Migration system set for shakeup after scathing federal review

An overhaul of Australia’s skilled migration system will dramatically lift the minimum wage threshold for temporary visas to stem the uncapped flood of low-skilled migrants.

An overhaul of Australia’s skilled migration system will dramatically lift the minimum wage threshold for temporary visas to $70,000 to stem the uncapped flood of low-skilled migrants, as well as simplify the process for employers and better protect foreign workers from exploitation.

A new three-tiered assessment system will be brought in to reduce the complexity, slash red tape and improve Australia’s migration system, which was deemed “broken” in a scathing independent review commissioned by Labor and released on Thursday.

The central recommendation in the report is to create three different levels of regulation for migrants — a “light touch” approach for very skilled and highly paid workers, a mid-tier who work above the temporary skilled migration income threshold, and a lower-wage group in areas of skills shortages like the care sector.

In addition to raising the minimum wage threshold for temporary visas, businesses would be able to hire “high income” workers quickly without reference to a specific skill shortage, while international students will be shifted away from broad work visas toward more skilled graduate positions in a bid to make Australia a more attractive prospective workplace for global talent.

Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neill said the decision 10 years ago to freeze the minimum wage an employer sponsor must pay to any temporary skills shortage visa holder at $53,900 meant the threshold was now below the earnings of 90 per cent of Australia’s full-time workers.

“That means every year for the past decade a growing share of workers entering Australia on skilled visas are being funnelled into low wage jobs,” she said in a speech to the National Press Club in Canberra.

Ms O’Neill said Australia’s skilled program had subsequently “morphed into a guest worker program”.

“Our migration success story is rooted in permanency and citizenship,” she said.

“Giving people the chance to get established in their community, educate their kids, and become Australian.”

“We are leaving behind the unplanned, unstrategic, temporary migration program we are currently encumbered with thanks to the previous government.”

By the end of the year Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) short stream visa holders will be given a pathway to permanent residency within Australia’s existing capped permanent program.

Under the changes announced by the federal government, employers will be able to quickly hire temporary workers in the “high salary cohort” without having to reference the skills shortage list.

That list, which will be overhauled after the migration review found the current one was “outdated,” will instead apply to lower tier temporary skilled migrants.

This group will have more intensive monitoring as lower skilled migrant workers are more likely to suffer exploitation.

For the “mid-tier” group of skilled migrants applying for a position with a wage above $70,000, the federal government will scrap rules requiring employers to advertise for a local candidate for four-weeks before a visa could be sponsored.

Temporary workers will also be able to “job switch,” rather than be bound to the employer who originally sponsored their visa, which is among several measures designed to protect foreign workers from exploitation.

In order to ensure the original employer who sponsors the visa does not end up bearing the brunt of costs for a worker who leaves their business, fees such as the $7200 Skilling Australia Fund Levy will be paid monthly instead of at the start of an application.

The government will release its final migration strategy later this year, which will include ending the addition of new visa classes and streamlining existing visa types.

‘Broken’ Aussie migration system set for overhaul

Australia’s “broken” migration system will be overhauled from top to bottom after a scathing review confirms a litany of failures deters skilled workers, hurts the regions and prevents proper city planning.

Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil will use a speech at the National Press Club on Thursday to reveal Labor’s response to the wide-ranging migration review commissioned by the federal government last year.

An extract of the review gives a damning assessment of the current state of the system, describing the skilled occupation lists used to encourage workers in areas like medicine and engineering as “outdated” and without a “strong evidence base”.

“They do not reflect current or anticipated skilled labour needs,” the report said.

“There is growing international competition for highly skilled migrants and Australia risks falling behind without more innovative and attractive visa products and service delivery.”

Australia’s “broken” migration system will be overhauled from top to bottom after a scathing review.

Growing labour shortages in lower paid occupations, particularly in the care sector, have also showed Australia lacked an “explicit” migration policy focused on these workers.

“Australia … has taken a piecemeal approach that is not meeting our needs or protecting vulnerable migrant workers,” the report said.

The report noted successive governments had “closely managed” the permanent visa program – with 195,000 people allowed into Australia this year, but the demand driven temporary migrant cohort has doubled in size since 2007 to now stand at 1.8 million people.

This lack of “long-term and holistic” migration planning has prevented Australia from planning housing, schools, hospitals and the provision of services.

It also found regional visa programs “have not been effective” in encouraging migrants to settle outside cities, and are therefore not currently working as intended to address declining population growth and fill labour shortages.

Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil will announce Labor’s plan to fix the system’s issues.

The report said Australia was not focused enough on capturing the “best and brightest” international students, and was leaving families waiting on parent reunion visas that would “never come’.

The system is also failing temporary migrant workers, with “widespread evidence” they are being exploited and current visa rules explicitly “heighten” the risk for this vulnerable cohort.

“The salary threshold for employer sponsored visas is too low and neither the migration system nor other supporting architecture have been effective in protecting migrant workers from underpayment,” the report said.

Australia is missing out on the “best and brightest” international students, who struggle to transition into the labour market after studying and are “often employed below their skill level”.

“There is value for migrants and Australia in having certainty of permanent residence as early as possible,” the report said.

“Australia is letting too many those with the greatest potential for success.”

Compiled by Dr Martin Parkinson, Dr Joanna Howe and John Azarias, the migration review is expected to contain about 40 recommendations.