Australia Opens up a New Path to Permanent Residency for Skilled Workers

The Australian administration adopted a series of measures on March 18, 2022, creating a new road to permanent residency for talented workers living and working in Australia during the coronavirus outbreak. The Australian administration will explicitly permit Subclass 482 visa owners in the short-term stream to apply for permanent residency via the Subclass 186 Temporary Residence Transition (TRT) visa. In addition, foreign people who previously had 457 permits but now have 482 visas will also be qualified for residency.

Permanent Residency for Skilled Workers

The Subclass 482 visa is a short-term skill shortage visa that allows firms to sponsor a sufficiently trained and skilled foreign worker to cover a job that cannot be filled by a qualified Australian candidate. The Subclass 482 visa has many “streams,” such as short- and mid-term streams and also the labor agreement stream. All of these streams enable a foreigner to reside and work in Australia for a set amount of time. For example, a foreign citizen may normally stay in Australia for 2-4 years under the short-term stream. However, they were previously ineligible for permanent residency under this classification.

According to the government’s statement, Subclass 482 visa holders in the short-term stream will be able to submit applications for permanent residency via the Subclass 186 TRT visa beginning July 1, 2022. To be considered, the candidate must satisfy the following criteria:

• Possess a Subclass 482 visa (short-term stream) as the main visa holder in the chosen occupation through their nominating employer or a Bridging visa obtained after submitting an application for a Subclass 482 visa (short-term stream).
• Have lived a total of nearly 12 months or more in Australia between February 1, 2020, and December 14, 2021.
• Presently working in their specified job for their sponsoring employer.
• Have worked or will work in their chosen line of work full-time for their sponsoring employer for three years in the last four years.

Additionally, the new service offers an alternative to permanent residency for foreign workers who were previously on the 457 skilled worker visa but recently switched to the 482 temporary skills shortage visa before the 457 visas were phased out on April 18, 2017. In addition to the conditions indicated above, foreign nationals who have worked or will work in the occupation of their choosing in Subclass 457/482 visa category for 2 years full-time in the three years preceding their application will qualify for permanent residency.

All applicants for permanent residency must also fulfill additional stated qualifications, such as English language proficiency, being under 45 years old (or exempt from age limitations), having a good character, and being in decent shape and good health.

Certain Visa Categories are Not Included

Although the new initiative will provide a road to permanent residency for many previously disqualified foreign citizens, it makes no particular provisions for owners of non-Subclass 482 visas. For instance, foreign citizens with Subclass 408 temporary activity visas, which enable foreign citizens to stay in Australia temporarily for specified sorts of employment, are ineligible for the program.

What do you think about the new initiative in Australia? Does the new initiative make you want to apply for an Australian visa? Tell us in the comment section.