SYDNEY, April 27 (Reuters) - Australia proposed on
Thursday overhauling its immigration system to speed up getting
highly skilled workers into the country and smoothening the path
to permanent residency.
The federal Labor government said the current system used to
select skilled migrants - the points test - will be modified to
identify people with the correct skill sets the Australian
economy needs going forward.
"Our migration system ... is broken. It is failing our
businesses, it is failing migrants themselves. And most
importantly, it is failing Australians. That cannot continue,"
Home Affairs Minister Clare O'Neil said in a speech at the
National Press Club.
Australia has been competing with comparable countries, like
Canada and Germany, to lure more skilled migrants, with the
surge in demand exacerbated by an ageing population.
The government said the visa process for high-skilled
professionals will be made quicker and easier, while steps would
be taken to retain international students.
Temporary skilled visa holders, who had been denied even the
opportunity to apply for permanent residency, will be able to do
that by the end of this year, O'Neil said. But it will not add
to Australia's annual intake of permanent migrants, she said.
In September, Australia raised its intake of permanent
migrants to 195,000 this financial year, up by 35,000, to help
businesses battling widespread staff shortages and pledged more
staff and funds to speed up visa processing.
From July 1, the government said it would raise the migrant
wage threshold of temporary skilled workers to A$70,000
($46,250) from A$53,900, stuck at the same level since 2013.
Around 90% of all full-time jobs in Australia are now paid
more than the current threshold, leading to the exploitation of
migrant workers, the government said.
($1 = 1.5135 Australian dollars)
(Reporting by Renju Jose in Sydney; Editing by Raju
Gopalakrishnan)
Messaging: @renjujose))
