COVID-19: New Visa introduced by Australia! But Applications Closed For Following Skilled Nominated Visas

As most of you know that COVID-19 has already inflicted the lives of a lot of Australian visa holders, who are quite worried about the continuation of stay in the nation with their existing visa. Amidst this turmoil, the Australian government has formulated a new visa category known as the ‘COVID-19 Pandemic event visa’. This visa is available under the subclass 408 and permits the eligible applicants to legally stay back in the country. Besides, you will have to meet some of the below criteria to apply for this visa successfully.

• Their visa expiration duration must be less than 28 days
• Applicants whose temporary visa has expired by crossing 28 days can also apply
• The applicants must hold a responsible position in some of the prominent sectors of Australia including agriculture, childcare, aged care, disability, and healthcare.

The chief objective of this new visa category is to remove the unwanted shortages, Australia is facing in any of these aforementioned sectors.

Important News: COVID 19 – Temporary Work Visa New Updates and Arrangements

 Applications of Nominated Visas which remains closed temporarily

Just the way the ‘Covid-19 Pandemic event visa’ has benefitted a lot of temporary visa holders in Australia, some regions of the country like Victoria and NSW have proclaimed the closure of the nominations of the visa subclass 188 and 132, two of the most prominent business migration visa programs in Australia. The invitation for these two visa types will resume from 1^st July 2020, as stated by the immigration offices of Victoria and NSW. Some of the other places which have closed the nominations of their visa applications are South Australia, Queensland, and Capital Territory, which have also decided to resume their visa applications, with effect from 1^st July 2020.

A few other places to close their visa applications

Covid-19 has not only compelled the aforementioned Australian states/territories but, a few other places as well including:

• General Skilled Migration visas in the Northern Territory of Australia.
• The visa subclass 491 and 190 in Queensland.
• The 491 visas in Tasmania as well for 3A applicants comprising the nomination.

Besides this, the Immigration department of South Australia has also closed the eligibility of its Skilled Nominated Visa Subclass 190, who are not working there for the past 1 year or 6 months in any of its regions. When asked, one of the immigration officials stated that the decision to close the applications of a particular visa arrives when the vacant positions of it have been filled up. However, it’s a completely different case altogether this year, both for the Coronavirus outbreak as well as a few amendments, these places are planning to bring to their visa application policies. You can consult for the changes made by the Immigration Department of South Australia through the registered Migration Agent Adelaide at ISA Migrations.

Must Read: South Australian Immigration Introduce Changes in Visa For International Medical Occupants

Stringent Eligibility Criteria

The creation of this visa type is indeed a piece of good news, but, every eligible applicant must know that it imposes a set of strict eligibility criteria, which they need to meet in the proper and expected way. On the contrary, if they fail to do the same, then they won’t qualify to apply for the said visa successfully.

Also Read: Important Update For All Visa Holders In Australia

For more assistance and expert guidance on visa cancellation, changes, and approval, the registered Migration Agent Perth at ISA Migrations will always be there to help!