As an immigrant working in my trained professional field here in Australia, I’m finding it increasingly difficult to wrap my head around the current state of our skilled migration system.
We constantly hear about critical skills shortages across various vital sectors: healthcare, engineering, teaching, IT, and trades. People spend years studying, clearing rigorous local credentialing and skills assessments, working lower-level or temporary roles, and sweating through a hyper-competitive points-based system just to get a foot in the door.
Yet, it’s an open secret that once permanent residency (PR) is finally granted, there is zero obligation for someone to actually continue working in the nominated skilled profession that got them the visa in the first place.
It begs the question: What is the actual point of granting residency based on a "shortage of skills" if the recipient can immediately pivot out of that industry the moment their PR hits?
If a profession is on the skills list because the country genuinely lacks workers, why is there no accountability or post-PR condition attached? Without any requirement to practice or contribute to that specific sector for a set period, the "shortage" becomes a permanent, self-fulfilling loop. The system ends up importing professionals to fill a quota rather than fixing the structural workforce gap.
For those of us actually grinding it out day-to-day in our fields, watching others use a critical occupation merely as a fast-track ticket to PR only to abandon it immediately feels profoundly unfair.
Is there a functional reason why Australia doesn’t tie PR conditions to a minimum period of work in the nominated occupation? Or are we just stuck with a perpetual "skills shortage" cycle?

Hello everyone.

I am currently on skilled worker visa and will get ILR in June 2027 . But my husband got a job in Australia and wants me to move with him. I want to move with him as we were on long distance relationship most of the time but at the same time i think about ILR too . But then i realised ILR will only be valid for 2 year so it can be pointless rather get citizenship and move to Australia. But the timeframe could be 2-2.5 years until i get citizenship from today. So is it worth waiting and being in long distance for these long years.

Also i dont want to stop my husband as our ultimate plan is to settle in Australia.
PS my husband is a doctor and i m a nurse. Currently he is moving in 482 visa but will he get PR and citizenship ?
As we want to have citizenship for one of these countries if i move .
I need some advise. Also is there any way to reduce the time for getting citizenship.

Thank you

Hi everyone,

I'm from India and exploring Australian skilled migration. I'd appreciate some honest advice on my chances, especially from people who have gone through the process with an IT background.

My profile:

Age: 29

Education: BE in Electronics and Communication Engineering

IT experience: 7+ years

Current role: Software Engineer II

Location: India

Marital status: Single

English: Preparing for IELTS/PTE and targeting Superior English

Estimated points: 90, potentially subject to eligibility and assessment

Occupations I'm considering:

Software Engineer — ANZSCO 261313

Software Tester — ANZSCO 261314

My experience includes Ruby on Rails development, Java Selenium automation, Python REST API automation, test automation frameworks, framework development and code reviews.

I'm trying to understand which occupation would be the more appropriate choice based on my actual qualifications and work experience.

My questions:

How realistic are my chances of receiving an invitation for subclass 189 with around 90 points for either occupation?

Would subclass 190 be a more realistic option, and which states should I research?

Given that my degree is in Electronics and Communication Engineering rather than Computer Science, how might this affect my ACS skills assessment?

How much of my 7+ years of IT experience might be recognised for migration purposes?

Would it be sensible to pursue both Software Engineer and Software Tester pathways if my duties genuinely fit both occupations?

Is it worth paying an immigration consultancy around ₹1 lakh for assistance, or is self-application realistic if I research the process carefully?

I'm not looking for guarantees. I'd rather understand the realistic difficulties, potential waiting times and risks before spending money on the process.

If you've applied under either occupation with a similar background, I'd especially appreciate hearing about your experience.

Thanks!

Still showing received after 16 months
Audiologist- priority occupation
Help!!!

Hi All.

I recently received 189 invitation on 15th October. My skill assessment which I mentioned in the EOI got expired on 9th October, which is 6 days before the invitation received. I renewed my skill assessment on 16th October from Engineers Australia with a postive outcome. My question is whether the department of home affairs will accept the renewed assessment and grant me the visa.

