Get in the picture

Migration to Australia through the skilled intake involves patience and thoroughness, but mostly it depends on your age, your chosen occupation and whether it is in demand.

If you're keen to work and reside in Australia, there are ten categories of Skilled Migration visas and four of these are relevant to offshore applicants — those not yet living or studying in Australia. (Many of the other visas apply to those already on educational visas.)

Two of these offshore visas are relevant to people who have Australian permanent resident relatives willing to sponsor them: the Skilled — Sponsored, and the Skilled — Regional Sponsored visas. The latter is applicable to people willing to move to rural areas of Australia. Sponsors must, ‘agree to provide adequate accommodation and financial assistance as required to meet your relative's reasonable living needs during their first two years in Australia'.

Migrants who satisfy the skilled visa requirements may also be sponsored by >employees, government bodies or regional bodies; this is sometimes the case when applicants are granted visas on the grounds that they are employed in their occupation in rural Australia — where there is greater demand for certain skills.

Another option for offshore applicants is the Skilled — Independent visa, which applies to candidates in a range of situations: including unsponsored people whose occupation is on the Skilled Occupation List (SOS), overseas students who have met Australian study requirements within the previous six months, Graduate visa holders and Trade Skills Training visa holders who have completed their apprenticeship.

Lastly, the Skilled — Recognised Graduate visa is available to students aged under 31 who have graduated from recognised overseas educational institutions, possess skills that are in demand and speak English competently. An 18-month visa, this can be extended to permanent residency. Unlike the other categories, this does not require a ‘points test'.

Getting to the point

Although there are other requirements, the points test typically determines whether an applicant is eligible for a visa or not. Under this system, a person's qualifications and attributes are allocated points, which are totalled. The Department of Immigration uses this, among other criteria, to assess an application. Points are awarded to occupations in demand as well as factors like age (applicants must be between 18 and 45) and your partner's profession.

Other factors include recent work experience, functional English, employment offers, Australian education, willingness to work in regional areas and sponsorshipby a government or regional body.

The SOS (available at www.immi.gov.au) is revised regularly and allocates more points to professions in demand. Applicants' chances are even higher if their occupation is on the Migration Occupation in Demand List (MODL), particularly if they've already been offered employment in Australia.

South African occupational therapist Joanne Kennedy Ellis gained a skilled visa almost three years ago primarily because she had an occupation in high demand.

"I haven't moved to Australia yet, but I needed to activate the visa within two years of the visa being issued — basically, this just meant travelling to Australia," she says. "Once I'm ready to move, I can enter on this visa."

The process

Most applicants say it's essential to be organised. Ellis says the application process was rigorous.

"I chose to apply myself rather than use a migration agent. It's good to have all your documentation ready when you apply, although you can provide some on demand.

"As part of the application, I had to provide a detailed work history, education details, details on all my family members, all the countries I've visited over the past decade and police reports from every country I've lived in for more than 12 months."

Like any other applicant, her skills and qualifications were assessed by an organisation in Australia (known as a relevant assessing authority) to determine whether they were suitable for her given occupation.

"When I applied, I listed my points and figured that I would qualify. In my experience,it's pretty easy to work out, but I guess it might be different for other applicants."

After several months of processing, Ellis was asked to undergo a health check with a clinic recognised by the Australian Consulate-General. After this, her application was approved within a month.

Assistance and migration agents

If you don't have sponsorship, it's worth checking out the Department of Immigration's Skill Matching Database, which potential employers and government departments can browse through. This is optional, but is one means of sourcing potential sponsors.

Although migration agents aren't essential, they can help people organise their application. Before choosing an agent, applicants are advised to check their credentials on the Migration Agents Registration Authority (MARA) website, www.mara.gov.au. Although there's no fixed fee for these services, the website lists average fees.

Regardless of what type of visa they're interested in, UAE applicants must lodge applications at the VFS Global offices in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. For details visit www.vfs-au-gcc.