Skilled Independent Visa – Subclass 189

Points tested stream

You’d like to come to Australia and you have professional or trade skills that may qualify you for Permanent Residency. The General Skilled Migration Program is based on meeting a points test, currently set at 65, and does not require sponsorship from an employer.

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New Zealand stream

You are a New Zealander currently in Australia on a subclass 444 visa and you came here on or before 19 February 2016. You have been usually resident in Australia for a continuous period of at least 5 years. For each of the 4 most recently completed income years, your taxable income was at or above a specific income threshold.

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How This Visa Works

You can either be in Australia or overseas when you apply for a Subclass 189 Skilled Independent Visa. In order to lodge from within Australia, you would need to hold a substantive visa or a Bridging A, B or C visa. Once you apply from within Australia, you would receive a bridging visa allowing you to remain in Australia until your visa is assessed.

Who Is Eligible For This Visa?

General Requirements:

• Your occupation is on a relevant occupation list
• You meet the required points for the visa you intend to lodge (65 points is the minimum).
• Points are comprised of a number of factors such as age, qualifications, English fluency, work experience in Australia and overseas, qualifications obtained in Australia, partner’s qualifications.
• Your age must be between 18 and 45 inclusive. Different points are awarded to different age groups.
• You have a positive skills assessment (valid for three years) of your qualifications.
• Undertook an English language test (IELTS, OET, TOEFL, iBT, PTE Academic or Cambridge English: Advanced) and achieved the required score.

Steps in the process

• Lodgement of the Expression of Interest (EOI) – The EOI is a system which gives the Government the tools to prioritise and rank prospective migrants in order of merit, selecting the ‘brightest and best’ migrants and/or candidates to fill labour market shortages. It also gives the Government the tools to tweak the type of occupations most needed, curb those occupations where there are too many applications and manage the general mix of occupations accepted in each program year.
• Receive an invitation from the Department of Immigration;
• Lodgement of the Visa application within 60 days of receiving the invitation

About Skill-Select

It is important to understand that an Expression of Interest (EOI) is not a visa application and will not result in a bridging visa in Australia. Furthermore, any claims made in an EOI which cannot be substantiated in a visa application, for example, English fluency, qualifications, work experience, will lead to a refusal of the visa application.