Australia is on track to send more migrants than ever to regional areas in a decade according to the latest figures revealed by the Immigration Minister.
More than 6350 regional visas were granted in the first quarter of the program year 2019-20, Immigration Minister David Coleman announced on Monday.
That’s a 124 per cent jump compared to the same time last year and also more than the number of regional visas (6221 places) granted in the entire program year of 2017-18.
The Government is ‘delivering on its promise to boost regional migration’ and is ‘on track’ to send migrants to regional areas, Minister Coleman said.
“The Government has reduced the permanent migration program cap from 190,000 to 160,000 places, and within that has set aside 23,000 places for regional visas.
"Already we’re seeing results. The Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS) has increased by 179 per cent and the Regional Skilled Sponsored visa has increased by 79 per cent, meaning we are well on track to meet our target of 23,000 regional visas by the end of the program year,” Mr Coleman said.
Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme outcomes from 2008–09 to 2017-18Image
‘Clearing backlog before new visas are introduced’
The Immigration Minister has said with more focus on regional migration, the government has prioritised processing regional visa applications.
However, Melbourne-based registered migration agent Rohit Mohan says government seems to be clearing the backlog of regional visa applications before the new visas are introduced in November.
“There was a slowdown in the number of invites granted for regional visas in last two years. These figures indicate the government is clearing the previous backlog of regional visa applications before new regional visas are introduced in November,” Mr Mohan told SBS Hindi.
“If more than 6300 of 23,000 places have already been granted in this program year, it means there will be some competition for the remaining places when the two new regional visas are introduced.”
Earlier this year, the Government announced two new provisional skilled regional visas that will require skilled migrants to live and work in regional Australia, and will come with a pathway to apply for permanent residency after the visa holder has spent three years in the region.
The government hopes this will encourage skilled migrants and their families to settle and remain in regional areas.
The new regional visas which will come into effect on 16 November will replace the RSMS and Regional Skilled Sponsored visas.
Disclaimer: We’d like to point out that the information contained in this segment is general and is not specific advice. If you would like accurate information relevant to your situation, you should ask a registered migrant agent.
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