Rover Posted November 25, 2011 Report Share Posted November 25, 2011 http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/general-skilled-migration/gsm-priority5-processing.htmCommencement of processing of Priority Group 5 applicationsBased on the number of applications on hand and anticipated application rates for Priority Groups 1 and 3, the department expects to commence allocating some Priority Group 5 applications this program year.There are currently approximately 27 347 applications lodged from in Australia and 15 284 applications lodged from outside Australia Priority Group 5 cases awaiting allocation.http://www.embraceaustralia.com/australian-visa-update-priority-5-allocation-very-close-9978.htm“Onshore Priority 5 applications lodged in 2005 will be the first to be allocated and offshore applications will not be allocated until all 27,347 onshore applications have a Case Officer”.“In addition the number of Priority Group 5 applications processed this program year will continue to depend on the number of higher priority applications received, and other factors such as changes to DIAC’s processing priorities, or changes to the migration program itself.”DIAC says it has approximately 27,347 Priority 5 applications lodged within Australia and 15,284 Priority 5 applications lodged offshore, awaiting allocation.Processing of Priority Group 5 applications lodged in Australia will begin with the approximately 756 remaining applications in the visa subclasses in effect prior to September 2007.Processing of Priority Group 5 applications lodged outside Australia will begin with applications in visa subclasses 495 and 496, which were lodged prior to 1 September 2007, the oldest of which was lodged on 10 July 2006. There are approximately 594 cases in this group.Looking at the above, it seems a bit contradictory, but what it essentially means is that there is movement on its way.However, Offshore applicants are not likely to see movement if the second link is correct. For all Onshore applicants to be processed at 1000 per week, they'd need about six months, and this is assuming that no higher priority applications are received. Not good news...Anybody over there have a job for me? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alida Posted November 25, 2011 Report Share Posted November 25, 2011 The only possibilities for us offshore Category 5'ers, is:1) a change in skill requests when the next government is elected2) the court case in process regarding category 5 applications, stating the fact that all category 5 applicants have paid the same amount of money, but has no guarantee that their application would be processed ever.3) changing your application to a State Sponsored, or the like4) getting a job with sponsorship (457)5) having about R 5 million available to go over on a investor's visa. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rover Posted November 25, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2011 1) a change in skill requests when the next government is elected-Yip, and the Skills List seems to be like clothing in the wash when you're on a diet. Allways shrinking.2) the court case in process regarding category 5 applications, stating the fact that all category 5 applicants have paid the same amount of money, but has no guarantee that their application would be processed ever.-Which can drag on for a while on its own..?3) changing your application to a State Sponsored, or the like-We applied under my wife's name. ACS reckons she's a 'Systems Administrator', while she's actually an 'ICT Project Manager'.She's not been employed as anything that resembles a 'System Administrator' since 2009, or even before that, but the 'allknowing' ACS decided. It also means State Sponsorship is out of the question as they all want to see your CV.4) getting a job with sponsorship (457)-We're both in IT, neither doing work or with skills that are 'special' enough. If you want to learn how to handle rejection, try and find a job from SA in IT in our chosen fields.5) having about R 5 million available to go over on a investor's visa.-Bwaaahahahahaa... no...We applied in November 2008. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celeste Posted November 25, 2011 Report Share Posted November 25, 2011 1) a change in skill requests when the next government is elected-Yip, and the Skills List seems to be like clothing in the wash when you're on a diet. Allways shrinking.2) the court case in process regarding category 5 applications, stating the fact that all category 5 applicants have paid the same amount of money, but has no guarantee that their application would be processed ever.-Which can drag on for a while on its own..?3) changing your application to a State Sponsored, or the like-We applied under my wife's name. ACS reckons she's a 'Systems Administrator', while she's actually an 'ICT Project Manager'.She's not been employed as anything that resembles a 'System Administrator' since 2009, or even before that, but the 'allknowing' ACS decided. It also means State Sponsorship is out of the question as they all want to see your CV.4) getting a job with sponsorship (457)-We're both in IT, neither doing work or with skills that are 'special' enough. If you want to learn how to handle rejection, try and find a job from SA in IT in our chosen fields.5) having about R 5 million available to go over on a investor's visa.-Bwaaahahahahaa... no...We applied in November 2008. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celeste Posted November 25, 2011 Report Share Posted November 25, 2011 Hi RoverYou are not alone we are also in Group 5 and waiting patiently, checking the updates every two weeks. Where did you find this interesting bit of information on processing? Thanks so much for sharing, it's the first positive sign in many, many months.We lodged in May 2010 but it was our second application as we first applied in August 2007 but could not sell our house quick enough to raise money for bonus points needed under the old rules. Please keep sharing any news : ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fourie Stephan Posted November 26, 2011 Report Share Posted November 26, 2011 (edited) 4) getting a job with sponsorship (457)-We're both in IT, neither doing work or with skills that are 'special' enough. If you want to learn how to handle rejection, try and find a job from SA in IT in our chosen fields.I was also in the same boat but just kept on applying for jobs. I thought they would have all the IT skills they need over here ( They don't )One day a company mailed me back and here we are todayAnd it didn't cost us anything. They sponsored us with a 457 and then a few months later with PRJust never give up. Keep on applying ... Good luck Edited November 26, 2011 by Fourie Stephan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alida Posted November 26, 2011 Report Share Posted November 26, 2011 Aaaaah, Rover, we're in IT too. Celeste, we lodged in May 2010 too.This constant feeling of being temporary sometimes rocks my emotions !Two years ago we 'might' have heard round about December. It was postponed for a year.This year, we again 'might' have heard something round about coming December. It was suspended once again.We're kind of getting used to it being in constant suspension, kind of not getting used.We're not ready for a 457-situation, too much strings that cannot just be cut to go, yet we do not currently have a future date to fix any planning to.Sometimes faith calls for more than a happy feeling ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rover Posted November 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 26, 2011 We would start packing today if we could. Yes, there would be some serious challenges, but nothing we cannot overcome.Fourie, I'm currently employed as a Technical Business Analyst, and therein lies part of the problem. I'm too much a Jack of all trades, but master of none. I recently completed a certification in Business Analysis (IIBA approved) as it was a logical next step for me as I was doing the work in any case. Hopefully it sort of brings everything together into a bit more of a 'marketable package' too. It has also given me a fresh perspective on my career and I really enjoy what I do, but that does not mean its any easier to find employment that side.We're currently investigating the viability of lodging a second application under my name, but are concerned about the ACS. My best fit under their classifications are Analyst Developer (C#), which I am not anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Short&Tall Posted November 27, 2011 Report Share Posted November 27, 2011 (edited) http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/general-skilled-migration/gsm-priority5-processing.htmhttp://www.embraceaustralia.com/australian-visa-update-priority-5-allocation-very-close-9978.htmLooking at the above, it seems a bit contradictory, but what it essentially means is that there is movement on its way.However, Offshore applicants are not likely to see movement if the second link is correct. For all Onshore applicants to be processed at 1000 per week, they'd need about six months, and this is assuming that no higher priority applications are received. Not good news...Anybody over there have a job for me? Just seen the above on another site and was coming in to post the details.One of the agents on another site mentioned they thought that DIAC might only manage about 5000 applications - I suppose the migration number quotas are still being adhered to and there will be a limit to the number of visas they will issue in the year.I really hope that they can process as many of the Cat 5 folks asap - good luck guys. Edited November 27, 2011 by Short&Tall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rover Posted November 27, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 27, 2011 Yip, the current program targets remain in place, with Priority 5 being the 'stop gap' to make up the numbers, only if there is space left. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AV&RM Posted November 29, 2011 Report Share Posted November 29, 2011 Hi! I'm so confused! Can not figure out which priority group we are?Applied 29 Oct 2009 - Family Sponsored 176Both my partner and I were on the SOL & ENSOL list at the time of our application. A. Hotel/Motel ManagerB. Office Manager We are not on the new SOL Schedule 1 - 1st July 2011. Do all previous SOL lists not count since 1st of July 2011?Are we in Priority group 4 or 5? Anyone know?AV Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Short&Tall Posted November 29, 2011 Report Share Posted November 29, 2011 Unfortunately when DIAC changes the priorities everyone gets moved into the new priority order. We were all over before we got our visa from priority 2 to 5 to 4 until we went back up again.If you are not on the current priority schedule I would suspect you are priority 5? Hopefully someone with better knowledge will know.Can you get state sponsorship (you may be able to switch still re application prior to 2010) or switch to an alternative occupation that might get you up higher.It sounds like when they do start looking at priority 5 there are still applications from 2007 to get through before they reach the later years, if you have other options it might be well worth looking into. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AV&RM Posted November 30, 2011 Report Share Posted November 30, 2011 Thanks S&T,Think we'll just sit it out. AV Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rover Posted December 12, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 12, 2011 The first Priority 5 Applications are being allocated: http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/general-skilled-migration/estimated-allocation-times.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Short&Tall Posted December 13, 2011 Report Share Posted December 13, 2011 (edited) Looks like the Cat 5 people they are currently processing are NOT the 176 / 175 but some other visa types. They are also currently only looking at applications older than Sept 2007 and there are over 1000 of them. There are over 42,000 outstanding Cat 5 applications. One of the agents was hoping that they may get through the rest of the 2007 and 2008 applicants by June 2012 (but he was talking about student visa within this group). Edited December 14, 2011 by Short&Tall Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celeste Posted December 27, 2011 Report Share Posted December 27, 2011 Wow, just checked the department's website. There is lots of movement, looks like the backlogs are seriously being cleared with most visa types being allocated to COs within four weeks of lodgment. That's good news for us category fivers. Off shore still not being allocated yet, but it's just a matter of time the question is how much time. Our agents told us when we lodged and the priority processing came into place that we would have to waiting until 2012, and it seems their estimate has been quite good. Holding thumbs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TQO Posted December 27, 2011 Report Share Posted December 27, 2011 WHAT does this mean then for us that are only in the application phase now?I was told anything from 9 - 18 months from date of "handing in application"?!? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heidim Posted December 28, 2011 Report Share Posted December 28, 2011 (edited) WHAT does this mean then for us that are only in the application phase now?I was told anything from 9 - 18 months from date of "handing in application"?!?This means that if you're applying for any type of GSM visa and your occupation is taken off the SOL1 list when they revise it every year July, and you do not have a visa grant by that time yet, then you move to the back of the cue and you may wait as long as 3-5 years, or even worse, never get processed!!! That's why I'm not selling my house until I have the visa in my hand. However, DIAC seems to be catching up, and based on the processing times for the past year, it will probably take 6-8 months for a visa to come through. Edited to add: if your occupation is NOT removed off the list, then you still have your place in the cue... Edited December 28, 2011 by heidim 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heidim Posted December 28, 2011 Report Share Posted December 28, 2011 Tara, let me just clarify... There are 5 priority groups for processing and GSM is either 4 or 5, so those visas are being processed last. If your occupation is currently on the SOL then you fall into category 4 which means processing will take around the time you envisage. But if your occupation is taken off the list, then you are bumped to category 5 and other applications in category 4 get preference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alida Posted December 28, 2011 Report Share Posted December 28, 2011 @ Celeste: We are in the same boat as you, Category 5 offshore. I've kind of given up hunting info for my own nerves' sakes, hehe. I just can't stand it to daily think of it, so we've started LIVING here and now again. Will handle things as they come up. It's a strange feeling, sticking roots back into familiar soil, re-engaging in local life after started to disengage mentally and emotionally. I guess this first bout of immigration excitement was a practice-run to prepare us for the real thing sometime in the future.It's actually nice to still be around, but not feel depressed about what's happening around us, as if we are only observers of things, not part of it all. Even if we never go, I would not have had it any other way. This whole process up till now, was good for us mentally and spiritually. God knew what we needed to grow !So we wait ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heidim Posted December 29, 2011 Report Share Posted December 29, 2011 Alida & Celeste, I hope you guys get good news soon! Your perserverance need to be rewarded! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celeste Posted December 29, 2011 Report Share Posted December 29, 2011 Ah, thanks Heidi....sure hope we get some news in the next year or two. Lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwerty Posted December 30, 2011 Report Share Posted December 30, 2011 I'm tired of waiting (3 1/2 years)...think I should learn to speak norwegian and move to Norway Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rover Posted December 30, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 30, 2011 I'm with you. Waiting almost the same length of time now. Applied in November 2008.Hopefully things will get moving a bit now, but we're still at the mercy of DIAC (and politics).Would love to go over yesterday, please, and I'll take anywhere between Hobart to Darwin or Sydney to Perth (or anywhere in between). :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SML Posted December 30, 2011 Report Share Posted December 30, 2011 I really hope the wait is over soon!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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