Immigration to Australia

SkillSelect’ – Invitation to apply

A new ‘SkillSelect’ system from 1 July 2012

Prospective applicants will submit Express of Interest (EOI) online

EOI mandatory for all skilled visas except ENS/RSMS and 457 visas

All preliminaries, e.g. skills assessment, JRP and English test to be completed before EOI submission, and persons are responsible for any fees incurred

State sponsored and employer sponsored EOI’s will be invited to apply for visa

Remainder EOI’s will be electronically ranked by score on points test

Occupational ceiling applicable for each occupation on SOL

Successful EOI’s will be sent invitation automatically to apply for visa

Visa applications to be lodged within 2 months of invitation

EOI’s stay on database for 2 years, unless removed earlier as result of visa grant

EOI’s are free and can be submitted online from anywhere in the world

For onshore applicants, EOI’s are not visa applications, hence no entitlement to bridging visa or review rights

EOI’s can be submitted from 1 July 2012, and first round of invitations had begun to go out