Visa 138 - assurance of support

[Tim & Abby]

Hi there

I need some advice concerning a family sponsorship and assurance of support (visa 138).

Tim’s uncle agreed to sponsor us, but we’ve hit a snag with the assurance side of things. In order to sign up as an assurer, you have to have an annual income of $41 000 and also be able to show on tax returns that you’ve met the annual income minimum for the last two years. Tim’s uncle is retired, so he doesn’t have this annual income to show – he’s living off his pensions and investments.

Has anyone else had a retired person act as their assurer? If so, how did you get around the annual income requirement?

Also, when we told our agent about the assurance of support problem, she didn’t seem at all worried. She said the uncle could still act as our sponsor and that we could find an assurer after he’d done the sponsorship interview. This makes it sound like it’s pretty easy to find an assurer! Are we missing something here? Are people lining up to sign assurance of support for SA migrants?

Any advice or experience from other forum members would be appreciated!

Abby (& Tim)

[Tim & Abby]

Hi again

I gather that not many people on the forum have tried this route, so here's what we've found out:

1) There is no way to get around the income vs retirement thing. If your family member doesn't have the required income per annum to declare (and hasn't declared it for the past two years too), then they can't act as an assurer.

2) Even if your family member doesn't have the income, they can still act as a sponsor. However, the migrants – that's us – still have to find an assurer.

3) Finding an assurer isn't easy.

Being an assurer is a legal undertaking to repay the Australian Government any social security payments that the people with the visa – again, that's us – may claim for the first two years that we're in Australia. Even if you have no intention of claiming these benefits and you're happy to put up the $5000 bond money that is held for two years in case you do use medicare or some other state-funded allowance, the undertaking your assurer signs to be an assurer is pretty scary!

4) A non-family member can act as your assurer. This could be a personal friend, a friend of the family member who is sponsoring you, or anyone who is willing to take on the responsibility. From what our agents have said, most migrants don't use social security in their first two years, so the assurer's bond is refunded and it isn't a financial hardship for the assurer at all. If you're applying as 138, General Skilled Australian Sponsored as we are, you're hoping that work won't be too hard to find!

Anyway, we'll update this post as we find out more.

Abby (& Tim)

[Rebecca]

Hi Tim & Abby,

Thanks for the info.

At the risk of sounding stupid can I ask you some questions?

I applied for a transfer at the company I am working at to our Australian Branch, hoping that they would sponsor me a work visa. They have responded that they are willing to offer me a position there, however they are not willing to sponsor me.

Now my husband has a cousin in Australia, if he had to sponsor us and is earning the required minimum salary, do we still have to put up the $5000?

I fall short of about 15 points to go over on a skilled visa (occupation not on the MODL)

Bye for now

Rebecca

[Tazz]

It depends on the centrelink assessment. But normally one still has to pay the $5000-00 bond.

The amount can vary if you are bringing for eg your mom across too. On the bright side when your 2 years are up, your money is refunded. So its not money lost.

Edited December 12, 2006 by Tazz

[kangaroo]

Hi everyone

Rebecca, yes, you'd still have to lodge the $5000 assurance of support bond while your husband's cousin acts as your sponsor.

Tim & Abby, thanks for the info! I think many people take enough (a relative term, I know) financial backup with them to Australia when emigrating, enabling them not to have to access the assurance of support bond capital.

It might be a possibility to find someone YOU CAN TRUST (when not a family member) to be your assurer. I think it's worth investigating. I suppose you then have to draw up some kind of contract which outlines that you (Tim & Abby) pay the bond amount to the chosen assurer; they, in turn, pay the bond over to Bank of Australia/Australian government. You'll have to specify in such contract that the assurer is by no means financially responsible for the assurees (i.e. you) - the assurer is then mainly a 'middle man' and will carry no financial risk.

Just to make it easier for everybody else to find the info relevant to sponsor and assurance of support (as these are two separate requirements, even though your sponsor can also be your assurer but doesn't have to be), especially with regard to the Skilled Australian sponsored visa (138), here are a few links that might prove useful:

Assurance of support FACT SHEET on Centrelink This fact sheet, among other things, indicates that the two-year assurance of support bond for couples is $5000; for a single person, the bond amount is $3500.

General info about Assurance of Support (on Centrelink)

Assurance of support bond charges (Look at page 9)

Skilled Australian sponsored (138) visa

Sponsor eligibility Thanks Tim & Abby for already clarifying what the required current annual income level ($41000) of a sponsor should be. I suppose this changes from year to year.

Please keep us updated - I'd love to know what the outcome is.

I hold thumbs that you find a trustworthy assurer as soon as possible!

Liza

Edited December 12, 2006 by kangaroo

[Tim & Abby]

Hi there

Thanks, Kangaroo, for all the links to info about sponsorship and assurance of support - very helpful!

To update everyone and give some more info that might help other forumites, a family friend very generously offered to act as assurer, if there wasn't a limit to the number of groups/applications to which you can offer assurance of support. It turns out that you can only be the assurer to two applications, even if you meet the income requirements for more people or applications (that is, you earn $41 000 or more, according to however many people you are acting as an assurer for).

Unfortunately, most of the people we know are emigrants themselves and so would understandably want to act as sponsors and assurers for family members who want to emigrate. Fingers crossed, when we get to Australia, I know we'll want to do the same.

We're going to see if there isn't anyone else we can appeal to to act as assurer, otherwise it's the dreaded ACS skills application asap in 2007 and a 136 General Skilled visa application.

Happy Christmas and a joyful New Year from Cape Town!

Abby (& Tim)