Australia redesigns skilled migration test

Australia, 14th November: Australian government has redesigned the skilled migration test for targetting migrants with high skills.

All migrants wanting to move to Australia under Australian skilled visa category will be required to clear the new points based migration test.

The changes in the Skilled Migration Points Test will make it much more difficult for international students having poor quality of qualifications from Australian educational institutes to seek Australian permanent residency.

Those in the age group between 25 and 32, possessing higher English level proficiency, more qualifications as well as work experience will be favored by the new skilled migration test.

Earlier, the test was dominated by a limited number of occupations, stated Chris Bowen, Australian immigration minister.

The new test will work along with the new SOL(Skilled Occupation Lists) revealed by the Australian government in July this year.

The reforms in the test are the base for Australian skilled migration program that will be in direct response to the present needs of Australian economy and will continue to be in the interests of the economy in the long run, added Bowen.

The earlier migration test was not targetting the best skilled immigrants to Australia.

So, anyone possessing high-skills and feels that he can contribute towards the economy of Australia shall be able to file an application and must not be inhibited just because his or her profession does not feature in the arbitrary list, asserted Bowen.

The new Australia skilled migration system, if given a nod by the Parliament, shall come into effect from the mid-2011.

The new points based test will ensure that the applicants do not get any points on the basis of their occupation.

The announcement of the new skilled migration test has meanwhile invited criticism from Restaurants and Caterers Association. According to John Hart, chief executive of the association, it will be difficult to fill around 5,000 vacant job positions.

The requirement of English level proficiency is already quite difficult for cooks hailing from overseas nations. In fact, these foreign cooks do not require English language for working in any German, Chinese or Italian restaurant, added Mr. Hart.