You are very confused about the rules.

The company can sponsor you for ENS if:

- you have a job on the ENS-SOL; and
- you are aged under 45 (this can be waived); and
- you meet ONE of the following three criteria:

a. a skill assessment in the job plus 3 years experience, OR
b. 2 years working in Australia (including one year for the employer) on a 457 or equivalent eligible visa; OR
c. a salary of A$165k or more

The employer has to meet a few requirements too, including training for Australians. There is a general minimum salary requirement but in most cases it's around A$40k.

RSMS is an alternative if you are in an eligible area and don't qualify for ENS.

With respect, your future is too important to rely on hearsay like you've mentioned. Download and read booklet 5 to see the rules for yourself.

I agree with everything Bix said except I think there's a mix up between $600 per year and $600 per month.

In addition if you don't use their offer to sponsor you may have to find that sum yourself. Don't know how much it is over here.

If you can afford the drop in finances and want to stay I'd put in the application straight away. I'm not sure how much you'd actually lose because you could join the property market instead of renting, would qualify for benefits such as childcare (which can be a couple of hundred a month depending on your salary), may be able to claim benefits for your wife and, most importantly, would both feel more secure.

Yes, thanks for the info here...you're right, I was confused. My HR dept know nothing, they tell me, of the requirements so I wasn't sure.

But I've only been in this job, in Australia, for 4 mths and I don't meet any of the 3 criteria, so the upshot's the same I guess.

We went from 457 to PR and gave up LAFHA. This has not been as painful as it could have been because:

1. Recent tax cuts
2. I received a pay rise
3. Other half negotiated a pay rise
4. We factored in the benefits of getting the first home buyers grant ($7k approx), better home loan deals (although with the amount of problems we had just getting a credit card on a temp visa, who knows if we would have got a mortgage), cheaper private health insurance (which we didn't have before but will get now it is so much cheaper, and this will elimate about $800 a year in the medicare surcharge), baby bonus etc

In the short term, the loss of LAFHA should for us be cancelled out by the other factors. Long term - well, I don't think LAFHA is enough of a perk to make me want to live temporarily somewhere for more than a couple of years

Hiya

If you have been working for the same employer for more than a year you don't have to worry about the $165k per annum. Just one of the below is required:

have worked full-time in Australia in the occupation for which they have been nominated for the last two years (and have spent at least the last year working for the employer who is nominating them)

have been nominated to fill a highly paid senior executive position with a salary of more than $165,000 per annum (excluding superannuation or allowances)

have had their skills assessed as suitable by the relevant skills assessing authority and, unless exceptional circumstances apply, have at least three years experience in the occupation. A list of assessing bodies can be found in the Employer Nomination Scheme Occupation List (ENSOL).


I know i will go PR as soon as I can after arriving on 457 but will make sure my OH is settled and likes it though, everyones circumstances are different I guess.

Cheers

Jo

Hi Jo.

I am not quite sure by your wording if you are interpreting this correctly so just to clarify this point.......

The requirement is that you must have worked in the occupation in Australia for the past 2 years OF WHICH the last 1 year must have been for the employer nominating you. ie it is a total of 2 years.

(Sorry if that is what you meant)

Sorry me dear, wasn't explaining myself well at all, was trying to say that there was a way around the $165k if you have been there two years and presumably with the same employer for at least one of those years.

Rushed as I got up in the morning, I never make much sense on a Bank Holiday morning

Butting in Jossy but just seen you're in Bedford - how is the old place? We left there 6 months ago!

Ooh its not changed hehe, we live in Sandy to the east of Bedford on A1 and its much quieter thanBedford itself. My other half is from this area but even he is up for a change

Don't think much ever changes, just as many people escaping from the asylum prison as always

Where have you headed out to? We can't wait

Jossy

We're in Sydney - DH got offered a job out of the blue in Dec and we were here by mid-Feb :scared: We're on a 457 which is proving to be a bit rubbish really... we'll probably change visa once we've decided what we're doing long-term.

Good luck

Great, that was quick and all very sudden I suspect if you weren't planning it. We are heading out on a 457 first just to get us in to save argument at this stage, then will look at options once I know OH is settled. He has never been so its all new and odd for him.

He really is :scared: to say the least. Doesn't have a clue what to expect. We are heading to Perth (touch wood with final job offer this week or early next). I can't wait, I need to know to start doing things here but don't want to start in case it doesn't happen.

When you went out on 457 did they insist on a one way ticket or return? Sorry just been trying to figure that out and thought you may have been told

Take Care, hope you're enjoying it after 6 mths

Jo & Simon

Hi,
hope somebody can help I've searched but can't find the answer!
My friend is here in Brisbane on Temporary employer sponsorship visa but wants to apply for PR Skilled Indep 136. We know she has to be Offshore when visa granted but how long for and how will she know when to go?
Any help would be most appreciated
thanks in advance Marie

The CO will issue a pre-grant letter informing them that the visa is ready for issue, they then need to make arrangements to leave Australia (maybe to NZ) and the CO will issue the visa.

From reading threads about it I'd say a week or two should suffice.

[QUOTE=neil&momo]Hi,
hope somebody can help I've searched but can't find the answer!
My friend is here in Brisbane on Temporary employer sponsorship visa but wants to apply for PR Skilled Indep 136. We know she has to be Offshore when visa granted but how long for and how will she know when to go?
Any help would be most appreciated
thanks in advance Marie [/QUOTE

hi
i went through this process 3 weeks ago. the co informed me that a pre grant letter was immanent. he asked for our travel info for grant letter, for as you know you have to be off shore to convert a 457 to a 136. we arranged to go to Singapore. we emailed travel details, and the co e- mailed our grant letter on the first day of our stay in Singapore. i down loaded it and visited the Australian embassy in Singapore to evidence passport and had pr visa put in our passports. we stayed in Singapore for 6 days, but you could do it in less, as the embassy visit only took 1.5hrs.
cheers, Dom

I preume that if you have a 457 and are onshore that you can be onshore for granting of an ENS PR Visa (121 or 856 I think)