Last night, many people were paying attention to the latest immigration budget announced by the Australian government, which included good news and bad news.
Overall, quotas have been cut, but not by much.
The total quota is 185,000, a decrease of 5,000 compared to 2023-2024 (total 190,000).
The Skilled Visa class quota was reduced by 4,900 from 137,100 to 132,200. The 5,000 reduction in the total quota is basically all from the technical category.
Note that the Skilled Visa here includes a points-based system of 189 190 491, employer sponsorship of 186 494, business immigration of 188 132 and extraordinary ability of 858.
The total quota for the family category is expected to remain stable at 52,500
Perhaps the biggest losers are investment immigration applicants, business immigration and 858 exit history, which will be restructured.
188 132 for business migrants and 858 for extraordinary ability will be restructured into new visas for the National Innovation Visa, and the government will invest 1.4 million in planning and implementing the new visa, with the specific framework and requirements expected to be revealed by the end of 2024.
By the end of 2024, the current 858 will be replaced by the new National Innovation Visa to attract exceptional talent who can truly drive growth in the country's most important industries.
The BIIP will also be completely withdrawn from the stage of history and will be restructured into the new National Innovation Visa. From September 2024, the Department of Immigration will provide a refund of the visa application fee to business visa applicants who are awaiting processing.
It is expected that innovative immigrants who adapt to the post-epidemic era will pay more attention to upstream and downstream entrepreneurs engaged in innovative industries such as new energy, new technology, electric vehicles, semiconductors, and biopharmaceuticals.
And the biggest winner in the new fiscal year is the applicant for the employer-sponsored visa, which can be said to have completely turned over!
From November 23, 2024, the 2-year related work requirement for the 482 visa will be halved directly to just 1 year. Graduates who meet the requirements of 1 year of related work during the 485 period no longer have to worry about renewing their issuance.
The two major channels of employer-sponsored immigration, 186TRT and 186DE, are becoming more and more "compatible", and they can apply if they meet 3 years of work experience. 186TRT currently requires a total of 4 years (2+2) of work experience, and before November 25, 2023, 186TRT requires a total of 5 years (3+2) of work experience. Employer-sponsored work visas are bound to be an emerging force for immigrants in the future.
It is worth noting that in this immigration budget, the Australian government has opened a new visa for India.
The India-only MATES program was officially implemented from 1/11/2024 and consists of two visa categories, mainly for those students who have graduated in India.
You can apply for this visa if you meet the academic requirements of the professional list.
Indian graduates aged 18-30 in related fields can apply for a new 2-year work permit (similar to 476). The visa will have an annual quota of 3,000 and will be implemented using a "pre-application(ballot)" lottery.
The Australian business travel visa for Indian nationals will be extended from 3 years to 5 years.
#01: International students are exempted from the pre-graduation time limit, and a large number of Indian immigrants may flood into Australia
This visa for graduates in India dates back to May 2023.
At that time, Anthony Albanese and Narendra Modi signed a new Australia-India immigration agreement, under which it will be easier for Indians to apply for Australian visas.
The migration agreement signed by the two prime ministers will facilitate the movement of students, graduates, academic researchers and business people between the two countries.
Image source: AFR
The most important of this immigration agreement is the MATES Pilot Scheme, a professional mobility scheme under which 3,000 graduates of India's top schools and some professionals (mainly in the fields of IT and artificial intelligence, mining, fintech, engineering, agricultural technology and green energy) will be allowed to apply for temporary visas to work in Australia for two years each year.
And this job does not require employer sponsorship, which means that as long as you pass the application, you can easily enter Australia.
Even after two years of employment, these Indian citizens can continue to apply for temporary or permanent skilled migration visas to further work in Australia or directly obtain permanent residence status in Australia.
Not only that, but through this MATES pilot program, their spouses will also be able to enter Australia and be able to work without restrictions.
In addition to this, the migration agreement between Australia and India also allows Indians studying at Australian tertiary institutions to stay here for eight years to work in their field of study, family visits or business visits, and Indian citizens can also obtain visa approval, which can be obtained on a 3-month visitor visa.
The business visit visa is valid for up to 5 years and can also be stayed for 3 months each time.
It also provides 5-year student visas for both countries.
Image source: AFR
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also said that India is Australia's sixth largest trading partner and hopes to deepen cooperation with India in more areas in the future, especially in the fields of digital technology, financial services, education and renewable energy.
Now, this visa is about to be realized by the end of the year.
