Temporary suspension of certain offshore general skilled migration visas
Friday, 7 May 2010
People will not be able to lodge certain general skilled migration (GSM) visa applications from 8 May 2010, the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Chris Evans, said today.
This measure is necessary to facilitate the transition from the current Skilled Occupation List (SOL) to the new SOL and to ensure the occupational profile of applicants for GSM clearly reflects the needs of the Australian labour market.
The temporary suspension applies to all applicants for the following GSM visas:
- subclass 175 – skilled independent
- subclass 176 – skilled sponsored
and - subclass 475 – skilled regional sponsored.
People who try to apply for one of these visas from 8 May until the suspension is lifted will have their application and visa application charge returned.
The government will announce the new SOL later this month.
These changes do not affect international students applying for onshore general skilled migration visas.
URL: http://www.minister.immi.gov.au
/media/media-releases/2010/ce10035.htm
Last update: 07 May 2010 at 16:21 AEST