Key conditions released for significant investor visa in Australia

The full conditions for a new visa designed to encourage significant migrant investment into Australia were released today by the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Chris Bowen MP.

The significant investor visa, first announced in May, is being introduced as a key component of the Government’s business innovation and investment program, and requires visa holders to invest at least AUD 5 million.

The visa will commence from 24 November this year, when applicants can submit an expression of interest through Skill select.

'The business innovation and investment program is positioned to target migrants with a demonstrated history of success in business and investment, to make a powerful contribution to national innovation and the Australian economy,' Mr Bowen said.

Australia is offering a significant investor visa to provide a boost to the local economy and to compete effectively for high net worth individuals seeking investment immigration on an international scale.

'The AUD 5 million minimum is considered to be sufficient for a meaningful investment contribution, justifying eligibility for visa concessions such as not having to meet the points test, no upper age limit and access to reduced residence requirements,' Mr Bowen said.

'Importantly, significant investors will be required to make complying investments in Australia which include state and territory government bonds, Australian Security Investment Commission-regulated managed funds that invest in Australian assets, and direct investment into private Australian companies not listed on the stock exchange.

'Where visa holders choose to invest directly into Australian companies, these companies will need to meet certain qualifying business standards.'

Mr Bowen said visa holders would have the flexibility to extend their initial four year visa by additional two year periods. They would also be able to satisfy the residence requirement of 160 days in Australia at any time throughout their four year visa.

'This flexibility recognises the needs of the global investor community while also encouraging investment into Australia,' he said.

State and territory governments are partnering with the Commonwealth when selecting prospective high net worth migrants, to ensure the available visas are offered to the most experienced business people and high profile investors.

Source : http://www.investinaustralia.com/news/key-conditions-released-significant-investor-visa-australia-12c3

ACCC to help fight 'dodgy' colleges

AUSTRALIA'S consumer watchdog could begin policing the operations of training colleges, enforcing standards and carrying out checks to help weed out dodgy providers.

The push to involve the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission in enforcement in the private training industry comes as the latest figures show the troubled international student sector has shrunk by almost 10 per cent in a year.

Data released by the federal government this month shows a 9.1 per cent decrease in enrolments to May on the same period last year.

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Changes to visa rules, the high Australian dollar and negative publicity about the safety of international students in Australia have all contributed to the drop in demand from overseas students. Several private college closures have added to the problem, and Overseas Students Ombudsman Allan Asher said he intended to work with colleges to ensure students are getting a fair deal.

''It's our expectation that any education providers who want to stay in business, who want to create a good reputation … are going to respond reasonably quickly,'' he said. ''We know [that it is not everyone] and for those who do engage in misleading or deceptive conduct, or unfair conduct, we'll have tools to use there too.''

Mr Asher said the ACCC would be part of the ombudsman's enforcement strategy, and the two agencies were working on reaching a formal information sharing and investigative relationship. He said he hoped the two bodies would sign a memorandum of understanding later this year.

''We're hoping to enlist them so that, if we do find instances of deliberately wrongful conduct on behalf of providers, there can be some swift intervention,'' he told the Council of International Students Australia's education conference on Tuesday.

''They have quite wide powers … and so far they've expressed a willingness to act to try and protect and enhance the credibility of this sector.''

The Overseas Students Ombudsman was established this year as part of a federal government strategy to better monitor and regulate the international education sector.

The ombudsman has jurisdiction over Australia's 900-odd private education providers, and has received about 100 complaints so far.

Mr Asher said he expects that number to rise significantly, but that complaints have mostly been resolved quickly once his office became involved.

The new watchdog is one measure the federal government is hoping will help improve the international student experience, following sustained pressure on the industry as student numbers plummet.

The latest enrolment figures show there is some growth in enrolments at the university level - a 2.3 per cent increase on May 2010 - but that in the vocational training sector numbers continue to slide.

Year-to-date vocational training enrolments at May 2011 fell by 18.8 per cent on last year, with the largest drop in the English language sector.

Source http://www.theage.com.au/national/education/accc-to-help-fight-dodgy-colleges-20110713-1he1b.html

Victoria announces ten scholarships for Indian students

Ten Indian scholars will be awarded 90,000 Australian dollars each to pursue their PhDs at any of nine universities in the state of Victoria from next year under a new programme.

"The nine top nine universities have agreed to provide a full tuition waiver and the new scholarships, providing Australian dollar 90,000 over the duration of doctoral studies for each PhD scholar and will support living costs and education-related travel," Australian High Commissioner to India Peter Varghese said, launching the Victoria India Doctoral programme.

