The Department of Home Affairs recently launched the Global Talent Independent (‘GTI’) program which will provide a fast-tracked pathway to permanent residence in Australia for highly skilled individuals.
This is a major new initiative in Australia’s immigration strategy to attract the most talented individuals within the world’s highest growth industries to Australia. This scheme is also intended to benefit Australians through creating an environment that fosters knowledge sharing and transfer of skills and new job opportunities.
Applicants will be considered eligible to apply for permanent residency under the Global Talent Independent program if they meet two key criteria:
- They will earn at least the Fair Work High Income Threshold (currently $148,700); and
- They are highly skilled in one of the seven key industry sectors:
- Agricultural Technology
- Space and Advanced Manufacturing
- FinTech
- Energy and Mining Technology
- Medical Technology
- Cyber Security
- Quantum Information, Advanced Digital, Data Science and ICT
Global Talent Officers are already located in Berlin, Washington DC, Singapore, Shanghai, Santiago, and Dubai to seek appropriate applicants who may be eligible to apply under this scheme.
Applicants can access the program through a referral from a Global Talent Officer or an organisation or an individual with a national reputation in the same field as the candidate. If successful, the Department may invite the applicant to apply for a Distinguished Talent Visa (Subclass 124 for offshore applicants and Subclass 858 for onshore applicants).
Immigration Minister David Coleman has stated that “applicants will have a dedicated Home Affairs contact to guide them through the process, and applications will receive the highest priority processing, with complete applications processed in weeks, not months”.
The annual permanent migration cap has reduced this year from 190,000 to 160,000. With an increased emphasis on highly skilled immigration, the Global Talent Independent program has been allocated up to 5,000 places.
If you are interested in finding out whether you are eligible for the Global Talent Independent program, please contact us on info@themigrationagency.com.au to discuss this opportunity further.
