A 485 approval “downpour”!

Last week the Minister for Immigration released a media statement showcasing visa approval figures since taking office, noting that for some time the Department of Home Affairs has been prioritising offshore temporary skilled visas, student visas and visitor visas. Since June this year about 745,000 applications have been processed, with roughly 86.5% being offshore.

Many applicants still waiting have asked: where is this approval downpour? Why haven’t we seen ours?

The media statement was issued on the 25th, and by the 28th and 29th of that week the 485 approvals began pouring out. The image below is a partial summary from NewStar clients, most of whom are onshore applicants.

This wave of 485 approvals is not over yet — another batch came on 2 August, running from midnight through to noon and continuing beyond that…

In the post-pandemic period, a combination of factors has made 485 processing slow. Visas that would normally be granted within one to two months have kept many onshore applicants waiting half a year or longer. Plenty of people have sighed: how can even a 485 take this long……

Finally, a genuine approval downpour has arrived. We hope this wave continues — and extends to skilled migration visas such as the 190, 491 and 189.

The 2–5 year post-study graduate work visa

A golden preparation window

After several rounds of policy relaxation and compensation, the majority of qualifying Australian graduates now hold a 485 of either three years, or two plus one years — at minimum two years. In certain regional areas it can extend up to three plus two years.

These 2–5 years are the golden window for finding work, pursuing migration and settling down.

Option one: 190/491 state nomination

State nomination has replaced the 189 as the mainstream migration path for graduates. “Mainstream” can mean plenty of opportunities — but it can also mean fierce competition.

If you are a graduate of New South Wales or Victoria

Consider your home-state nomination first, but work hard to accumulate a high score as quickly as possible and prepare mentally for a long wait.

These two states have historically had large nomination quotas, but applicant numbers are also very high. Beyond the huge pool of local graduates, Sydney and Melbourne also draw graduates from other states, which leaves the state governments “spoilt for choice” and able to pick only the most desirable, elite candidates.

Based on last financial year’s invitation data, to secure an opportunity in these two states IT applicants likely needed 90/95 points, accounting applicants were chasing 100+, and even then it came down to whether the state government was willing to invite. Healthcare, social work, nursing and teaching are favoured occupations where 70–80 points may still be competitive; most other common occupations generally need 80–90 points to be considered.

We hope both states will relax requirements and issue more invitations for popular fields like IT, accounting and engineering this financial year.

For NSW invitation data, see: Official data: the dozen-plus occupations NSW 190 “favoured” most last financial year — engineering and IT made the list! Full occupation breakdown inside.

If you are a graduate of Canberra, South Australia, Western Australia or the Northern Territory

Unless there are special circumstances, consider your home-state nomination first.

Firstly, these state nominations offer substantial policy benefits to local graduates — some with lower application thresholds that don’t rely on racing for points, others providing scoring advantages for local residents. Secondly, invitations to home-state graduates are generally issued more readily.

If you are a graduate of schools in Queensland or Tasmania

With new policy changes, it depends on the situation.

Queensland’s previous settings were not overly generous and quotas were limited, but this financial year’s policy gives certain preferences to local graduates. Tasmania has faced quota shortages for several consecutive years and is introducing major policy changes this financial year.

State nomination status as of 2 August 2022

All states are waiting on federal nomination allocations

NSW: The occupation list and application requirements will be released soon; no pre-invitations have been issued this financial year.

VIC: Specific policy has not yet been announced and applications are not yet open. The state government has indicated it will relax requirements and open a channel for offshore applicants — will open soon.

Canberra: Policy and occupation list for this financial year are confirmed, with 95 new occupations added, and Matrix pre-invitations have already been issued. Canberra was the first state to approve nominations, and the government has explicitly said it has requested more nomination places. More details: New financial year Canberra state nomination | list adds nearly 100 occupations with mechanical engineering and translation returning! State government’s projected invitation scores!