The universities where the Indian students can pursue their PhD are Deakin University, University of Melbourne, La Trobe University, Monash University, RMIT University, Swinburne University, Australian Catholic University, University of Ballart and Victoria University. Varghese said same visa conditions will apply to the scholars going to Victoria and they will not be treated differently.

He also maintained that the scholarship programme is in no way linked to wooing India students Down South. Victoria is one of the most populous states of Australia with a large concentration of the Indian diaspora.

Launching the programme in Melbourne, Victoria's Minister for Innovation, Services and Small Business and Minister for Tourism and Major Events Louise Asher said, "the scholarships programme will contribute to global knowledge and help build a closer partnership between India and Australia.

Source http://www.deccanherald.com/content/172213/victoria-announces-ten-scholarships-indian.html

Australia is looking for the best of people

Whether you are a professional planning to migrate to Australia, or a student, come July 1, migration rules are set to change. As the Australian economy rebounds to normal, the country is set to face a shortage of qualified personnel, and the labour force growth is projected to go into the negative by 2036, unless preventive measures are taken.

Peter Speldewinde, assistant secretary, department of immigration and citizenship, government of Australia, says that the focus will now be on strategically selecting migrants whose skill-sets match Australia's labour market requirements.

"Australia is looking to filter the best of people to come and help us build the nation. There will be a highly qualified flow of people applying for migration," says Speldewinde.

VISA APPLICATION

Australia will move to a two-stage process for visa applications from July 1. People will have to submit an electronic 'expression of interest' indicating their skills, work experience, English language skills, qualifications, etc. Based on the self-assessment done electronically, the government will make offers to apply for a visa, electronically. The offer will be valid for two months. This will allow the government to match applications to the available processing resources and the labour market requirements in the country, besides cutting down on visa processing time.

NEW POINTS SYSTEM

Under the new points system (announced on July 11, 2010) to come into effect from July 1, points will be awarded for recognised overseas qualifications, unlike earlier, as a means to filter those with cream qualifications. Points will also be awarded for work-experience of up to 10 years from the date of submission of the visa application, under this new system.

Speldewinde says that students wishing to pursue career opportunities are welcome. "Overseas students are an important part of our programme. For students pursuing their degrees here and whose skills are required by an employer, there is no reason why they will not be able to migrate or get visas."

For those seeking permanent migration, the upper limit of the age for application for permanent migration has been increased to 50 years from 45 years. Also, maximum points will be awarded to people in the age-group of 25 to 32 years.

In the temporary migration space, the government will negotiate with mega resource projects under the Enterprise Migration Projects (EMP). Under the EMP, project owners will sign an agreement with the government , which will cover the range of occupations and number of people required for the project, on a temporary basis.

Source  http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-06-20/education/29679097_1_visa-application-overseas-students-migration-rules

Students throng expo to get admissions to overseas institutes

Hundreds of students appeared at the education expo organised by Students Solution on Sunday at a local hotel.

The Students Solution is a counselling organisation which provides opportunities for Pakistani youngsters who are willing to get admission to overseas colleges and professional institutes, Managing Director of the organisation Saima Asim told The News.

“We offer admissions to several colleges and universities of Australia, USA, Canada and the UK.” The candidates, who enrolled themselves during the day-long education expo, said that they would apply for admission to the autumn semester. The organisation offers admission and visa counselling for the UK and Australia against Rs15,000 while the package for USA and Canada is Rs19,500.

“I would take classes for IELTS, an English language test, which will complete in two months and after that I will appear in the test before applying for admission to a UK-based university,” said Muhammad Adeel who had come to the expo to get briefed about the technicalities of admission process.

Another student, Aziz, said that he had scored 7.0 bands in the language test and now he would apply for admission to an educational institution in the USA.

“I came here to get information about universities and their requirements. I was informed that the admission process would take at least three months,” Aziz said.

The organisation has a vast experience of over 10 years in counselling and almost 8,000 students have applied through Students Solution, Saima said.

During the exhibition, the consultants of the organisation briefed the students and parents on the procedure of admission and visa policies. Founded in 1998, the organisation helps students in getting answers to their problems, before they actually face them abroad, Saima claimed.

“My husband, Asim Mairaj, the founder and CEO of the organisation, got his higher degree from a UK University. During his stay, he learned that Pakistani students were not able to get highly paid jobs due to their language skills and educational background and I noticed the same problem during my education career in the USA. We then planned to establish a platform to guide the students so that they can overcome their problems,” she elaborated.

