Note: There have been significant changes to the Skilled Migration Program on Feb. 8th, 2010. The existing Migration Occupations in Demand List has been removed, and extra points will not be awarded for new applicants who used to have occupations on this list. Also, they have announced that by the middle of the year the CSL and SOL will be replaced with a new SOL (Skilled Occupation List) that will be a streamlined list of maybe no more than 20 Occupations.
View February Changes
View February Changes
Skilled – Independent (Migrant) Visa (Subclass 175)
A permanent visa for people with skills in demand in the Australian labour market. Applicants are not sponsored and must pass a points test.
Skilled – Sponsored (Migrant) Visa (Subclass 176)
A permanent visa for people unable to meet the Skilled – Independent pass mark. Applicants must be either sponsored by an eligible relative living in Australia or nominated by a participating State or Territory government. Applicants must pass a points test lower than that for the Skilled – Independent visa.
Employer Sponsored Workers
There are a variety of visa also available if you have a company in Australia who are willing to sponsor you. These visas however do not give you Permanent Residency, and you are tied to your employer. There is an eventual pathway to PR however once you have been there for a certain period of time.
If you are interested in Migrating to Australia, you should research the various visas on the Department of Immigration and Citizenship website:
http://www.immi.gov.au
