Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme

187 Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS)

The Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS) allows employers in regional or low population growth areas of Australia, to sponsor employees who are foreign nationals for a permanent visa to work in Australia.

Who is eligible for theRegional Skilled Migration Scheme?

The employees applyingfor a visa can be either of the following:

·          skilled workersfrom overseas

·          skilled temporaryresidents currently in Australia

Visa applicants can applyin or outside of Australia for RSMS (subclass 187) visa.

Note: ONLY applicants whohold a substantive visa or relevant birging visa when applying for the RSMSvisa (subclass 187) in Australia will be eligible for a bridging visa.

Other Requirements forthe Regional Skilled Migration Scheme

Direct Entry

A regional certifyingbody must first certify the nominated position against the following criteria:

·          Business must beactively and lawfully operating in Regional Australia

·          The position mustbe available for a minimum of two (2) years

·          The businessrequires a person for the nominated position and satisfies the market raterequirement

In addition to the above,the department will also assess the application against the following criteria:

·          the nomination hasbeen approved by the relevant Regional Certifying Body

·          the businessfollows all relevant Australian laws and has a satisfactory record of meetingimmigration laws (if applicable)

·          the nominatedposition is in a business operated by the employer

·          the position isbeing remunerated in accordance with relevant workplace legislation and awards.

The Employee must:

·          have the relevantqualifications and/or work erxperience for the nominated position which areequivalent to the Australian standarad (Skills Assessment may be required insome circumstances)

·          meet any mandatorylicensing, registration or professional membership requirements which allow youto work unsupervised and without further training

·          have been offereda full time position for a fixed term of at least two years (supported byevidence of a contract or letter of appointment signed by both the employer andthe employee)

·          be under 50 yearsold

·          have CompetentEnglish language ability

Note:  Exemption ofcertain requirements is available.

Temporary Residence Transition Stream

If you have alreadyworked for your nominating employer for two years in Australia, your skills donot need to be assessed.

You must have at leastvocational English. No Regional Certification is required for this stream.

This stream is availableonly to people who hold a subclass 457 visa. People who hold other 400 seriesvisas may qualify to apply for a permanent residence visa through the DirectEntry stream.

Benefits of the Regional Skilled Migration Scheme