Students Solution asks its candidates to prepare and appear in the IELTS before applying for admission and visa in foreign universities. The organisation does not deal with cases without IELTS, Saima Asim added.

“Students Solution not only helps the students in learning about the academic policies and their impact on students’ visa but also guide them about alternatives available in travel, accommodation, and scholarships,” she said.

“Almost 80 per cent Pakistani students, especially people belonging to middle and lower middle class segments of society, have language issues. As such they usually get back-office jobs, which have low salary packages.”

Besides counselling the students, the organisation also helps candidates in immigration, work and visit visa category as well accommodating families in the UK.

Source http://www.thenews.com.pk/TodaysPrintDetail.aspx?ID=52226&Cat=4&dt=6/13/2011

New immigration policies fail Australia’s national interest

New immigration policies favour employers of temporary workers but disadvantage skilled migrants and family sponsorship applicants, and could ultimately harm Australia’s long-term future.

Employers have been handed much of the power to control who stays and who goes in Australia following a series of key changes to Australia’s Migration Program, the last of which will come into effect in July.

Winners and losers

The biggest winners under the new system will be people sponsored by employers for temporary work visas which can later be converted to permanent visas. The biggest losers will be Australians seeking to bring family members into the country, and those applying for entry under the General Skilled Migration system.

In 2010-11, while the overall size of Australia’s migration program remained at 168,700 places, family migration visas were slashed by 5,750 places and skilled visas by 3,600 places. At the same time, employer sponsored places were boosted by 9,150.

“In the Government’s view it seems employers are the best judges of who should migrate to Australia,” says Mark Webster, Director of Acacia Immigration Australia.

The new Skilled Occupations List which came into effect in July 2010 puts the brakes on the General Skilled Migration program with the number of occupations on the list dropped from 400 to 181. The new Skilled Migration Points Test which starts on 1 July this year will see the system tightened even further.

The cut in places for family migration services means that processing times are getting longer and longer with many people waiting nine months or more for their visas to be processed. Under the new Skilled Migration points test, there is hardly any advantage given to applicants with family members in Australia.

On the other hand, employer sponsored visa options are being actively encouraged by the government which has opened up more of these opportunities within the migration program and streamlined processing arrangements.

The changes reveal the Government’s preference for ‘demand-driven’ migration, where migrants are selected by employers, rather than ‘supply driven’ options, such as General Skilled Migration, which require applicants to pass a points test set by the Australian Government.

“Migration intake should reflect the economic climate and help ensure employers can gain access to skilled professionals in those industries where there are skills shortages,” Mr Webster says.

“The Government is limiting General Skilled Migration, which is about meeting long-term skills shortages, in favour of employer sponsorship which fixes short-term employment problems.

“Many applicants for employer sponsored visas are not highly skilled and are increasingly former working holiday or students visa holders,” Mr Webster asserts.

“Australians need to ask themselves whether it is in the national interest to give so much say to employers in deciding who stays and who doesn’t. The new points test was rushed through cabinet just before the last election with only minimal consultation with stakeholders. However, the legislation has not yet been finalised so it is not too late to make changes.

“It’s time to rethink the demand-driven strategy and look at the migration program as a whole. Otherwise, in a few years time we may be looking at unwinding an out-of-control employer sponsored migration program which does not meet Australia’s needs,” he warns.

Source   http://www.newsmaker.com.au/news/9354

Fall in the number of Indian students going to Australia

While the Australian Immigration Department is trying to relax the visa application process for foreign students interested in studying abroad, the universities are faced with the decrease in international enrolments in the first half of year, especially from India.

According to the latest data on enrolment figures of international students coming to study in Australian universities, there has been a major dip in the number of students getting enrolled in the country. Australian education institutes have reported a further fall of 8.7 per cent in the number of Australian student visa applications in the first quarter of the year compared with the same period last year.

A major concern among the universities and vocational training providers in Oz is the dropping number of Indians entering to study in Australia. Also according to Australian education institutes' report, Indian student numbers have decreased by over 30 per cent. This is adversely affecting the education export sector because India has been major contributor to it. Previously, India has been the second largest market for Australian education industry, only after China.

One of the main reasons for this issue is the racial violence against the South Asian community in the Australian subcontinent. Although the government has been assuring safety to international students visa, parents seem not to be willing to take risk.

If you are interested in Australian visas, contact Migration Expert for information and advice on which visa is best suited to you. You can also try our visa eligibility assessment to see if you are eligible to apply for a visa to Australia.

Source   http://www.migrationexpert.com/australia/visa/australian_immigration_news/2011/jun/0/451/fall_in_the_number_of_indian_students_going_to_australia