Guest Cheshirepoms Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Hi All Immy21 I share your feeling of disappointment! We are just starting out on this process and, it seems, we have left it much too late. I did an online assessment based on my profession and passed. The company rang me yesterday, but told me there is insufficient time to lodge a visa application before my 45th birthday. We rang the Australian High Commission and they said it was just about possible, but I have two weeks!! They sent me the skills assessment booklet but on the criteria in there I don't have enough points. I did a different online assessment last night and passed again. Has anyone any ideas or am I flogging a dead horse? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Welshtone Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Would be very difficult to get a skills assessment through in time - depends which assessing body and, if you have no relatives to sponsor you it will need to be a 60 point occupation on the Demand List. Send me your c.v. and I'll assess you immediately and then let you know whether you can get an assessment done in time. Regards Tony Coates MARN 0635896 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gollywobbler Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Hi UKgreens What is your occupation? It is sometimes possible for people of 45 or over to get into Oz via the employer-sponsorship route. It may be necessary to start with skilled 457 visa, which is a temporary visa, but that can be used as a pathway to permanent residence via an ens or rsms visa as I understand this (which is only vaguely, admittedly.) Also, whereabouts are you hoping to settle in Oz? We have another member who was in er despair about 3 weeks ago, but I've had a PM from him today telling me that he now has 3 job offers from employers who are willing to sponsor him for migration. It is much too early to think of giving up on your dream, therefore, I'd say. Cheers Gill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cheshirepoms Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Hi Gill Thank you so much for taking the trouble to reply to me. Everything you have told me is very helpful. I am a School Bursar and Office Manager. I did try my application on the occupation of Finance Manager (better points score), which is essentially what I do, but the job spec mentioned stocks and shares and I have no experience in that field! I have a London Chamber of Commerce and Industry Diploma in business administration and I think this rates a little bit higher in terms of Australian qualifications. I know we were told the LCCI is recognised in OZ. I am currently studying for a first year degree in School Business Management and hope to qualify in August I have spoken to the Australian High Commission who sent me the booklet, but I can't seem to get enough points on my self assessment, although two migration agents told me I had enough points. My biggest problem is my age. If only I had applied 6 months ago. We have ummed and aahd for about three years!! We want to move to South Australia, as a large number of our family members are out there. I guess he who hesitates is lost! My heart was in my boots this morning, but I am feeling a bit better after replies from kind members of this site. Regards S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gollywobbler Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Hi S Have you read the DIAC website to within an inch of its life? If not, try here, I suggest: http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/index.htm Focus on the visas for employer sponsored workers, because the age limit can be waived with those if a strong enough case for doing so can be made. You might find that you would have to get a 457 temp visa to start with, but those can lead to an ENS or an RSMS visa, I believe. I have also heard it said that the more remote the place you are willing to go to, the easier it is to say that the case is exceptional. It isn't for life, only for a few years, I believe. Hope this helps Gill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cheshirepoms Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Thanks again Gill It is very kind of you to go to the trouble of sending me all these details. I will certainly read and re read the website you recommend. We are not looking to leave UK just yet, but had hoped the five year visa we could had hoped to apply for would have given us the flexibility to go in 2 to 3 years time. I guess we may have to rethink. Do you happen to know what the age cut off is for applying to go with a job offer? Regards Stephanie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gollywobbler Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Hi Stephanie I'm not a migration agent and I know very little about skilled visas myself. I've seen threads on this and other forums in which Agents have told people that 45-50 is often not too much of a problem, but I think after that it really does get difficult unless one does something really obscure for a living and searching the whole of Australia wouldn't produce you. You would really need to speak to a migration agent with experience of getting skilled visas for people of 45 or over, I think. Phil Olsen or