abroad. I'd definitely see if you can confirm you've met the ID check requirements when you're there in person. Thank you for the reply! I have been registered with AHPRA before so you think the process would be a little easier for me but it seems not to be the case! I stupidly let my registration lapse last year, hence why I now have to go through all this. But...in the long run it will be worth it!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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