Australia announces horticulture labour agreement with 31 occupations

Australia has announced a new labour agreement for the horticulture industry with 31 available occupations. The new labour agreement will come into effect from 1st January 2020. This agreement with 31 occupations has the most number of occupations compared to any other labour agreement in Australia. 

Australia utilizes labour agreements to address skill gaps in a variety of industries. Employers in specific industries can bring in skilled employees who otherwise cannot be brought in through the Subclass 482 (Temporary Skill Shortage) and Subclass 494 (Skilled Employer-Sponsored Regional (Provisional) Visa). 

Australia currently has seven industry-specific labour agreements for the following industries: 

• Fishing industry 
• Meat industry 
• Pork industry 
• Advertising industry 
• Minister of Religion 
• Restaurant (fine-dining) industry 
• On-hire 

The on-hire labour agreement is unique in it that it allows the sponsoring employer to on-hire the worker to another employer in Australia. This facility is not available in any other labour agreement or under any other standard visa program. 

Here are the details about the new labour agreement as per the Dept. of Home Affairs website, 

• This agreement will provide a 10% concession on the income threshold which is currently AUD 53,900 
• This new labour agreement will also provide a broader range of monetary and non-monetary benefits. Workers may have access to benefits like overtime and accommodation, which they can use to meet the Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold. Under normal business sponsorship, non-monetary benefits are not considered towards the annual income. 

• Australia has reduced the English requirement for both the Subclass 482 as well as the Subclass 494 Visa. Applicants need to score an equivalent of 5.0 overall in IELTS with at least 4.5 in each module. 
• Under the new labour agreement, workers can apply for the Subclass 186 or Subclass 494 Visa up to 50 years of age 
• For occupations under Skill level 1 to 3, workers can apply for the Subclass 186 Visa after working for three years with the sponsoring employer. For occupations under Skill level 4 and 5, workers will need to work for four years. 
• The skill requirement for some occupations will be varied under the new agreement 

All the available occupations in the new horticulture industry labour agreement will be eligible for concessions. All of the occupations will also have a provision for Australian Permanent Residency. 

Y-Axis offers a wide range of visa services and products for aspiring overseas immigrants including Australia General Skilled Migration Program via RMA, Australia Skilled Regional Visa, Australia Temporary Skilled Work Visa, and Australia Temporary Graduate Visa Subclass 485. We work with Registered Migration Agents in Australia.   

If you are looking to Visit, Study, Work, Invest or Migrate to Australia, talk to Y-Axis, the World’s No.1 Immigration & Visa Consultant.   

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