On 8 February 2010 the Minister for the Immigration & Citizenship made an announcement there would be a new visa pathway for prospective migrants applying under General Skilled Migration.

The State Migration Plans (SMP) would allow an applicant to submit a skilled visa application if an Australian State or Territory had their skills identified as in shortage.

With the Federal election the long awaited introduction of the State Migration Plans was pushed back even further then the expected 1 July deadline. 1 November 2010 has seen the Victorian State government be the first to announce how they will manage sponsorship applications under the new SMP system.

Click here to view the Victorian State Migration Plan. 

How Does it Work
Prior to submitting a visa application for a subclass 176, 475, 487, 886 with the Department of Immigration & Citizenship an applicant is required to have State or Territory sponsorship. Each State and Territory has a list of occupations that they have identified as in shortage. If sponsorship is needed to submit a visa application then an application for sponsorship can be made to a State or Territory that has the applicants skill identified as in shortage.

The SMP is designed to encourage migrants with the right skills set to live and work in the State or Territory that needs them most. In return for sponsorship for the visa application, the relevant State or Territory want the applicant to make a commitment to live and work in that State or Territory for the first two years that they are a permanent resident.

An applicant is a permanent resident as soon as their visa is granted with the rights and entitlements that provides. However, the new permanent resident still has a commitment to live and work in the State or Territory that offered them sponsorship for the first two years they are in Australia.

The SMP is to make the General Skilled Migration system more efficient in that it is matching the migrant and their skills set with the area that will provide them with the most opportunity but also assist the Australian economy to fill a critical skill shortage.


Processing Times
There is one additional important point to add about having sponsorship from a State or Territory under a State Migration plan. An applicant with sponsorship under a SMP will have their visa application processed by the Department of Immigration & Citizenship within 12 months from the date of lodgement. Priority processing Group 2 is reserved for these applications and is the fastest processing category under General Skilled Migration.


Are you eligible?
AMVL can advise if you are eligible to make an application for State or Territory sponsorship. There is a restricted number of sponsorships available for each occupation in each State or Territory. There is also an overall restriction on the total number of sponsorships on offer. For example, a State may have 500 sponsorship spots for an electrician and a total of 4500 sponsorship places for the financial year. Victoria has advised that they have a total of 4500 sponsorship available for this financial year.

Click here to contact Australian Migration & Visa Lawyers to assess your eligibility.