A new Priority Migration Skilled Occupation List (PMSOL) has been released today which will provide for priority processing of Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) visa applications for certain critical workers in the health care, construction and IT sectors.
A new legislative instrument has also been issued which adds the requirement to advertise on the Government’s Jobactive website in addition to existing Labour Market Testing (LMT) requirements for the TSS visa (as well as the Subclass 494 Employer Sponsored Regional visa).
Priority Migration Skilled Occupation List
On 2 September 2020, the Acting Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs (Alan Tudge) announced a new PMSOL consisting of 17 occupations.
Occupations on the PMSOL are expected to:
- receive priority processing for new employer-sponsored visa applications; and
- be exempt from current travel restrictions to Australia (for applicants outside Australia).
This temporary list of occupations can be found here (consisting of occupations in health care, construction, and IT sectors), the full list of which are:
- Chief Executive or Managing Director (111111)
- Construction Project Manager (133111)
- Mechanical Engineer (233512)
- General Practitioner (253111)
- Resident Medical Officer (253112)
- Psychiatrist (253411)
- Medical Practitioner nec (253999)
- Midwife (254111)
- Registered Nurse (Aged Care) (254412)
- Registered Nurse (Critical Care and Emergency) (254415)
- Registered Nurse (Medical) (254418)
- Registered Nurse (Mental Health) (254422)
- Registered Nurse (Perioperative) (254423)
- Registered Nurses nec (254499)
- Developer Programmer (261312)
- Software Engineer (261313)
- Maintenance Planner (312911)
This list may be updated in line with Australian labour market conditions, and applies to:
- temporary employer sponsored visas such as the TSS Subclass 482 visa and the Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional Subclass 494 visa; and
- permanent employer sponsored visas such as the Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS) Subclass 186 visa, and Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS) Subclass 187 visa.
Please note that the exemptions are not guaranteed and still require an application before approval by the Australian Border Force. As it stands, such travellers will also be required to comply with mandatory 14-day quarantine requirements, including the requirements to pay for quarantine costs in certain Australian States/Territories.
Labour Market Testing
In addition to the announcement regarding the PMSOL, the Department have introduced a new legislative instrument which adds an additional requirement to existing LMT requirements for the TSS visa (as well as the Subclass 494 Employer Sponsored Regional visa).
Specifically, the instrument includes an additional requirement for all nominated positions (lodged after 30 September 2020) to also be advertised on the Government’s Jobactive website. Jobactive is a free online jobs website. The requirements are set out below:
TSS Nominations
ENS and RSMS Nomination
The full requirements for Labour Market Testing can be found here (which has been updated to include this addition).
Next Steps
If you are an employer seeking more clarification about the PMSOL or the new LMT requirements, we’d love to put your mind at ease. Contact us by email at [email protected] or phone +61 3 9016 0484 to obtain further guidance.
