Limited-skills workers with limited English get Australian permanent residency pathway

The Federal Government is making concessions in skill, income and English language requirements for work visas in regional areas where employers cannot find local workers with relevant skills to fill vacancies. The new agreements also provide migrant workers with a pathway to permanent residency in Australia.

The Federal Government of Australia has opened doors to semi-skilled migrants, in order to fill skill gaps in some regional areas, where they will have a pathway to permanent residence in Australia that was unavailable before.

The Commonwealth Government has signed a five-year special visa agreement with Victoria’s Great South Coast Region that will give businesses in the region access to broad range of occupations, including agriculture and hospitality, that weren’t available through Australia’s standard migration program.

The move serves as a respite for those affected by the changes to Australia’s immigration program that tightened the requirements for sponsored visas and pruning of the skilled occupation list that made permanent residency difficult for many migrant workers.

Immigration Minister David Coleman said the agreements will support the skills needs of regional Australia where Australian workers are not available to fill those jobs.

But the Department of Home Affairs says the terms of these agreements, including the mandatory minimum period of stay would be negotiated and tailored to the specific needs of particular regions.

Those workers who are eligible for permanent residence under a DAMA will need to have been working in the region on a temporary visa for an agreed period before they can apply for a permanent residence visa. This could be a period of up to four years depending on the agreement.

Permanent residence is not automatically granted, each person will have to make a valid application and meet the required criteria for a grant of a permanent residence visa.

The currently available sponsored work visas are subject to a minimum income threshold of $53,900 per annum. However, under the DAMA, employers are able to apply for concessions in this. Similarly, concessions are also made for English language requirements for migrant workers, depending on the country they come from, while all of them from non-English speaking countries are required to take an English test.

For these agreements to be approved, regions of Australia must demonstrate efforts to recruit the locals first and clearly identify labour market conditions and gaps. They must also demonstrate local support available to migrant workers.

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