Canberra seeks to ease visa concerns

The federal government is attempting to assuage the IT sector’s concerns over the potential negative impact of the decision to abolish 457 temporary work visas.

In a statement, Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science Arthur Sinodinos said the government has reaffirmed its commitment on developing skills for the science and technology sectors.

“We have a skills gap in technical specialist roles in Australia. Through the development of a strong STEM sector locally we can ensure our economy has the workers it needs for the future. It’s important where possible our employers first look locally and train up local employees before considering other options,” he said.

“To help with this, we’re putting an obligation on ourselves as a government and as a community to put more of a focus on training and providing the upgrading of skills of our own domestic workforce.”

But the announcement was light on concrete details, with Sinodinos merely stating that he will be “engaging in an open dialogue with Australia’s innovation and technology sectors to ensure that we continue to support industry here in Australia”.

He said a number of IT occupations are on the applicable skills lists for the replacement visa categories. Indeed, web developer, telecommunications technician and multimedia designer were among the few technology positions excluded as part of the cull of job categories.

Robert Walsh, general counsel and notary public for global immigration solutions company Fragomen, is nevertheless advising Australian ICT companies to seek informed advice about what the changes will mean for them.

“We know that many IT companies in Australia are concerned about whether they can retain their current workforce and continue to employ people from overseas,” he said.

“With such significant changes to these visa classes it is important to know how the changes will affect individual employees and their families, companies and their sponsorship arrangements.”

For example, Walsh said currently pending 457 nominations may need to be withdrawn and possibly resubmitted based on a new occupation.

Walsh added that during a time of ongoing skills shortages in critical STEM and other occupations, it is imperative that the successes of the 457 program are not lost along with the changes.

“We need to make sure that our migration program continues to play a central role in Australia’s economic development across all sectors, competing effectively against other countries and creating an environment that attracts and supports talented people from around the world,” he said.

Image courtesy of David Morris under CC

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