The Australian Government’s new Migration Strategy was released in December 2023, subtitled “Getting migration working for the nation. For workers. For businesses. For all Australians”. The strategy aims to deliver significant reforms to Australia’s migration system and was developed following key insights from the 2023 Review of the Migration System.
The Migration Strategy involves 8 key actions for reform. Each action involves several measures and commitments to be implemented across three stages. The Action Plan (230KB PDF) provides an indicative implementation timeline, whereby commitments are categorised as either Existing (already or soon to be implemented), New (to be implemented by the end of 2024), or as an Area for future reform (requiring tripartite consultation throughout 2024).
What does the New Migration Strategy mean for Australia's health workforce and recruitment activity?
Many of the reforms in the new Migration Strategy seek to improve the migrant worker experience and motivate skilled professionals to move to Australia from the UK and other countries. The reforms, including new visa classes, professional pathways, and integrity measures, help to improve migrant worker job mobility and protections while targeting the migration of skilled occupations that support the quality of life of all Australians.
For Australia’s health sector employers and health workforce, an extensive number of occupations currently sit on the Skills Priority List. With ongoing workforce shortages and recruitment difficulty in certain geographical areas and for highly skilled occupations, these reforms should make an impact.
The table below sets out the top actions and measures in Australia’s new Migration Strategy, relevant to Australia’s health workforce.
Table 1. Australian Government Migration Strategy (Dec-23) - