Expression of Interest Results

[Bronwyn&Co]

I always chuckle when I see/hear someone use the expression "hold thumbs"... it is a South Africanism that Australians simply do not understand.

Yep. You should now start saying 'fingers crossed'

[moerbei]

Hey guys,

I have a question on changes being made on the EOI.

We all know that Skillselect suggests making a amendments to your EOI if your circumstances has changed (for example gained extra work experience or better score on the IELTS test). However, this applies to when a person gets a higher score on the points test.

What happens when you amend your EOI and it doesn't lead to a higher score? For example: Let's say the EOI was initially submitted and the Visa Subclass selected was 189 State Nominated. At a later stage the EOI is amended to select both 189 and 190 (Skilled Independent) (From what I understand you can select both these options simultaneously on the EOI).

Does such an amendment change the Visa Status Date to the date of the amendment?

Hope my explanation makes sense

Also, does state sponsorship still expedite the processing time of the main visa application?

[HadEnoughofJuju]

Hi Moerbei

When I submitted the EOI for the first time I selected the 189, 190 SS, 186 and 187. Our agents then told us that there was no point in selecting the 186 and 187 so I logged back in and removed those 2 options and when I hit the submit button it changed the submission date, however the date on which the EOI was lodged stayed the same. As far as I understand it they look at the submission date and not the date that the EOI was lodged for the first time, unless you have made no changes to it then the 2 dates will be the same.

This should not really matter though as when your new IELTS results or extra work experience data affect you points score when you enter them the EOI submission date and time will be updated and the date at which the points increased will be the date used during the automated invitation run so try and update everything at once if possible.

As for the state sponsorship speeding the process up the only way I can see it doing that is that once you have a confirmed state sponsorship you send that state your EOI reference number and they contact DIAC and get them to give you an invitation so you don't have to wait in the queue for an automated invite, doesn't speed the processing of the actual visa up as far as I know.

Hey I hope this makes sense to you. I'm confused by this all myself.

Edited October 1, 2012 by HadEnoughofJuju

[moerbei]

Thanks HEoJ,

My agents submitted my EOI 9/08/2012 under subclass 190 (skilled state nominated) only. I have a score of 70 points (including 5 points for SS).

According to the 15 Sept invitation round reports the lowest score that got an invite was 65 with a VISA status date much later than mine. So I'm thinking I could've had an invite already if 190 was selected on the EOI.

And now I'm wondering what the effect would be if I had the agents amend the EOI to include 190. Would it push me down on the list due to the amendment date? The agents doesn't seem to know either.

But I think I should just wait it out. I expect to hear from WA govt about the sponsorship around the 11th of Oct (based on their current 30 working day turnaround). VISA application is 95% ready to be sent off anyway. So as soon as I get the invite I'll just complete the last bits and send it off.

[HadEnoughofJuju]

Hey if you are talking about ASA then yup they know very little about the EOI process. I think they may be using us as guinea pigs and that we know more than them. If I was you I would get them to include the 189 PR visa subclass in the EOI which by the sounds of it will give you 65 points. I don't see the harm in it and think you may just stand a chance of getting an invite in the next round. You are going to have to amend the EOI later on when you get the IELTS results back and that will change your submission date and time anyway possibly putting you further down in the queue so rather do it now and not later.

P.S. I don't think anyone really know which date they truly use anyway, could be both the date on which you submitted the EOI and the amended date for all we know.

Edited October 1, 2012 by HadEnoughofJuju

[moerbei]

Yup, I'm so disappointed in them. But trying to stay positive here as the decision to use an agent has been made and the money has been paid.

I've not redone the IELTS and am not sure I will. I scored 8 in all of the bands except one (scored 7.5), which of course brings my points down. I don't feel like spending another R2500 just to get a bad score in only one band again or getting the results just after I've received an invite.

Thanks for your inputs HEoJ! Appreciate it. Will keep you posted on what happens. For now I think I must just hang tight and see what happens with the SS. According to me, their shouldn't be any reason why they won't sponsor me.

How is your progress with the main VISA application?

[moerbei]

Thanks for your inputs HEoJ! Appreciate it. Will keep you posted on what happens. For now I think I must just hang tight and see what happens with the SS. According to me, their shouldn't be any reason why they won't sponsor me.

Maybe I should re-take the IELTS.....meant to say "there shouldn't be any reason....." LOL

[LvD]

Good luck to everybody for the invitation round today

[Jacques Voogt]

Moerbei,

We initially only had a 189, then later I decided to add the 190. Not sure if the date for the 189 will still be 1 July with this update or if we moved significantly down the line.