Please let me know your thoughts on this and share if you had same experiences before. Thanks :)

Hey guys, just wanted to see if anyone is in the same situation as me.

I applied for my 485 Subsequent Entrant visa on 30 June 2026 as a de facto partner under the VET stream. My partner is in Australia and I’m in India, so we haven’t lived together and don’t have a joint bank account. We’ve submitted our relationship registration certificate, joint health insurance and other supporting documents. My medical was done on 3 July, but my status is still showing “Received.”

I’m a bit worried about whether living separately could affect our application, especially since I’ve seen others getting their grants.

Has anyone been in a similar situation? Would love to hear your experience and any advice you might have. It would really help put my mind at ease. ❤️🙏

Hi! I’m a Filipino nurse living in the Philippines, and my partner is an Australian permanent resident. We’ve been together for over two years and have lived together for around six months in total. We’re planning to register our relationship in Australia.

We’re currently saving for the visa, so I’d love to hear from anyone who have applied for the offshore Partner Visa (309/100), especially recently.

A few questions:

* How long did your visa take to get approved?
* How much did you spend in total, including additional fees?
* Did you apply DIY or use a migration agent? How much does migration agent fee costs?
* What relationship evidence did you provide, especially with limited cohabitation?
* Would the partner visa be more realistic than the Skilled Independent visa (189) for a new nursing graduate with less than six months of paid experience?

Any advice or firsthand experiences would be greatly appreciated. Thank you! ❤️

Hi everyone! I need to obtain an Indian Police Clearance Certificate (PCC) within 28 days and have only 24 days left.

I’ve completed the application and prepared all the supporting documents, but I can’t find any available VFS appointment slots in Melbourne.

Some friends suggested that the VFS office might be closed and that postal submission may be the only option.

Has anyone applied for an Indian PCC in Melbourne recently? Is the office open, are appointments just fully booked, or is postal submission the only option? I’m worried about meeting my deadline.

Any recent experiences or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Hi everyone,
I’m looking for advice or updates from anyone who has applied for the Australian Subclass 186 Employer Nomination Scheme visa under the Direct Entry stream, especially offshore IT applicants.
Here are my details:
\\\*\\\*Visa subclass:\\\*\\\* 186 Employer Nomination Scheme — Direct Entry
\\\*\\\*Occupation:\\\*\\\* IT / ICT (exact ANZSCO code not included here)
\\\*\\\*Visa application lodged:\\\*\\\* 6 December 2024
\\\*\\\*Applicant location at lodgement:\\\*\\\* Offshore (India)
\\\*\\\*Sponsor location:\\\*\\\* Melbourne, Australia (metro)
\\\*\\\*Employer nomination:\\\*\\\* Approved on 10 September 2026
\\\*\\\*Health examinations:\\\*\\\* Completed
\\\*\\\*PCC:\\\*\\\* Completed/received
\\\*\\\*ACS skills assessment:\\\*\\\* Positive
\\\*\\\*Current visa application status:\\\*\\\* Still awaiting the final visa decision

Has anyone with a similar offshore 186 Direct Entry IT application lodged around November or December 2024 received their visa grant recently?

I understand that processing times vary between applications, and I know other applicants’ timelines cannot guarantee mine. I’m just trying to understand the current experiences of applicants in a similar situation.

Thank you for sharing any updates or advice.

Hello,
We have submitted EOIs for the subclass 190 and 491 visas under the Marketing Specialist occupation. Our current points score is 75, excluding state nomination points. My husband is working on improving his IELTS score, which could increase our total to 85 points.
I would like to understand our chances of receiving a state nomination within the next few months, given our occupation and points score.
Additionally, could you please advise us on the expected waiting period, the next steps in the process, and what we should anticipate after submitting our EOIs?
Thank you for your guidance.

Hi there,

I wanted to share my experience for applying Australia visa. I applied for business visa (600) on 11 September and got it approved on 6 October.

