Guest sharkbiscuit Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 Hi if someone could help clear up these questions I have it would be much appreciated: 1) After you have been granted a 457 visa is there a set period in which you need to enter the country before it runs out! If I don't enter the country for example 6 months after the visa is granted does this take 6 months off of my visa length making it 3 years 6months left? or does the 4 year length of the 457 visa only start once you have entered the country? 2) Im aware that Australian immigration are reviewing the occupations on the SOL list in April this year, if my occupation is taken off the list and ive been it maybe as its a Trade (Carpenter) where do I stand? Also if I am living and working in Australia on a 457 with a view to apply for General skilled migration (i.e a 175) and during this time my occupation is taken off the list where does this leave me?! 3) Can a 457 and a 175 both be applied for at the same time while in the UK? or which one is best to apply for first? 4) If for any reason I fail the Skills assessment for my trade will in Australia and applying for on the 175 visa, will I have to return to the UK even thou I have been living and working on a 457 for 4 years? 5) Are UK City and Guilds qualifications recognized in Australia, if so can I easily get these transferred to Australian qualifications without the need for a skills assessment by TRA or Vettassess or an equivalent assessment body? Quite a few tough questions I know but I would really appreciate your help fellow PIO! Many Thanks :wink: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gollywobbler Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 Hi Sharkbiscuit Welcome to Poms in Oz. Your questions reveal that you are pretty confused about how all the new changes will work in practice. (Join the club because I am pretty confused too!) 1) After you have been granted a 457 visa is there a set period in which you need to enter the country before it runs out! If I don't enter the country for example 6 months after the visa is granted does this take 6 months off of my visa length making it 3 years 6months left? or does the 4 year length of the 457 visa only start once you have entered the country? If an employer offers you a job plus a 457 visa, the job will start on dd/mm/yyyy. DIAC will not issue the 457 visa until a month before the job is due to start and they now FROWN on people using tourist visas for the purpose of going to Oz to look for a job and a 457 visa. Without a valid visa it is impossible to enter Australia. The way DIAC have arranged things, you would need to use the 457 visa in order to get to Oz quickly so as to start doing the job. 2) Im aware that Australian immigration are reviewing the occupations on the SOL list in April this year, if my occupation is taken off the list and ive been it maybe as its a Trade (Carpenter) where do I stand? Also if I am living and working in Australia on a 457 with a view to apply for General skilled migration (i.e a 175) and during this time my occupation is taken off the list where does this leave me?! A subclass 175 visa is a GSM visa (General Skilled Migration program.) The draft of the new SOL is expected to be published at around the end of April 2010. The new SOL is expected to become law in "mid-2010." If you have applied for a GSM visa before the new SOL becomes law, then the existing SOL will continue to apply to your application. However if Carpenter is not on the new SOL then you will not be able to make a valid GSM application after the new SOL becomes law. Again, the Minister/DIAC are nailing people's feet to the floor on the timing of how their new changes will work in practice. 3) Can a 457 and a 175 both be applied for at the same time while in the UK? or which one is best to apply for first? You cannot apply for a 457 visa unless an Aussie employer offers you a job plus a 457 visa first. Therefore the gamble for you is do you take the plunge and apply for a GSM visa quickly or do you take the risk of waiting for an Aussie employer, only to find that you then cannot apply for a GSM visa at all? If this happened, as the law stands at present you would still be able to get Permanent Residency in Oz at a later date via either an ENS or an RSMS visa. This said, the Minister hasn't interfered with either of those two visas much so far. Gawd 'Elp Us All if he does interfere with them in the future, I suspect. 4) If for any reason I fail the Skills assessment for my trade will in Australia and applying for on the 175 visa, will I have to return to the UK even thou I have been living and working on a 457 for 4 years? If you were to fail your skills assessment, you would not be able to make a valid application for a GSM visa. You wouldn't necessarily have to apply for a GSM visa, however, because your employer might sponsor you for PR via an ENS or RSMS visa instead. If that happened, you would not have to return to the UK as the law stands at present but please see my answer above. So far the Minister has not done any major "reforms" (his word - I prefer "interference") to the ENS and RSMS visas..... 5) Are UK City and Guilds qualifications recognized in Australia, if so can I easily get these transferred to Australian qualifications without the need for a skills assessment by TRA or Vettassess or an equivalent assessment body? Most employers in Oz don't care whether you hold paper qualifications or not. They watch to see whether you can do the job. If you are no good at the job you will be sacked by Smoke-Oh on Day One in any case. The Department of Immigration (DIAC) are the people who are fussed about and insist on the formal qualifications, not the Aussie employers. There is no system via which your existing C&G qualifications can be "swapped" for the Aussie AQF III qualifications. What is your exact situation, please? Presumably you are still in the UK at the moment? Presumably you haven't done anything about a skills assessment as yet? Cheers Gill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sharkbiscuit Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 Hi Gollywobbler Thank you for you great and fast reply you seem very knowledgeable about this. Sorry yes I am currently in the UK and am looking to make the move at the end of the year but as the whole immigration process is such a minefield as im sure you would agree I thought I would start doing my research early so im clear on what needs to be done and in what order. If the Ozzy government stops moving those goalposts that is!!! Sorry I should have mentioned that I have been to Sydney already and had a job interview and have been offered a job and sponsorship with a company. Im just unsure what is going to be the easiest and cheapest way for me to eventually get PR without being to tied to the employer. 1) So in realtion to the start date of a 457 being 1 month the job starts can your start date be arranged between you and you employer or do the DIAC make this decision? for example could I apply now and have my employment start date as lets say 1/3/2011? 2) If the draft of the new SOL is expected to be published around the end of April 2010. is this viewable by the public for example can I check it once its released to see if my occupation is on the list to be taken off the SOL list, and if it is apply straight away before the new list becomes law. On the flip side if my occupation isn't due to be taken off, the heat is off for a while and I could apply later on in the year is that correct? I will be applying for a 457 but im just not sure which visa will be best for my to get PR after the 457 is granted, If possible I would like to get PR without the need for a Skills assessment as Ive seen the recent Vetassess costs which have rocketed, and reviews on here and some other websites from some very unhappy people about their services! which is the reason I haven't applied for a Skills assessment as yet as I would prefer to take another route if possible? Am I right in saying that the 457 visa is the only visa that can lead to PR that doesn't need a skills assessment? What's your story then Gollywobbler, I see your still in the UK at the mo what are your plans for immigration if you don't mind me asking? Many Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sharkbiscuit Posted February 28, 2010 Share Posted February 28, 2010 Hi is there please someone that can help with these questions, Gollywobbler maybe? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Prickles83 Posted March 1, 2010 Share Posted March 1, 2010 Hello, We are currently on a 457 visa and this thread has confused me a little. We hope to get PR through ENS- however I thought the planned changes to SOL in April would affect our ENS application (Planning to apply for ENS in approx 6 months)?? Have I misunderstood something? The way the above posts read the SOL won't affect us as we are going ENS and not GSM? is this correct? Sorry to interupt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Mary Cockerill Posted March 2, 2010 Share Posted March 2, 2010 HI Sharkbuscuit You will find that you are required to have your 'qualificaitons' assessed for the 457 as a tradesman. 457 applicants that are approved without qualification assessment and then wish to apply for PR under the ENS or RSMS programme are required to either, have worked for the employer for a minimum of 12 months, or have a salary range of a minimum of AUD$165000 pa or complete a qualification assessment. You are allowed to have a 457 and 175 application running concurrently. Unfortunately there are no short cuts, cheap or easy ways to do things. It is sad that the definitive info on the SOL will only be available at the end of April. Hope this helps. Regards Mary Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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