Australian Immigration News 30.5.26. The end of the 491? DOHA says go find a sponsor for ENS instead

Hi I'm Carl Conrad and welcome to our weekly edition of Australian Immigration News.Is the 491 visa doomed to a slow death?For the first time ever in the regional sponsored visa history, it has been hit with a catastrophic reduction in planning allocations.

With a drastic 57 % reduction in planning levels from 33 ,000 down to 14 ,110 for the next financial year, and already a 24 -month wait for processing, the slow strangulation of their 491 visa seems inevitable.

We asked the minister if he thought about those thousands of people who were relying on a state -sponsored 491 visa spot and how they're likely to miss out.Well, we got a response and we appreciate that, but most of you are not going to like it.We will outline the official response and add our editorial opinion as we go along.The migration program is focused on attracting and retaining highly skilled migrants and those already contributing to the Australian economy.So in other words, many of you working out there in regional Australia looking to meet state sponsorship requirements, you're not really contributing.There are a range of visa options available to attract migrants to live and work in regional areas.

In addition to the regional category, including temporary and permanent employer sponsorship visas, skilled independent visas and the Pacific Australia Labor Mobility Scheme.Well, newsflash, those working out there in regional areas in jobs that Australians don't want to do are not really going to be eligible for the 189 visa because most of their occupations are not on the 189 list.In other words, they are telling everyone to go find yourself an employer to sponsor you.And then there's this, while the number of visas available in the regional category have been reduced,the employer sponsored category has increased and is available to all Australian employers, including those based in regional Australia.Oh, so that's going to make a huge difference to help people find an employer.

We have increased the number of places available.And finally, there's this response that justifies it all.The Department of Home Affairs analysis on regional retention rates has shown that the proportion of migrants still living in regional areas three to five years after permanent visa grant is higher for migrants who use an employer -sponsored pathway rather than those who use the regional categories.So there you have it.It's official.They are going to stunt the 491 visa program because it's not performing as well as the ENS 186 program.

So what effect will this reduction in the 491 visa places have?For starters, it will increase the processing times for the 491 visa applicants.The 494 visa is also included in this regional category, but this is fortunately not a popular visa, so the numbers will be limited.However, the 494 visa applicants will be prioritized because they are employers sponsored in regional areas and will always move ahead in the queue.

Then there's the drastic reduction in the allocation of places for states and territories for the next financial year.You can't slash a planning level by more than half and expect the states and territories will be able to give out invitations at the same rate as this financial year.The cuts will be so significant that most of the invitations issued will likely be reserved for occupations in the highest priority sectors like construction, health and education.And remember, the planning levels also include family members.With a limited resource to be able to give invitations for the 491 visas, the states and territories will then have tolimit how people can be eligible in the first place.

They may develop their own list of occupations that they are prepared to sponsor, similar to what the ACT and Western Australia does now.The days may be gone of sponsoring all the available occupations from the two skilled occupation lists.It's likely that pathway one of the New South Wales 491 sponsorship program will be scrapped.Even this financial year, it was only open for a few hours due to fierce competition anyway, and mandatory work experience in your nominated occupations will likely come in everywhere.Pretty soon, there may be no perceivable advantage of studying in regional Australia, except if it's in a high demand occupation.Already, many states give no significant advantage to the 401 criteria if you have studied in their region.

Due to the increased competitiveness, the department is perhaps in a roundabout way forcing the states and territories to follow their focus on age, English and experience as the primary consideration for selection.Certainly those over 40 who were perhaps dependent on those extra 15 points that the 491 visa offers will be the hardest hit in a drastically more competitive landscape.And you know what really frustrates me the most?It's the way people debate the planning levels, arguing they should be set one way or another, only for the government to change things without any notice or regard for those who have invested years of hard work and planning.Their dreams can be dashed in an instant, and the inhumanity of this situation is truly mind -blowing, and I feel heartbroken for everyone who will be affected by such administrative callousness.There have been so many people who have moved to regional parts of Australia in order to meet the state sponsorship requirements for the 491 visa.

I fear that now, with virtually no notice, those dreams will be ripped away.under them.Now, it will be a while before the government allocates the actual sponsorship places to the various states and territories.Last year, they kept everyone waiting much longer than usual.That makes it hard for the states and territories to plan without knowing what numbers they will have to work with.But I'm pretty sure that for the 491 visa, they will be planning for the worst.

On the brighter side, the state territory nominated visa has been increased, not by much, only 2 ,000.And of course the 491 visa program will suffer as a result.Usually the 190 visa goes to people who are younger, more experienced and have superior English.Again, this is exactly what the federal government is pushing for.The regions have discretion to select lower points applicants, but that is likely only to happen in high demand sectors, again, health, education and construction workers.There is no doubt that the 186 visa category is the big winner of these new planning levels.

44 ,000 to 58 ,000 is a huge jump.I can hear sire relief for those waiting for their 186 visa applications to be processed.This won't bring processing times way down, but at least should provide some relief in the short term.The problem is that this increase will still not be enough to meet the ever increasing demand for this program.We will have the figures for the numbers still on hand waiting to be processed soon and we will be comparing this to the planning levels in an upcoming edition.So stay tuned.

The jump in the numbers from 16 ,900 to 21 ,090 for the 189 visa will be eagerly anticipated by the ICT sector to see if at least or last they will receive any invitations.in the next financial year.With IT jobs shrinking in Australia though, this will be a big wish.Will the increase in numbers mean the selection points will be lower?I don't think so.If anything, demand has increased along with EIs in the system, so you'll be lucky if the points required for invitations drop.

And by the way, the next round will be the 4th of June.Please ensure that your EOI details are up to date.The wait times for the parent visas just became longer, and if it wasn't bad enough already.With the drop of nearly 1 ,500 places, the pain of waiting for your parents to join you just got worse.It has been the case of robbing the old and giving it to the young, with the spouse places being increased for partner and child visas.On the bright side, the overall result of 185 ,000 places, the same planning levels as last year, is a good thing.

Remember, we could have the doomsday liberals or One Nation setting them.Hopefully that won't happen any time soon.Remember, we are always here to lend a hand.You can book a consultation online, but if you're in a hurry, just pick up the phone.Don't forget to support the channel by subscribing and liking our content.As always, take care out there and I'll see you next time.

So bye for now.