Welsh Tony might chip into this thread and tell us about their own experiences in this area. Their information would be better than mine. Cheers Gill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest maggie Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 hello, just wanted to say that it is possible to get out there if you are over 45. I am 48, and have a job offer from a hospital in queensland. They are sponsoring me for a year intially, with a promise of a rolling contract. Once we are there we hope to upgrade our visa from a temporary working visa to a permanent one. There isn't much information about over 45's but it is actually possible if your job is on the SOL list. We know that there is a chance we may not get an upgrade in our visa but sometimes you have to take a chance. So we're going to go for it, our medical is next week, and then hopefully all being well we should get a decision in the near future. I hope that this is of some use to you, good luck, maggie and adrian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cheshirepoms Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Thanks Maggie for your kind reply. I think this might be the only way we could possibly go. The trouble is we don't want to go right now and the other visa would have given us 5 years as long as we activated it. My job is on SOL as an associate professional so I guess it is possible someone may want to employ me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gollywobbler Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Hi Stephanie and Maggie Thanks for the input, Maggie. It always helps when people in Stepanie's position hear from somebody who is actually migrating despite being over the age limit. The seem to put a lot of nurses on 457 visas to start with, but the minute they discover that the nurse is good at the job, they can't wait to get them onto an ENS visa instead, in the hope of keeping the nurse till s/he retires. I'm in touch with a Mum whose daughter is a nurse in Brisbane. Originally her employers said they would consider her for a permanent visa after 2 years. However, they started the PR process after the daughter had only been in Oz for 13 months and the PR visa was granted just before the second anniversary of her arrival in Oz. I think, Stephanie, that you are probably going to have to accept that the longer you delay making a visa application, the harder it is likely to be for even the most willing employer to get you into Australia. Also, the idea that one can get a PR visa, validate it and then wait 5 years before moving to Oz is a strategy that is laden with risk. For one thing, if you leave it till the last minute to move, you would have a devil of a job to get even a 3 month Resident Return Visa and only a dire family crisis, necessitating a short time away from Australia on compassionate grounds, would be likely to persuade them to grant even a 3 month RRV. They can't stop anyone from leaving Australia, but they do not have to let tham back in unless they get the RRV before leaving Oz. For more information about RRVs, please see here: http://www.immi.gov.au/migrants/residents/155/index.htm One doesn't have the option, really, of waiting more than 3 years after validation, because a five year RRV is far better than trying to get ad hoc 3 month ones, I reckon. Why do you want to delay moving to Oz? It is because of your children's education? How old will the eldest one be in 3 to 4 years time if this is the reason? Once children get to 18, it can be awkward to get them into Oz as dependants, so you may need to be a bit careful about that too, I suspect. Nothing is easy with this visa-game, I can tell you!!!! Cheers Gill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cheshirepoms Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Hi Gill Yes it is 99% to do with our daughters' education. We have 3 aged 18, 16, and 13. Our eldest is a Uni in her first year and is totally dependant on us in that we qualified for no government assistance tho' we did manage to get the minimum loan. We were working on my 16 year old taking a year out after her A levels so that my youngest could finish her GCSEs in the British education system. The other 1% is to give us time to throw a load of AVCs into my husbands pension scheme, so that we would be self sufficient on emigrating. He is only 47 but already has 30 years service under his belt so his pension is healthy. We wanted to go in 3 years ideally, but I think the disappointment we all felt yesterday has made us realise that we want to go more than we thought, so maybe we will have to rethink. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gollywobbler Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Hi again Yes, I can see the problem with the children's education. Hmmmm. Your eldest could do her degree in Oz (unless she is at Oxbridge, in which case I wouldn't switch her, because Oxford or Cambridge on the CV opens more doors than it closes, in my own experience as a Cambridge graduate.) However, if you are on a 457 visa, it is likely that your daughter would be regarded as an overseas student, and I dread to think what the fees would be if so. However, it seems to me that once the eldest graduates (if she stays at uni in the UK) then in 3 years time, DIAC might say, "Hang about. Is this young lady really still dependent on you?" There have been cases where the family just have to wait until they have lived in Oz for two years AND have PR (though time on the temp visa counts towards the two years) and then they jave had to get the eldest child out to Oz via the Remaining Relative route. Please see here: http://www.immi.gov.au/migrants/family/115/index.htm Some friends of mine have not been able to do that with their younger daughter, because the lass has a Partner and a baby. Instead, she is having to train as a hairdresser in the UK, and then I think they are going to try for the skill-matching subclass 134 visa or something. I am not sure of the details, though. Also, one the middle child leaves school, DIAC might not accept that she is dependent on you because she is taking a year out before going to uni in Oz or whatever the next part of the plan for her is. You might find yourselves having to get a student visa for her if you leave this for too long. I think that if I were you, I would be inclined to pay for a preliminary consultation with a Registered Migration Agent who actually knows about the situation when the children are older than about 10, who could give you some proper advice about all this. I'm not a migration agent and what I'm telling you is just second hand stuff that I have gleaned from reading the forums. Cheers Gill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cheshirepoms Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Gill Not quite Oxbridge but Durham, so we are loath to cut her degree short there! However, she wants to do a Masters and a PhD, so we thought maybe she could apply to do them in Oz. I can see our plans were a little naive so will have to re think. Maybe we have too many complicating factors. I have asked a migration expert to send me an information pack. They will do an initial assessment for £99, which is refundable if the outcome is negative. So, trying to remain positive, but my head is spinning!! Thanks again for your advice. Stephanie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Welshtone Posted March 10, 2007 Share Posted March 10, 2007 Hi Stephanie I'm not a migration agent and I know very little about skilled visas myself. I've seen threads on this and other forums in which Agents have told people that 45-50 is often not too much of a problem, but I think after that it really does get difficult unless one does something really obscure for a living and searching the whole of Australia wouldn't produce you. You would really need to speak to a migration agent with experience of getting skilled visas for people of 45 or over, I think. Phil Olsen or Welsh Tony might chip into this thread and tell us about their own experiences in this area. Their information would be better than mine. Cheers Gill The under 45 cut-off is only set in stone for the Skilled visas. Temporary 457 visas have no upper age limit but they are only temporary visas. For the important permanent Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS) and Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS), the legislation states "unless exceptional circumstances apply, has not turned 45". The Department then issues its own policy guidelines on how a case officer should assess exceptional circumstances with the bar being raised every five years: Applicants 45-49 If the applicant is over 45 but under 50 years old, the circumstances may be considered exceptional if: • the position is essential to the operation of the business and • the visa applicant or their nominating employer demonstrates that it is not possible to find a suitably qualified person younger than the applicant. Applicants 50-54 If the applicant is 50 years or older but under 55, the circumstances may be considered exceptional if: • the occupation is on MODL or is an ASCO 1-3 occupation and • the visa applicant or their nominating employer demonstrates that the position is so unusual or highly specialised that it is not possible to find a suitably qualified person younger than the applicant. Applicants 55-59 If the applicant is 55 years or older but under 60, the circumstances may be considered exceptional if: • the occupation is on MODL or is an ASCO 1-2 occupation and • the position would normally require a person with skills and experience acquired over many years and • the visa applicant or their nominating employer demonstrates that the position is so unusual or highly specialised that it is not possible to find a suitably qualified person younger than the applicant. Applicants 60 or older If the applicant is 60 years or older, under policy, exceptional circumstances are generally not to be considered. These are guidelines and the case officer has discretion to go outside these. So from these guidelines, the HGV driver would not normally be approved after turning 50 however it may be that, in practice, the Regional authority and DIAC have no problem up to 54. All trades come under ASCO Group 4 so policy would indicate that 50 and over would not be approved for tradespersons. I am not in Australia dealing with ENS RSMS applications so I can only give the official line but the reality could be different. Tony Coates MARN 0635896 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.