Emigrating to Australia: Explore Destinations & Visa Options
See why Americans are relocating to Australia and learn about the various visa temporary and permanent visa options available to you
There's so much chatter about emigrating right now, and Australia has been one of those places on everyone's bucket list, so I had my Aussie friend investigate how to emigrate to Australia if you're over the magical working visa age.
Enjoy this guest post by Ben Klatt, the CEO of Skills Recognition International.
Could Australia be your perfect home away from home?
For many North Americans, Australia can feel like a second home due to a variety of factors that foster a sense of familiarity, comfort, and connection. Our shared language, coupled with a love of the outdoors and all things BBQ can make a move to Australia relatively painless.
And let’s not forget that our shared obsession with… I mean, passion for… sports.
There’s so much to love about Australia including our public health system, world-class beaches, quality of life, multiculturalism, and overall safety. So, what are you waiting for, mates? Pack your bags and get ready for the sea change of a lifetime in the land Down Under! But first, we need to help you find the right visa.
Do you still qualify for a Work and Holiday Visa?
Before we completely rule out the Australian Work and Holiday visa (subclass 462), let’s make sure you don’t meet the criteria. With this visa, you can undertake short-term work in Australia to help pay for your holiday and/or study for up to 4 months.
The Work and Holiday visa allows you to stay in Australia for 12 months and you can travel to and from Australia as many times as you want.
Moreover, if you do 3 months of specified subclass 462 work, you can become eligible for a second and then third Work and Holiday visa, each offering an additional 12 months. This approach can extend your working holiday in Australia up to 3 years in length.
To apply for this visa, you must:
have a passport from an eligible country
be aged 18 to 30 years old (inclusive) when you apply. If you apply for the visa while you are 30, but turn 31 before the Department of Home Affairs has made a decision, you may still be granted the visa if you meet all other requirements
apply from outside Australia
not be accompanied by dependent children or family members
not have previously entered Australia on a subclass 462 or 417 visa.
In addition to the above, you must be able to prove that you have functional English, that you have enough money to support yourself while you are in Australia (around AU$5,000 is acceptable plus the fare to your return country), and that you can pass the good character requirement. Find out more about character requirements here.
Australia enjoys some of the best health standards in the world.
To maintain these standards, most visa applicants must meet minimum health standards before they will be granted a visa. To meet the health requirement, you must be free from any disease or condition that is:
a significant healthcare and community service cost to the Australian community
likely to limit the access of Australian citizens and permanent residents to healthcare and community services that are in short supply by placing demand on those services. This is called prejudicing access.
You might need to have health examinations to prove you meet the health requirements. If this is needed, a Medical Officer of the Commonwealth (MOC) will assess the results of your examinations. Depending on the visa you apply for, your family members might also have to meet the health requirements even if they are not migrating to Australia.
Depending on your country of origin, you will need to show evidence of higher education. This often means you must have completed senior secondary education and/or have a tertiary qualification from a university, college or training centre or have completed 2 years of undergraduate university study. Find out more here.
The Department will ask you to provide a letter of support from your government and request that you pay any outstanding debts owed to the Australian Government. Your previous immigration history will be considered when the Department of Home Affairs reviews your application, which means you might not be eligible for this visa if you have had a visa cancelled or refused.
You will also be required to sign the Australian Values Statement that confirms you will respect the Australian way of life and obey Australian laws when you apply.
Cost: AU$635.00
Processing time: 50% of recent applications were processed in 21 days and 90% processed in 51 days.
What other Australian visas are available?
If you don’t meet the Work and Holiday Visa requirements but you’re still looking to take the big leap and move to Australia, there are three common ways of becoming a permanent resident:
a family-stream permanent visa
a work-stream permanent visa
business or investor-stream permanent visa
Here we will unpack the most popular visas in each of these categories and explain the requirements, costs, and timelines to apply.
Family-stream Permanent Residence Visas
Family-stream permanent residence visas are for partners, children, parents or dependent relatives of an Australian citizen, permanent resident of Australia or Eligible New Zealand citizen. Children being adopted or who are in the process of being adopted outside of Australia and carers who need to move to Australia to provide long-term care for an approved relative are included in these visas.
Prospective Marriage visa (subclass 300): This visa lets you come to Australia to marry your prospective spouse and then apply for a Partner visa. You can stay for 9 to 15 months from the date your visa is granted. The cost is from AU$8,850 and 50% of applications are processed in 14 months and 90% are processed in 43 months.
Partner visa (subclasses 309 and 100): This visa allows the partner or spouse of an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen to live in Australia. You apply for the temporary and permanent partner visas together. The Partner provisional visa allows you to stay temporarily, while your permanent Partner (Migrant) visa (subclass 100) application is processed. The cost for this visa is approximately AU$8,850. For Partner provisional visas (subclass 309), 75% of applications are completed in 22 Months. For the Partner (Migrant) visa (subclass 100), 75% of applications are completed in 20 months.
