To start off the year, Immigration has issued 1300 invitations this round, with 1000 to Subclass 189 Skilled Independent visa applicants, and the balance to Subclass 491 Skilled Work Regional (Family Sponsored) visa.
The minimum points score dropped slightly to 90 points, with the most recent Subclass 189 EOI to receive an invitation being lodged at the beginning of October 2019.
Pro-rata occupations:
Due to high levels of demand, certain occupations are issued invitations on a pro-rata basis. Places are first allocated to 189 EOIs, with remaining places issued to the 491 Family Sponsored EOIs.
Who received invitations this round?
Software and Applications Programmers were the major winners this round, with a whopping 298 invitations issued across the 189 and 491 visa programs. The top five occupations made up a total of almost 53% of the entire invitation round! Along with the Programmers, the top five included:
- Database and Systems Administrators and ICT Security Specialists with 121 invitations;
- Accountants with 98 invites;
- ICT Business and Systems Analysts with 93 invitations; and
- Civil Engineering Professionals with 76 invites.
Low-invitation occupations this round include Medical Imaging Professionals (approximately 1-2) Construction Managers (approximately 3-4), Management Consultants (3) and Cartographers/Surveyors (4).
Our Advice
In the lead-up to the Student Visa cohort expiry date of 15 March, there will be a significant level of competition for invitations through SkillSelect. This means looking at alternative visa options, including the 485 Graduate visa (for International Students who have finished their studies), the 491 Skilled Work Regional visa, and a Subclass 190 State Nominated visa.
Source: Acacia Immigration Australia
