Australian 457 Visa Applications Boom

Posted on June 15, 2011 by VISANOW

Over the past few years, Australia has experienced a decline in temporary migration levels—the amount of migrants in 2010-2011 is around half of what it was in 2008-2009. Despite the drastic decline, the number of 457 visa applications, which allows skilled overseas workers to work in Australia for up to four years, has surpassed those of previous years. More and more skilled laborers have applied for the 457 visa due to Australia’s improved economic environment and increasing demand for overseas workers to fill skills vacancies, according to the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC).  An increase in applications and government commitment to streamline the process will help to maintain the country’s access to skilled workers when local skilled labor is in short supply.
 

So far in 2011, there have been at least 42,872 applications for the 457 visa—this is 4,000 more applications than last year. The government has also tried to speed up the processing of the documents – processing times are about 30 per cent lower than five years ago. On average, it takes 22 days to process a 457 visa, and with hopes of further reducing this time by half, the Australian government plans to allocate funding for a 457 visa processing center in Brisbane.

Photo attribution: http://www.flickr.com/photos/darrolhouser/

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