AUSTRALIAN IMMIGRATION NEWS

Australian Government to Implement More Efficient Processing Times

Monday, 26 July 2010

The Minister for Immigration and Citizenship of Australia, Senator Chris Evans, has announced that there will be new visa processing times that will become effective on July 14, 2010.

The changes feature a new processing system that will prioritize visa applications as per the socioeconomic needs of Australia. The new prioritization system will affect the following visa categories:

• Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS)
• Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS)
• Select Visas included in General Skilled Migration class (GSM)

As stated by Senator Chris Evans, the prioritization system will be divided into four (4) distinctive categories. The first category will include visa applications that are sponsored either through the ENS or the RSMS. These applications will hold priority over every other category and will be processed accordingly. The second category will include applications from individuals who have been nominated by a state or territory under a nominated occupation as specified within the region or territory migration plan. The second category holds priority after Priority Group 1.

The third category will include applications with occupations that are included within the Skills Occupations List (SOL) that came into effect on July 1, 2010. This Priority Group also includes applicants who have been sponsored by an Australian family member and have been nominated by a state or territory government which does not include a state immigration plan. The fourth and last Priority Group will include applicants that are not listed in the SOL, are not nominated under any sponsorship plan or immigration plan.

Priority Group 4 will hold the least priority out of all the categories aforementioned and will be processed as in a first-come-first-served basis. These changes will be implemented in order to create a more efficient visa processing system that would decrease visa processing times for much needed individuals who wish to immigrate to Australia.

If you are interested in Australian Visas, contact Migration Expert for information and advice on which visa is best suited to you. You can also try our visa eligibility assessment to see if you are eligible to apply for a visa to Australia.