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Scott StrainUKTI Australia Director for Trade Anthony HughesASG Immigration

Agenda• Brief overview of the Australian labour market

• Australia’s 457 Migration team

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A comparison with AustraliaAustralia UK

Population 23.3 million 64.1 million

Global GDP ranking 12th (IMF 2013) 6th

GDP growth est. 2014 2.6%   2.9%

GDP per capita ($US 2014)

US$61,137 $43,803

Ease of doing business (World Bank 2013)

111h 10th

Unemployment (July 2014)

6.4% (ABS) 6.4%

Land mass – sq km 7 692 000 242 000

In partnership with:

Australia: it’s bigger than you think

4In partnership with:

UNCLASSIFIED

Where are the jobs?

6

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

NSW VIC

QLD SA WA

TAS NT

ACT

'000

pers

ons

February 2013

February 2014

0

500

1000

1500

2000

NSW VIC

QLD SA WA

TAS NT

ACT

'000

pers

ons

February 2013

February 2014

Overall employment by State & Territory

Skilled employment by State

Unemployment Rates

7

Trends in vacancy rates

8

Source: Department of Employment Vacancy Report

Change in Employment by Industry

-14 -12 -10 -8 -6 -4 -2 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14

Agriculture, Forestry and FishingMining

ManufacturingElectricity, Gas, Water and Waste Services

ConstructionWholesale Trade

Retail TradeAccommodation and Food ServicesTransport, Postal and Warehousing

Information Media and TelecommunicationsFinancial and Insurance Services

Rental, Hiring and Real Estate ServicesProfessional, Scientific and Technical Services

Administrative and Support ServicesPublic Administration and Safety

Education and TrainingHealth Care and Social Assistance

Arts and Recreation ServicesOther Services

Decrease Increase

9

Source: Department of Employment

Australian 457 work visas

A Practical Guide

Anthony Hughes, ASG Immigration

16th October 2014

Introduction

• The 457 visa program is designed to enable businesses to address Australian labour market skills shortages

• Driven by employer demand• Australia’s most commonly used method of

employing overseas workers• The program involves a 3 stage process:a)Standard Business Sponsor applicationb)Nomination application c)Visa application

Which businesses can use the program?

• Employers lawfully operating a business inside or outside of Australia

• Overseas employers can use the program if they want to establish a business operation or fulfil a contractual obligation in Australia - overseas employers do not need to meet the ‘Training Benchmarks’

• Standard business sponsorship applications are normally approved for a period of three years

What obligations do I have as a Sponsor?

• Australian businesses must establish their commitment to the training of Australians by lodging evidence of meeting either Training Benchmark A or B

• Training Benchmark A - pay the equivalent of at least 2% of company payroll to an industry training fund for the training of Australian citizens or permanent residents

• Training Benchmark B - spend the equivalent of at least 1% of payroll on training Australian citizen or permanent resident employees

• Businesses trading for less than 12 months are required to lodge a ‘training plan’

• Meeting the Training Benchmarks is an ongoing obligation

What obligations do I have as a Sponsor?

• Ensure terms and conditions of employment for 457 holder are no less favourable those that the sponsor provides or would provide to an Australian citizen or permanent resident

• Notify the DIBP of the cessation or expected cessation of a primary 457 holder’s employment within 10 working days

• Notify the DIBP of a change to the work duties carried out by a primary 457 employee within 10 working days

• Advise DIBP if the sponsor has paid return travel costs to enable the 457 employee to leave Australia

How is the salary of a 457 employee determined?

• Lowest acceptable salary under the 457 program is $53,900 per annum

• Employers must also make a minimum contribution to a superannuation fund of the employee’s choice, currently 9.5% of the employees annual salary

• Employers must pay visa employees a ‘market rate’ salary equivalent to the rate paid to Australian employees performing a similar role

• If no Australian employees performing a similar role then the ‘market rate’ can be determined by remuneration surveys, collective agreement or awards or job advertisements

• Employers offering a salary in excess of $250k per annum are exempt from market salary testing

How do I nominate a position for a 457 visa?

• Identify a position to be filled by an overseas skilled worker

• The nominated occupation must be one listed in the Skilled Occupation or Consolidated Skilled Occupation List

• To lodge a valid nomination the employer/ company must have already lodged a sponsorship application, had a previous sponsorship approved or applied for sponsorship at the same time as the nomination application

What is Labour Market Testing?

• Commenced on the 23rd November 2013 and requires sponsors to test the local labour market within a 12 month period prior to lodging a nomination application

• Employers must provide information with their nomination about attempts to recruit Australian workers

• There are exemptions from the LMT requirement• ANZSCO Skill Level 1 – Bachelor degree of 5 years or

more relevant experience required for nominated occupation

• ANZSCO Skill Level 2 - Associate degree, advanced diploma or three years or more relevant experience required for nominated occupation

• ‘Protected’ occupations cannot be exempted from LMT. These are mainly engineering and nursing positions

Who can apply for a subclass 457 visa?

• Applications for a subclass 457 visa can be made by individuals nominated by an approved standard business sponsor for a skilled occupation on the list of eligible occupations and who meet the skill requirements for the nominated occupation

• A 457 visa holder can bring eligible dependents with them to Australia and dependent family members are able to make a combined application

Are there any English language requirements?

• 457 visa applicants are required to demonstrate a level of English language proficiency unless they are ‘exempt’

• Nationals of the UK, USA, Canada, Republic of Ireland or New Zealand are exempt from the language requirements

• Nominated in an occupation that does not require English language competency for grant of registration, licence or membership and has completed at least 5 years consecutive full-time study in a secondary and/or higher education institution

• Paid a salary in excess of $96,400• English language proficiency is normally established by

the applicant lodging an International English Language Testing system test result with a score of at least 5 in each of the four test components

Health and Character requirements?

• A 457 visa applicant and dependent family members must be able to meet health requirements for the grant of the visa

• DIBP may request applicants to undergo a health examination depending on the applicant’s country of origin or residence, the intended period of stay or intended activities

• To be granted a 457 visa, applicants must be of good character and DIBP may request police certificates for each country that an applicant has lived in for 12 months or more over the last ten years

Anthony Hughes, ASG Immigration

Level 19, 1 O’Connell Street. Sydney NSW 2000

anthony.hughes@asgvisa.com

+61 (0) 2 8901 3834

Australian 457 work visas

A Practical Guide

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