Throughout this process I was checking the status of my application daily as I had travel plans in last week of Australia and had to get my flights and hotel done.

I started looking reddit and Internet if there is a way to make this process faster and saw a post where the guy mentioned he submitted Urgent Approval Request letter. I thought of doing same and uploaded the letter along with dummy flight tickets on 3 October.

I also called the embassy, to explain my case, however it didn’t helped much. I don’t know what helped in this case, whether it was urgency letter, flight tickets or my call but I received my visa next week.

Hi everyone,

I have received a positive ACS Skills Assessment for Software Engineer (ANZSCO 261313).

As per my ACS assessment letter:

• Skills assessed as suitable from: 7 November 2023
• Overseas employment assessed as closely related: 8 November 2021 – 28 February 2025
• Total overseas work experience: 3 years and 4 months

My question is: Can I claim 5 points for overseas skilled employment for subclass 189/190, since ACS has assessed my entire employment period as closely related to Software Engineer?

Or will only the employment after 7 November 2023 be considered for points?

Has anyone with a similar ACS assessment successfully claimed 5 points for overseas experience?

Thanks in advance!

Hi guys, Im looking to relocate to Aus and was wondering if there’s an effective way to connect with employers from offshore regarding the 482 visa?

I'm just wondering if anyone has been able to successfully get a health waiver for CKD Stage 4. Would love to hear from you.

I have been on 482 visa since 2023 working full time for my employer. My visa is expiring in January 2027 and was diagnosed with CKD 9 months ago after just a routine blood test. I have never been sick and still am healthy and working without any symptoms. I am not on any medication, no blood pressure and non diabetic. My nephrologist is having 3 months review at the moment. My employer is willing to retain me for another term of 4 years.

Looking for guidance and hear from those in the group that would have gone through getting health waiver in such cases as mine.

Hello I’m thinking of moving to Australia in the future I’d like to know if anyone in the island was able to and how?

Hi everyone,

I’m expecting an offer from a Australian company. Can an employer initiate both 482 and 186 Direct Entry PR applications simultaneously?

Has anyone successfully negotiated this? Are large Australian employers open to sponsoring PR from day one, especially for senior roles, or do they typically require a few years of employment first?

Would appreciate firsthand experiences. Thanks!

Hi everyone,

I was wondering if there has been any recent offshore non priority 189 grants? I understand that the website says that they are currently processing offshore non-priority applications from Nov, but I haven’t seen any grant recently.

one of my work mate is being asked by our boss to pay for his sponsorship, waaaay too much. i told her that she must not pay but is desperate due to her situation, and is willing to go ahead. is there any way i can help, apart from advising not to pay or, to get a paper trail?

I applied for my 186 visa application on 08th Apr 2025.

Occupation: Cyber Security Analyst

Secondary applicants: 2 (wife and son)

Everyone was onshore at the time of application

With the implementation of MD122, although not stated explicitly for onshore applicants, it gives me a feeling that immigration dept is not really appreciating applications having secondary applicants.

Just wanted to know if there is anyone with secondary applicants who recently got their 186 processed. Also were you asked to complete medical or resubmit international/Australian police checks if the previous ones expired?

Thanks in advance.

Hi everyone,

I was selected for a Shift Supervisor position with an Australian company under employer sponsorship, and my visa pathway is Subclass 482 (Skills in Demand).

I completed my medical examination around 9 months ago, but since then I haven't received any clear update from the company/recruiter regarding the visa or my expected joining date.

I'm trying to understand what might be happening.

For people who have gone through the Australian 482 process:

- How long did your application take after completing the medical?

- Is it normal to wait 9+ months?

- Should I contact the employer directly for an update?

- Is there anything I can check through ImmiAccount to confirm the current status?

- Could the delay be related to the employer nomination rather than my visa application?

I'm not looking for immigration advice as a substitute for a professional — mainly hoping to hear from people who have actually gone through the 482 process.

Thanks in advance.