Does your business need suitably skilled and experienced engineers and have you been finding it difficult to secure the skills you need from the local labour market? Or are you a skilled professional needing to come to Australia for engineering or project work? It is often the case that businesses require skilled professionals with proprietary business knowledge that may need to be sourced from overseas offices or contractors. If you need assistance with an Engineering Visa to Sydney or anywhere in Australia, Interstaff can help!
Interstaff has assisted a variety of businesses including construction project companies, engineering firms servicing the construction and resource industries, and trade clients. As the engineering employment market is highly cyclical, engineering firms and constriction project companies may see the need to engage suitably licensed and registered professionals for temporary work throughout the planning and construction phases of a project. Not being able to secure suitably skilled and experienced workers means projects could take longer and your business may not achieve the economic outcomes it had planned.
Getting advice on options available through the skilled migration program can help your business invest in the capabilities of its Australian workforce, recognising that temporary work visas are at times necessary to support technical and project delivery leadership. Fortunately, some engineering occupations* have been recognised by the Government as critical to the supply of essential goods and services during the current pandemic and have been listed on the Priority Skilled Migration Occupation List (PMSOL). It may therefore be possible to access priority Government visa and nomination processing so your business can more quickly access the engineering skills it needs.
Here’s what you should know about engaging skilled migrants such as Engineers for an Engineering Visa to Sydney.
Engineering Visas
Thankfully for many engineering firms and related industries, after almost two years of requiring workers to be granted Critical Work Travel Exemptions to enter the country, participating States and Territories in Australia re-opened their international borders to fully-vaccinated eligible skilled visa holders from December 2021. International testing and quarantine requirements may also apply depending on the State or Territory of arrival.
These relaxed restrictions mean employers are no longer limited to engaging overseas migrants that can meet a Critical Work Travel Exemption and they can once again more easily engage skilled migrants for their work needs. You may therefore be considering which visa and sponsorship options are available to engineers. There are a few options in the skilled migration program that are commonly used – such as:
- 400 Visas – for Short Stay Specialist needs of 3 to 6 months, such as emergency relief, equipment maintenance, and repairs;
- TSS 482 Visas – for a 2 or 4 year visa period, depending on eligibility;
- Regional 494 Visas – for a 5 year visa period with a provisional pathway to Permanent Residence;
- Designated Area Migration Agreements (DAMA’s) and Labour Agreements – to establish a visa and sponsorship arrangement with the Government for current and future migration needs;
- Independent Skilled Visas – for non-employer sponsored permanent residence;
- Global Talent Visas – a permanent residence option for highly skilled individuals. The Resources sector has been recognised as eligible for particular engineering specialisations;
- Permanent Residence 186 and 187 Visas – to retain global talent for work in your business.
The applicant and business’ eligibility for these skilled visas depends on several factors, including the circumstances of work, genuine requirements to employ a skilled migrant, and Australian labour market conditions – among others.
*Page last updated: 4 January 2022 – you may wish to contact Interstaff’s Registered Migration Agents so that your circumstances can be assessed with the most up-to-date migration requirements.
How Interstaff’s migration experts in Sydney can help with Engineering Visas
Interstaff works with businesses in the resource and construction industry, from local contracting companies to multinationals, to determine a migration strategy that will meet their labour needs. A carefully considered strategy is required whether a single candidate is needed or if the business needs to migrate numerous visa holders at a time. This is especially the case when projects have a dependency on securing key personnel within critical timeframes.
It is important to understand the variety of visa options available, which may include employer-sponsored visas, general skilled migration, and pathways to transition to Permanent Residence. There are also several factors to consider when ensuring the business and applicant remain compliant with Australia’s visa and sponsorship obligations, changing migration laws and regulations, and international travel restrictions/procedures. Our migration agents begin by reviewing your circumstances and eligibility and advising on the most suitable option, including the visa requirements. Following a consultation, our migration agents can assist with all aspects of the application process and assist with any queries you may have or complexities that may arise.
While the sponsorship, visa, and nomination application process can be complex and require ongoing liaisons with the Department of Home Affairs, State and Territory agencies, and regional certifying bodies, don’t let legal compliance and administrative burdens hinder your business’ growth and competitiveness in the industry. Our migration agents are well-equipped to manage your visa and migration requirements, having assisted businesses for over 30 years since 1988.
We are focused not only on managing your business migration requirements but also on providing a supportive employee experience to your candidates requiring visas. We coordinate the visa process on behalf of you and your visa applicants while providing professional advice at each step of the process. Having facilitated migration requirements for numerous projects, we undertake a project-style approach to our work, providing you with status updates and visa tools to feed into your overall project plans.
Our experienced migration agents are sought for their expertise in business migration – particularly for the resource industry – and regularly assist HR/Executive teams, project managers, business owners, and their overseas employees with managing their skilled migration needs.
Interstaff Industry Experience | Skilled Migration Specialists Since 1988
Interstaff is well-known for supporting business clients and skilled migrants with specialist advice on global mobility decisions since 1988. Three decades forward, we continue to provide migration advice for some of Australia’s major resource projects and many of our clients have remained with us throughout our journey.
Our specialised knowledge and experience of the resource industry and needs for skilled professionals such as Mechanical Engineering Technicians and several other occupations, give Interstaff the edge to deliver to your needs both strategically and logistically. This is reflected in the quality of our migration insights and our proven capability to migrate skilled workers from overseas smoothly and efficiently – whether for rig/project or one-off needs. Our registered migration agents quickly grasp an understanding of your labour requirements and can contribute equally to discussions requiring specific knowledge of your industry’s labour market.
Get in touch with our migration agents to discuss the details of your Engineering Visa to Sydney or anywhere in Australia. You can also phone us on 02 7200 2567 (Sydney Office), 1800 449 858 (Free Call Within Australia) or +61 8 9221 3388 (International) for more information.