Queensland: At its information session the state outlined its main policy direction for this financial year: partial relaxation for local graduates, opening the work stream to offshore applicants (onshore applicants largely unchanged), and reopening the 188E business migration stream. The application channel remains closed and won’t reopen until at least after nomination quotas are received. More details: Queensland’s first state nomination of the financial year! Three pieces of good news — relaxation for local graduates, reopening to offshore applicants, and 188E returning! The state government expects to receive its quota in August!

SA: The occupation list and application requirements will be released soon. The application channel remains closed and no pre-invitations have been issued this financial year.

Tasmania: The full content of this financial year’s new policy has been released, with significant changes. Formal nominations and new applications will only proceed after the state receives its quota; backlogged applications from last financial year will take up a small portion of this year’s quota, and more nomination places are hoped for. More details: Everything on Tasmania’s new state nomination policy | all lists and Critical Role updated! Full details for each stream — applicants now placed into three priority tiers!

WA: The occupation list and application requirements are confirmed and published, favouring local graduates. The application channel remains closed, no pre-invitations have been issued this financial year, and the state has explicitly asked for more nomination places. More details: The first state nomination policy and list for the new financial year released! Over 190 new occupations added including ICT and auditing + open to offshore applicants! Analysing the positive signals for migration trends ahead!

Northern Territory: Under the MINT program, all migration occupations are eligible to apply, and the newly opened MINT graduate stream is now accepting applications. For the general stream, neither the occupation list nor the application requirements have been officially announced; the application channel remains closed and no pre-invitations have been issued this financial year. More details: Major MINT expansion for the new financial year! All migration occupations eligible — covering finance, IT, engineering, marketing and more! Graduates may now have their chance too!

189 independent skilled migration — wait and see; keep it as a backup only

Some applicants may still have their hearts set on the 189. Although the 189 grant quota has increased this financial year, and some experts predict invitations will pick up, the invitations that were expected in July have yet to appear. Past invitations have been dominated by healthcare, nursing, social work and teaching occupations, with a small share of engineering, and the required invitation scores were even higher than state nomination.

So the 189 is still one to watch — keep it as a fallback option.

Option two: employer sponsorship

Especially for accounting graduates, finding a job in your field and going down the employer-sponsorship route is currently the lowest-cost, most direct option. While every state nomination still includes accounting, invitations are either rare or require extremely high scores in fiercely competitive pools.

Other trade-level occupations like various IT specialisations, various engineering disciplines and chefs are also well suited.

For graduates, we focus here on the 482 employer-sponsored visa with the lowest requirements. The 485 gives you ample time to find suitable work and accumulate the required experience.

Key advantages of employer sponsorship

– No points test, no need to chase points

– Lower English requirements

– Most 482 occupations don’t require a skills assessment

– Short processing times (especially for some popular occupations right now)

– Uniform requirements for applicants across all of Australia

– You can stay in your current region to keep working and living

– Relatively stable policy settings, combined with Australia’s current large-scale labour shortage

Basic 482 application requirements

– The nominated occupation must be on the MLTSSL or STSOL list (some ROL-list occupations can also apply for the 482)

– No age limit

– At least 2 years of full-time work experience in a field related to the nominated occupation

– No skills assessment required (with exceptions for specific occupations)

– Occupations on the MLTSSL have a pathway to PR

– For MLTSSL occupations, English must be at least IELTS 5 in each band or equivalent (valid for 3 years)

– For STSOL occupations, English must be at least an IELTS overall 5 with no band below 4.5 or equivalent (valid for 3 years)

482 work-experience requirements

– The 2 years of experience only needs to be met by the time of grant — it doesn’t have to be satisfied at lodgement

– Compared with the 186, the requirements on job content and role alignment are less strict — related occupations are acceptable — but the work must still be at a certain skill level. For example, if an applicant wants to be nominated as a chef under the 482, prior work experience as a cook will not count, because cook is at a lower skill level than chef.

– Experience can be pre-qualification, or research work during a Master (Research) or PhD; paid internships and apprenticeships during study can also be counted, and for occupations requiring registration, work experience during provisional registration can also be counted.