This is not the first time that the Australian government has given India preferential treatment in terms of visa policy.
Previously, when the 485 visa reform was announced, Indian students were in the ranks of "exemptions".
In December last year, the Australian government issued an extensive immigration review, which made changes to the requirements for student visas and graduate visas, and significantly tightened restrictions.
Image source: homeaffairs.gov
Just last month, the official website of the Australian Immigration Department officially announced the latest visa policy, and according to the passage of legislative amendments, these changes will come into effect on July 1, 2024.
其中，学习后工作通道（Post-Study Work stream）将更名为高等教育后工作通道（Post-Higher Education Work stream）。
The length of stay for graduates has also been adjusted:
Bachelor's degree (including honours degree) – up to 2 years;
Master's (Courses & Extensions) – up to 2 years;
Master's (Research) and Doctoral Degree (PhD) – up to 3 years.
However, under the provisions of the Australian Indian Economic Co-operation and Trade Agreement (AI-ECTA), Indian nationals will also be given preferential treatment for a different period of stay:
Bachelor's degree (including honours degree) – up to 2 years;
Bachelor's degree (First Class Honours in STEM field including ICT) – up to 3 years;
Master's (Coursework, Extension, and Research) – up to 3 years;
Doctoral Degree (PhD) – up to 4 years.
These preferential visa policies will allow more Indian immigrants to come to Australia to study, work and settle in Australia. In the future, Australia may really be occupied by Indian immigrants.
Compared with the Chinese, Indians who want to immigrate to Australia have a great advantage in themselves.
#02: Why can't the Chinese compare with the influx of Indians into Australia?
Why are there so many Indian students in Australia?
A Chinese said that after chatting with female Indian students for a while, he finally understood the reason.
It turns out that Indian students come to Australia with the following advantages!
The first advantage: academic certification
India and Australia recognize each other's qualifications, and any Indian university, even a garbage school, is recognized in Australia.
An Indian international student said that he had only studied food engineering at a very ordinary university in India, and he was able to apply for a postgraduate program at RMIT directly with his university grades.
Image source: SBS
She came to Australia to study graduate school to change her life, because Australia not only has better development, but also has a salary package far higher than that of India.
This is also the reason why many Indian students study abroad.
The second advantage: everyone can go abroad
The second advantage of Indian students going abroad is that the Indian government has provided special study abroad loans in order to encourage students to study abroad. Students can apply directly to the Government of India or opt for collateral or even mortgage with a property.
As long as the chosen major in the country of study is recognized by India, you can get this payment.
The repayment method is determined by the loan amount.
In other words, as long as you choose a study abroad major that is certified by the Indian government, you can apply for a loan, which greatly lowers the threshold for going abroad.
Image source: news
The third advantage: the ability to endure hardships
As you may have noticed, many industries in Australia have Indian employees and the proportion of them is very high.
This is because Indians are very hard-working, and they can work hard to earn money and stay in Australia.
For example, there is an international student who lives far away from the school in order to save money, and she needs to travel two hours to school every day, but even then she does not live in a single room in order to save money as much as possible, but chooses to share a room and live in the living room.
If you have time, you have to go out to work to increase your income.
Image source: news
The fourth advantage: interoperability of Commonwealth countries
On the one hand, the reason why Indian students can enter Australia more smoothly is that India and Australia are both Commonwealth countries, and Australia has a higher recognition of India.
Secondly, in order to enhance relations with India, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese went to India to sign a series of special immigration terms.
The most important of this immigration agreement is the MATES Pilot Program, which is a mobility arrangement program for professionals.
Under this plan, each year, Australia will allow 3,000 graduates of India's top schools and some professionals to apply for temporary visas to work in Australia for two years.
Moreover, this work visa does not require employer sponsorship, which means that as long as you pass the application, you can easily enter Australia. The spouse of the visa holder can also travel with them and can work in Australia without restrictions.
Even after two years of employment, these Indian citizens can continue to apply for temporary or permanent skilled migration visas to further work in Australia or directly obtain permanent residence status in Australia.
Image source: AFR
Therefore, it is not only easier for Indian students to enter Australia, but also easier to stay.
At last
Why is there now more and more Indians in Australia, and Indian students are almost occupying this place?
With these advantages, it is not only easy for Indians to come to Australia, but it is also easier for them to establish themselves in Australia.
In contrast, it is really getting harder and harder for Chinese people to settle in Australia.
In the long run, Australia will really become a second India...