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A NEW visa to encourage skilled potential migrants to settle in regional Australia is to be launched on July 1. It will be a temporary entry visa and be initially for three years.
A new Investor Retirement Visa (IRV)also is in the planning stages and will probably be effective from November 1.
It is expected that this will replace the current 410 retiree visa and, again, there must be settlement in regional or low growth areas.
There will probably be an investment of $500,000 required in State or Territory Treasury Bonds.
The retiree must also provide evidence of pension or other funds which will generate a continuing income, and also have settlement funds to buy a home in a regional or low growth area.
The skilled temporary entry visa is mainly aimed at skilled migrant applicants who fail the general skilled points threshold for the 136 visa.
Full details are yet to be announced by the Department of Immigration, but the Skilled Independent Regional (Provisional)(SIR)Visa will need a pass mark of only 110 points.
The visa will allow for an initial three-year stay in regional Australia or in a low-growth area, which has been defined as such by the local State or Territory government. The applicants also must meet the usual skilled threshold criteria.
The applicant must be sponsored by the appropriate State or Territory government or regional authority and must agree to live, work or study in the above area and must agree to remain there for a minimum of two years, out of the maximum three year period.
However, Adelaide, capital of South Australia, is the only mainland State capital city to be included in the SIR visa and the South Australian State Government can give potential migrants assistance with their application if they wish to live in Adelaide, or any part of the State.
People accepted under this visa will not be allowed to proceed to residence in situations where children are sent to non-regional or a non-low growth area for education, such as boarding school, university, etc.
The Department of Immigration and the local government authority is putting the onus on the applicant to understand that they must agree to remain in the regional or low-growth area.
Further details, such as residency requirements are being worked out and will be announced by July 1.