The different states has since released their sponsorship lists, but we are not on any of them. So now I do not want to remove the 190 again as I do not know if it will move my 189 to the back of the queue. We only have 60 points.

In your case I think you would have had the invite have you or your agents added the 189.

IMHO, I would not want to be tied down to a specific state for 2 years if I could have an open PR with no limitations.

So if I was you, I would have added the 189.

My estimates also show they should start selecting people with 60 points in October.

Then I am not sure when exactly the selection will take place. Was it at 00:00 this morning Canberra time (16:00 yesterday afternoon in RSA) or will it be at midnight tonight Canberra time (16:00 today). I think it was this morning already and those invited should have received their notifications, but clearly we did not receive any.

Also keep in mind today is a public holiday in most of Aus, including ACT (Canberra). Not sore if that will affect anything, but if it is like RSA, expect a 3 day delay at least.

They also have a notice on the site about a problem with adding documents. Could they perhaps have decided to delay the selection a bit so as not to compound the existing problem until it was resolved? I have not seen any new threads with anyone stating they are invited today. Nor is their any EOI activity report or October 1st report online to confirm we have missed this round.

Then they also now state that they will select a maximum of 900 on the 1st and on the 15th. Does that imply they may select less than that even though they may have valid EOI waiting?

[HadEnoughofJuju]

We initially only had a 189, then later I decided to add the 190. Not sure if the date for the 189 will still be 1 July with this update or if we moved significantly down the line.

The date that gets taken into account is the submission date of your EOI where the details changed so the date that you added the 189 will be the one taken into account. This is how I understand it from all the reading and research I have done.

My estimates also show they should start selecting people with 60 points in October.

I don't think you are far wrong here. After looking at the reports it seems they have "used up" all the eligible EOI's above 70

Then I am not sure when exactly the selection will take place. Was it at 00:00 this morning Canberra time (16:00 yesterday afternoon in RSA) or will it be at midnight tonight Canberra time (16:00 today). I think it was this morning already and those invited should have received their notifications, but clearly we did not receive any.

The invites would have gone out at 16:00 on 30 September 2012 (South African time) which would have been 0:00 1 October 2012 Canberra time. It also seems to be a staggered process so you still may be in the running. Good luck and we will cross our fingers for all that are still waiting.

Also keep in mind today is a public holiday in most of Aus, including ACT (Canberra). Not sore if that will affect anything, but if it is like RSA, expect a 3 day delay at least.

This does not affect anything. The invitations are automated, we got ours on a Saturday morning in Canberra.

They also have a notice on the site about a problem with adding documents. Could they perhaps have decided to delay the selection a bit so as not to compound the existing problem until it was resolved?

They would have posted a notice as well saying that the invitation round has been delayed but I also searched and haven't been able to find anything, maybe someone else here on the forum knows.

I have not seen any new threads with anyone stating they are invited today. Nor is their any EOI activity report or October 1st report online to confirm we have missed this round.

Hey remember not everyone is like us checking every hour or so (like I did ) and the activity report for October will only be released just before the next round of invites goes out. So far it's been the day before the next round starts.

Then they also now state that they will select a maximum of 900 on the 1st and on the 15th. Does that imply they may select less than that even though they may have valid EOI waiting?

I am guessing here but having read through all the reports from the previous rounds if they say that they are going to send out 500 invitations then they do. Here is an attached image of the summary for EOI activity for 2012.

Edited October 1, 2012 by HadEnoughofJuju

[Jacques Voogt]

Hi HEOJ

Thanks for your response, I see on pomsinoz people posting about invites down to 65 points so far.

There are 2 reports.

1. Showing invitations and lowest score and date of EOI submission. (This we have a report for the 15th Sept, no Oct report yet.)

2. EOI activity report showing the number of new EOI added and how many are on hand, also how many per points bracket. (Last report was for August, no Sept. report yet)

If they update the invitation report for 1st October then I know we are not invited yet and I can see what the points score and date movement for invitations was.

If they add the EOI activity report for September I can estimate more accurately when we would expect an invitation.

Time will tell.

I estimated our chances to be about 15 to 25% (estimated that they would select about 100 to 150 from the 60 scorers, for July there was a total of 600 or so EOI in this bracket.

I also estimated that 15th October would get about 600 selections from 60 scorers so if my predictions are correct, we should have an invite by then.

Chances are increasing as the scores are dropping. With the September EOI activity report and perhaps 1st October invite report, my estimates would just be sooo much more accurate.