– Work experience is generally considered over the past 5 years; if you’ve been out of the industry for too long the Department of Home Affairs may decide you no longer have up-to-date industry skills.

If you’d like a detailed assessment of your work experience, and to understand the requirements on sponsoring employers, add our customer service at the end of the article!

Alternative options: the MINT & SBO programs

Option 1: the Northern Territory MINT program

This financial year the MINT program has opened a new start-up applicant stream (MINT Start-Up Graduate Program). It can help graduates who don’t want to race for points or wait for work experience reach the 190 PR direct at 65 points. It suits graduates recently onshore as well as those who studied in Australia earlier but are currently offshore, as long as the nominated occupation is on any federal occupation list and has a matching skills assessment.

The start-up applicant stream is already open for applications. In late July, an onshore applicant previously signed by NewStar attended a preliminary online interview with the MINT fund, accompanied by Panel Agent Simon Wu. After reviewing the applicant’s background and broad business plan, the MINT fund was very satisfied and invited the applicant to travel to the Northern Territory for an on-site interview in early August.

The main requirement is an investment of AUD 515,000 plus certain start-up and management costs. The investment breakdown is as follows:

80% in state bonds, yielding approximately 2% per annum; principal and interest guaranteed, with full principal plus interest returned after 5 years;

20% invested in an innovative company in the DIH precinct — a VC-style investment with an expected 12% annualised return; returned after 8–10 years.

The MINT program is backed by the Northern Territory government, with 80% of the investment placed in AAA-rated state government bonds — 100% safe thanks to the guaranteed principal and interest.

For a full overview, see: Australian graduates, onshore or offshore, with any migration occupation can unlock the 190 PR at 65 points! The Brisbane office can fast-track you through the MINT graduate stream!

Option 2: state nomination — Small Business stream

The Small Business stream is fundamentally a state-nominated skilled-migration pathway, reaching PR through the 190/491. Applicants still need to meet the basic requirements of points-tested skilled migration. Compared with business migration, the investment is small and simple, and prior business experience is not mandatory. Compared with general state-nomination streams, the advantages are less competition, no need to race for points, no occupation restrictions, and favourable treatment from state governments.

Canberra, Tasmania and Queensland offer Small Business streams, but only Canberra’s Small Business stream is currently open to both the 190 and 491 — the other two only lead to the 491. Today we focus on Canberra’s Small Business 190 stream: meet the prerequisites and reach the required Matrix score to be invited (not an EOI score).

Prerequisites of Canberra’s Small Business 190 — quick and flexible

Nominated occupation:

The nominated occupation must be on any federal migration list and have a matching skills assessment.

Residency requirement:

At least 6 months of continuous residence in Canberra prior to Matrix submission.

Business requirements:

— As the majority shareholder of a locally ACT-registered business (51% or more ownership), the business must have been operating for at least 6 months.

— The business must have an annual turnover of at least AUD 200,000 (pro-rated if operating for less or more than a year).

— The business must be profitable during this period.

Employment requirements:

— As the majority shareholder, the applicant must have drawn at least AUD 26,000 in taxable income from the business in the 6 months before Matrix submission.

— The business must employ at least one Australian citizen / PR / New Zealand citizen resident in Canberra, for at least 13 weeks prior to Matrix submission, with a minimum of 20 hours per week. The employment doesn’t need to be continuous and doesn’t have to be filled by one person.

Matrix invitation scores are relatively low

Canberra state nomination has its own Matrix scoring system, with points awarded for length of business operation, length of local residency, applicant’s qualifications and English level, and the partner’s English and qualifications.

The current Small Business 190 invitation score is 95 points. The state government expects that after it receives its quota, the invitation score for the Small Business stream will drop further and will generally remain below the general-stream score both now and going forward.

We strongly recommend that home-state and interstate graduates in popular occupations such as accounting and IT consider the Small Business stream, as general-stream invitation scores are high — currently 100+ for the 190.

*If applying for the 491, the prerequisites and Matrix invitation scores are even lower.