Work-stream Permanent Residence Visas
These visas are for skilled workers who have an Australian employer sponsoring them to work in Australia or have skills that Australia values.
Temporary Skill Shortage visa (Subclass 482): This temporary visa lets an employer sponsor a suitably skilled worker to fill a position they can’t find a suitably skilled Australian to fill. You can stay for up to 2 years or up to 4 years if an International Trade Obligation (ITO) applies. This visa costs AU$1,455 to apply and 50% of applications are processed in 30 days. See the skilled occupation list here.
Employer Nomination Scheme visa (Subclass 186): This visa lets skilled workers who are nominated by an Australian employer live and work in Australia permanently. It costs AU$4,045 to apply for this visa. The direct entry scheme requires your occupation to be on the list of eligible skilled occupations and you must have competent English with at least 3 years relevant work experience. 50% of applications are processed in 89 days and 90% are processed in 10 months.
Skilled Independent visa (Subclass 189): This visa lets invited workers with needed skills to live and work permanently anywhere in Australia. You do not need a sponsor, but you must be invited to apply and be under 45 years of age. The cost to apply is AU$4,640 and 50% of applications are processed in 67 days.
There are many other skilled migration visas available including the Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190) and the Skilled Regional visa (subclass 887). If you are seeking to apply for a skilled worker visa, you must satisfy the criteria specified in a points test.
This includes providing your age, stating your English language skills, providing details of your overseas and Australian-based skilled employment experience, and your education level of attainment. Each of your answers will be ranked with points that are added up to give you an overall applicant score. If travelling with a spouse or de facto partner, they must also be an applicant for the visa and meet age, English and skill criteria.
Business or Investor-stream Permanent Visa
Visas for entrepreneurs, investors, and business owners to continue activity in Australia, and to establish a new business, or develop an existing business in Australia.
Business Talent (Permanent) visa (subclass 132): This permanent visa allows you to establish a new business or develop an existing business in Australia. You must be nominated by a state or territory government agency and invited to apply. You must have funding or assets greater than $1 million AUD. The cost to apply for this visa is AU$7,855 and application processing times can take up to 51 months.
Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) visa (subclass 188): This temporary visa allows you to own and manage a business in Australia, conduct business and investment activity in Australia or undertake an entrepreneurial activity. You must be nominated by an eligible government organisation prior to applying. To continue your business activity, you can apply for a permanent business visa.
You can explore the permanent work visa options here.
Investor visa (subclass 891): This visa is for people who undertake business and investment activities in Australia. It allows you to stay in Australia permanently. To qualify, you must have an Investor (Provisional) visa, have held a designated investment of $1.5 million AUD for 4 years and have lived in Australia for 2 of the past 4 years. The cost to apply is AU$2,810.
Retirement visa pathway
The Australian Government has recently created a pathway to permanent residency for eligible retirees. This pathway provides options to long-term residents who have contributed to and are well-established in the community. The government has built the pathway by setting aside a portion of places from the permanent migration scheme for parents. Learn more about the Retirement visa pathway.
Global Talent Visa (subclass 858)
Calling all overachievers! This visa is for people with an internationally recognised record of exceptional and outstanding achievement. Find out more here.
Need help increasing your education level?
If you’d like to increase your education level to meet the expectations of the Department of Home Affairs, you can go to a Registered Training Organisation (RTO) for help. RTOs are the only organisations in the Australian Vocational Education and Training (VET) system authorised to deliver and assess nationally recognised training, and issue nationally recognised qualifications and statements of attainment.
As a skilled worker, you may be able to seek Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL). This is a process that assesses your competency - acquired through formal and informal learning - to determine if you meet the requirements for a unit of study.
How long does it take to get an Australian visa?
Current wait times for Australian visas vary by visa type. The best way to understand how long your visa may take to be processed is by exploring the visa processing times guide here. Visa applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis. Processing times can vary for a range of reasons, including:
whether you have submitted an application with all necessary supporting documents. Use the checklists available to make sure you attach all required documents.
whether you have lodged an online or paper application. Applying online helps streamline processing.
how quickly you respond to requests for more information.
how long it takes the Department of Home Affairs to perform the required checks.
how long it takes to receive information from external agencies, particularly relating to health, character, and national security requirements.
how many places are available in the migration program for permanent visa applications.
You’ve found the right visa, now where to live in Australia?!
Now that you’ve done the hard work, let’s have a little fun! I’ve pulled together a list of locations to help you find your dream Australian destination. Select your favourite American location from the list, then consider our relocation recommendation below. Let us know what you think in the comments.
Seattle: Melbourne
New England: Tasmania
Florida: Queensland
Texas: Western Australia
New York: Look, Sydney's the closest we've got.
The Mid West: South Australia
Alaska: Northern Territory only HOT AF, not COLD AF.
Las Vegas: Gold Coast
Hawaii: Cairns
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