We have re-booked IELTS for the 13th so as to get the result before 1 Nov. (When we booked, they were only doing one draw per month, 1st of Aug, and numbers were not in our favor yet, so we thought we needed to improve on our score.) Just not sure if it will be needed and if we will get that invite on the 15th.

Here's holding thumbs (Crossing fingers)

Btw, what does staggered mean?

Edit: As for checking every hour, I have a configurable plugin on my browser (1 sec to 1 hour to once per day) that notifies me when the skillselect page changes.

Edited October 1, 2012 by Jacques Voogt

[moerbei]

Thanks for all the input guys.

I wish skillselect would release a detailed flow chart of exactly how the system works and covering all scenarios such as amendments to EOI's etc. Would make things so much easier.

Or better yet (for those of us paying agents), I wish the agents would go and sit down with the DIAC, clarify all areas of confusion and prepare a flowchart. Surely by now, 3 months after implementation of this system, someone must have thought of doing this.

Maybe I should fly over there have such a meeting with some official, draft a flowchart and sell it!!

Apologies if such a detailed chart is available, but if so, please tell me where I can find it.

Hehe...enough complaining from me for today

[HadEnoughofJuju]

@Jacques

Staggered beteken dat die uitnodigings gaan nie alles op een slag uit nie dit gebeer or a seker tydperk. Hulle begin sê maar 0:00 en vat 24 uur om klaar te maak.

[Jacques Voogt]

Nice, so nou is dit 'n hele dag van spanning elke 2de week in plaas van 'n "check gou mail" net na 16:00 aksie.

Seker oor hulle nie ander opgewondenheid het nie, soos ernstige misdaad, nou skep hulle maar suspensie in ons immigrasieverhale.

[HadEnoughofJuju]

They are keeping it interesting for all concerned.

Edited October 2, 2012 by HadEnoughofJuju

[moerbei]

Hey guys,

Great news!! I received an e-mail early this morning from Skilled Migration Western Australia: "State Sponsorship Approval".

They've sponsored me

I've already signed the agreement and sent it back to them. They will now contact DIAC and have them issue me with an invitation for a Subclass 190 VISA. My VISA application documents has already been sent off to my agents in Perth, so things are looking good.

I started this thread in July and was hoping to receive an invite the 1st of August! I grew increasingly frustrated as time passed, but these things seem to happen when you least expect it. I went to bed last night, woke up this morning at 5 and there it was in my INBOX. What a gift!

Thanks to everyone for supporting, encouraging, advising etc. It is appreciated. Now, the rest of the process commences.

To everyone still waiting for a sponsorship and an invitation: Best of luck, you will get there. Oh, and give a shout if you have questions. The people on this forum are great and always willing to help!

C

[HadEnoughofJuju]

Hey that's great nerws, congratualtions. Let's hope that "our agents" are not going to sit on those documents for too long.

[moerbei]

Thanks HeoJ!!!

We'll just have to apply pressure on them. We only have 60 days to submit the main VISA application after receipt of the invite, so no more messing around.

I've paid them for service and expect to get it.

[Jacques Voogt]

OK,

With no Skillselect activity report for September and no invite report for 1st October I have no idea what will happen in 30 minutes.

Maar ek hou duim vas met altwee hande vir die mense met 60 punte!!!!

[Jacques Voogt]

Spoke too soon!!!

WE HAVE AN INVITE!!!!!!!!!

ON 60 POINTS!!!!!!!

And my poor wife wrote IELTS again yesterday for better points.

Sorry liefie.

[HadEnoughofJuju]

Spoke too soon!!!

WE HAVE AN INVITE!!!!!!!!!

ON 60 POINTS!!!!!!!

And my poor wife wrote IELTS again yesterday for better points.

Sorry liefie.

Hey Jaques

Congratulations. You owe your wife a dinner to make up. Now the fun starts. :ilikeit:

[wizz]

YAY so happy, we also just got our invite :)

Congrats Jacques and anyone else who got it. Now the real work starts . . .

[HadEnoughofJuju]

YAY so happy, we also just got our invite :)

Congrats Jacques and anyone else who got it. Now the real work starts . . .

Hey Steven

It's an awesome feeling, congratulations and good luck with the rest of the journey. :)

Edited October 14, 2012 by HadEnoughofJuju

[LvD]

Congrats Jaques and Steven!!!

We have also received our invite, we are going to open our bottle of French Champange that we have saved for a moment like this. The other one will be opened when we receive our Visa

[HadEnoughofJuju]

Hey LvD.

Happy happy, not to much drinking of the French champagne. Congratulations and good luck with the rest of the journey. :ilikeit:

Edited October 14, 2012 by HadEnoughofJuju