New Skills in Demand visa and pathway to Permanent Residence
On 07 December 2024, the Department of Home Affairs officially launched the Skills in Demand (SID) visa (subclass 482) to replace the Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) visa operating under the same subclass 482. The SID visa allows the worker to stay in Australia for up to four years, with a pathway to permanent residency through the Employer Nominated Scheme (subclass 186) visa in the Temporary Residence Transition Stream.
The SID Visa Has Three Streams:
- Core Skills Stream: For individuals with occupations listed in the Core Skills Occupation List (CSOL) and meeting the Core Skills Income Threshold (currently at $73,150).
- Specialist Skills Stream: For highly skilled individual with any occupation from the Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) excluding trades workers, machinery operators and drivers, and labourers. The nominated positions must meet the Specialist Skills Income Threshold (currently at $135,000).
- Labour Agreements Stream: The TSS Labour Agreement stream will be integrated with the SID visa, and this allows sponsors to create labour agreements to meet their needs for specific industries. This pathway is suitable for applicants with essential skills and income lower than $73,150.00.
The New Skills In Demand Visa Features The Following Changes:
- Lower work experience period: The requirement of relevant work experience in the past five years has been reduced to one year down from two years. This may also include part time/casual experience.
- Mobility in employment: the applicant has 180 days in a single period, to find a new sponsor, which offers employees greater flexibility to move between sponsors.
- Relatively low Language Requirement: The applicant only requires an English level equivalent to a minimum score of IELTS 5.0 or PTE 36 in each test component.
- Pathway to PR: All SID visa streams may lead to permanent residence via the Employer Nominated Scheme (subclass 186) Temporary Residence Transition stream, unlike the TSS visa which only allowed it for occupations in the medium and long term occupation list.
- Employment Flexibility for ENS Visa: The applicant does not need to re-accumulate the 2 year full time work experience if they have changed the sponsor. Employment periods with any sponsor in Australia will count toward the two-year requirement for the Employer Nominated Scheme (subclass 186) Temporary Residence Transition stream.
- Same Sponsor eligibility: The sponsor’s eligibility criteria remain the same, so there are no further burden imposes on the business owner.
- New Occupation list: SID visa includes some occupations that is vital to business need but was not included in TSS visa, i.e. childcare worker, office manager, building and engineering technician nec, etc.
The new SID visa provides a more transparent and promising pathway for immigration in Australia. We are here to assist you to evaluate and consider the appropriate occupation for the applicable visa stream as well as meeting the visa and sponsorship eligibility. Our specialised immigration law team can help you navigate the journey towards permanent residency smoothly or to attract and retain your skilled workers. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact us.
Disclaimer: This article is for general understanding and should not be used as a substitute for professional legal advice. Any reliance on the information is strictly at the user's risk, and there is no intention to create a lawyer-client relationship from this general communication.
