Commencing on 1 July 2022, the 186 Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS) program will open up to visa holders on the Temporary Skill Shortage visa (subclass 482) short term occupation list if they can meet the following:
- You were in Australia for a cumulative total of at least 12 months between 1 February 2020 and 14 December 2021 and
- Other standard criteria are satisfied (eg age, English, length of employment, etc) under the Temporary Resident Transition stream, including COVID concessions for those who were stood down, or took unpaid leave.
Furthermore, the grandfathering provisions for those who held, or had applied for, a subclass 457 or 482 visa on 18 April 2017 has now been extended beyond 18 March 2022.
This new legislation aims to improve access to permanent residence for the existing subclass 482 visa holders in the short-term stream. This recognises the contribution of skilled migrants to Australia during the COVID-19 pandemic, addresses Australia’s skills shortages, and seeks to retain those skilled migrants in Australia beyond the pandemic.
For further information, if this announcement affects you, please get in touch with our expert team: aisupport@absoluteimmigration.com