Mark044

Ok, I'm sure we qualify for both of these, but wondering which is more likely to get us in, or more reliable??

My brother transferred with the Police in May 2006 and is in the WA Police and is willing to sponsor us.
My wife works in IT and through the points tally scored 130 with my brother as a sponsor or 115 without. We could probably reach about 120 points with details from me as well.

Just wondering if there is a preference with these 2 visas??
Thanks!

Mark044

OK, weird....!!

Thought I'd check the visa forms on the government website and went into the online forms. It says if you;re going to be sponsored by a relative they must fill out forms first to get a sponsor's reference. I went in as if I was the sponsor to check things out and it says;

"The following two visa subclasses required the applicant to be sponsored by a relative in Australia. Please indicate which subclass your relative will be applying for. Skilled - Australian Sponsored Overseas Student (Class DE, subclass 881) Skilled - Designated Area Sponsored Overseas Student (Class DE, subclass 882)
"
However we're looking to enter as a Skilled Professional but sponsored, NOT a student...what am I doing/choosing wrong?!!!!

comet555

As long as you qualify for both I would choose the skilled independent (136). The 136 would most likely be faster as you wouldn't have to wait for things from the sponsor and also with a sponsored visa you run the risk of the sponsor not meeting certain requirements like income or residency.

I really would suggest getting the 136. Do the skills assessments for both of you and as long as you meet the points requirement go that route.

If you must go the sponsored route make sure you check ALL of the requirements of the sponsor before applying. I may be wrong but the sponsor might need to have been a PR for 2 years. I will check that out, but please someone correct me if I'm wrong.

comet555

Here is the link for the skilled sponsored visa (138):
http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/gener.../138/index.htm

I'm looking for the requirements at the moment.

comet555

Your sponsor can live anywhere in the country, but I can't find anywhere that gives a length of time they had to have lived there. So I might be wrong about the 2 years thing. But I did see the sponsor needs to be able to provide an assurance of support:
http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/gener...-assurance.htm
http://www.centrelink.gov.au/interne...b!OpenDocument
http://www.centrelink.gov.au/internet/internet.nsf/filestores/su594_0507/$file/su594_0507en_p.pdf


The only reference I have seen to the 2 years is on the last link above it states this on the application form for the assurer:

An assurer must be:
• an adult (aged 18 years or over)
• an Australian citizen, permanent resident or a New Zealand citizen holding a Protected Special
Category Visa
• earning taxable income at or above the income test threshold
• able to provide a notice of assessment issued by the Australian Taxation Commissioner for each of the last 2 available consecutive financial years showing taxable income at or above the income testthreshold.


The other option is the designated area sponsor visa (139) only needs requires the sponsor to have lived there 1 year, but it is only for certain parts of WA.
http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/gener...ated-areas.htm

Mark044

Great replies Comet many thanks!
You're right about the 2 year thing...I've read that before. I was told by someone else that I might be ok that my brother only moved out in May 2006, as his job of police officer might have a bit more of a "sway" if you like, as it's a "respected" position!! so we might get some leaniency??

Although my wife has a score of 60 for job (IT ) somehow she only totals 115, which is 5 short of the require mark. She's only 32, etc etc, so not sure how we can get the extra 5+points for this?

Certainly agree that although the sponsorship route has a lower pass mark, it is open to possible delays and extra failure!

Mark044

Think this is the main question, whether there is likely to be a small amount of leaniency with the timescale??

comet555

LOL....I highly doubt that you will get any special considering because of his "respected" position. DIMA has rules they must follow, and if you don't (and sponsors) don't meet the criteria then I think they have no choice but to deny it. I certainly wouldn't risk it, it would be a huge waste of time and money.

The timescale should be longer for the sponosred visa as the sponsor has to wait for word from DIMA before proceeding for the interview, bonds, etc. So that adds time that wouldn't happen on a 136 independent visa.

I would be concerned about a sponsored visa unless you are absolutely sure your sponsor meets all the criteria. I've seen people on here lose their sponsor at the interview stage because they didn't meet the residency or income requirements. Once you lose your sponsor your pretty much screwed unless you have someone else who can sponsor you. If you have any doubt have your sponsor call centerlink to find out if they are eligable.

Regardless of the visa type you will still need your wifes skills assessed. So you might as well do yours at the same time. Once you get both back then make up your mind about what you want to do.

If you need an additional 5 points there is always the option of doing the$100,000 investment. A lot of money but you get it all back after a certain amount of time.

The last option would be to do a regional sponsored visa where you have to live in a certain area. But it is definitely better to go for the 136 as it has absolutely no restrictions on where you work and what your job is, it would also be fast too.

comet555

I would just like to point out that we have a 136 visa, and the only things I know about sponsored visa I got from reading this website and checking out DIMA just now.

So I'm certainly not the best resource. I would do some further searching on this site as there are many other that have been through the sponsored visa route. But the general consensus is that the 136 is the best option if you can get it.

Mark044

Nope, thats fair enough!! Any info is better than no info!

Have just checked on the government immigration site under the Skilled Sponsors visa( http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/gener...w-to-apply.htm ) and there is no mention of the sponsor needing to live in Oz for 2+years, despite what you wrote above being true. May get him to contact some people to confirm this beforehand!!

WS

If you can possibly get the 120 points, the 136 is definitely better than the 138 (which requires sponsorship and an assurance of support which can cause problems).

Can you get the 5 spouse points, or invest $100k for 5 bonus points?

Mark044

100k unlikely, 5 for my position possibly. I'm a self employed Personal Trainer for the last 3 years, so it's whether my qualification, which is a high one in the UK, is recognised in Oz.

WS

I've just had a look through the SOL, but can't see anything suitable.

Could you speak to an agent and get some advice?

comet555

I found these, but they are not on the SOL and would receive no points.

http://www.immi.gov.au/asri/occupati...ec-3993-27.htm
http://www.immi.gov.au/asri/occupati...ec-3993-27.htm

WS

Lol - I've just seen that too. But as you said, if the nominated occupation is not on the SOL I don't think you can use it .