Skilled Visas

Australia has a migration program that aims to attract qualified professionals from all over the world: the General Skilled Migration Program. This program allows certain professionals to apply for permanent or temporary visas and move to Australia, to live and work here.

Those professionals must have occupations being sought by the Australian government and meet several requirements in terms of their age, qualifications, work experience and proficiency in English. There are 3 visas within this program:

• Subclass 189 Skilled Independent Permanent Visa;
• Subclass 190 Skilled State-Nomination Permanent Visa
• Subclass 491 Skilled Regional Temporary Visa

How does it work?

Subclass 189 requires applicants to have a profession in demand, featuring in the Medium and Long-Term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL). This list is usually reviewed every year.

Subclasses 190 and 491 look at both the MLTSSL and the STSOL (Short-term Skilled Occupation List), as well as state and territories own lists.

Skills Assessment:

All applicants must go through a Skills Assessment to ensure their studies, and in several cases work experience, are equivalent to the minimum standards in Australia.

Every occupation has a different Skills Assessment Authority and therefore different requirements and minimum standards.

Points Test:

All applicants must achieve the minimum score in a government’s Points Test.

The minimum score is 65 and points are allocated in the following categories:

• Age: 0 to 30 points, 18 years of age minimum to 45 years of age maximum.

• Academic Qualifications: 0 to 20 points, depending on whether the person has a technical certificate/diploma, a Bachelor Degree/Masters Degree or a Ph.D.

• Work Experience: 0 to 20 points, depending on how many years of work experience one has, if the experience is in the nominated occupation for migration, and if the experience was in Australia or in other countries

• Proficiency in English: all candidates must sit for an English exam and achieve a minimum score. Points here are allocated 0-20 according to the English exam score. *If you are from a country where English is the offical spoken language you are not necessarily required to sit for an exam but you may have to if you need a lot of points to reach the minimum 65 points.

• Study in Australia: 5 points if you studied in Australia for 2 years minimum and obtained a qualification that was at least at the level of a Diploma

• Study in Low Population Areas of Australia: 5 or 10 extra points if your studies in Australia above were undertaken in one of the low population areas as defined by the government

• Obtain accreditation in Australia as a translator of another language: 5 points

• Skilled Spouse: 5 to 10 points if the applicant’s Spouse has a Skilled occupation and/or a minimum level of Competent English, which can be evidenced in different forms

• Single Applicants: get 10 points to avoid being disadvantaged

• Professional Year: 5 Points

• Nomination/Sponsorship from an Australian State: 5 or 15 points, depending on the candidate’s profession, and if that profession is being sought by a state or territory, and depending if it is being sought for a temporary or permanent visa.

Skill Select:

After you obtain a Skills Assessment and score the minimum required on the Points Test, you must lodge an Expression of Interest with SkillSelect: an electronic system in the Department of Immigration that invites people to apply for the visas they are seeking.

Work with us and ensure your visa will be approved

We are happy to discuss your eligibility, whether you are a business or an individual, as well as the requirements in detail and your circumstances in particular.

You work with a Registered Migration Agent and a dedicated Case Manager, having access to our great infra-structure, years of experience and superior customer service.

Australian immigration rules are complex and prone to continuous changes.

If you decide to make an application for a Skilled Visa using a Bravo Migration Registered Migration Agent to prepare and lodge the application on your behalf, the whole process will be:

• easier: the fact that we have worked on thousands of applications like yours means that we know what works and what doesn’t. We will ask you for the correct documents with the correct information in a straight-forward manner and will prepare your process properly and provide all the correct documents to the Department of Immigration.

• more efficient: when dealing with an honest , competent and experienced Registered Migration Agent you maximize your chances of a positive outcome in a faster manner, as we will prepare a decision-ready application, minimising delays.

• stress-free: the agent will also monitor your case until the Department of Immigration approves it, keeping you informed of its progress and about any changes in legislation that may affect the outcome of your case.

All our Registered Agents migrated to Australia in the past too, so they understand how anxious you may be. No other firm can offer you this kind of understanding.

We look forward to taking care of your case!