Australian Govt Flags Occupations for Removal From List of Skilled Visas

The Australian government has flagged some occupations, including direction for film and stage, video production and editing, that may be removed from the list of occupations for skilled migration, SBS Punjabi reported.

The move is part of the regular review of the skilled migration occupation list undertaken by the Department of Jobs and Small Businesses to check the suitability of some of the jobs  to Australia’s labor market. The department usually carries out the review in consultation with industry, employers, unions and individuals. On May 31, it put up its proposed changes to skilled occupation by releasing a “traffic red light bulletin” and is taking public submission over the issue until June 20.

The occupations that are most likely to be removed, and have been categorized as traffic light red, in the Short-Term Skilled Occupation list are: manufacturer; directors for film, television, radio and stage; film and video editor; program director for television or radio; stage manager; technical director; video producer; middle school teacher; textile clothing and footwear mechanic; telecommunication linesworker: library technician; residential care officer; and insurance loss adjuster. The Short-Term Skilled Occupation list offers visas to pursue a profession for a short period of two to four years.

From the existing Short-Term Skilled Occupation List, dentist and anaesthetist will be moved to the Regional Occupation List. The Regional Occupation List offers provisional regional visa to provide a particular skill set to the region. The occupation of a footballer will be moved to the Medium Long Term Strategic Skills List. Professions from Medium Long term Strategic skills set that will be moved to the Short-Term Skilled Occupations List are management accountant, agricultural consultant and civil engineering technician.

Meanwhile, as of June 1, Australia’s Department of Home Affairs has stopped accepting new applications for the Investor Retirement (Class UY) visa. The closure of the visa was announced on May 8 in the federal budget.

According to the Australian government, the Subclass 405 (Investor Retirement) visa that allowed visa holders to live and work in Australia with their partner doesn’t align with Australia’s economic priorities. The change does not apply to those who have already applied and people in the country on this visa. Those in the country can apply to renew the visa.

This Investor Retirement visa gave people aged over 55 years with no dependent children, who an income of A$65,000 per year (or A$50,000 for regional area), and a designated investment of A$500,000 (or A$250,000 for a regional area), a chance to live and work in Australia for up to four years.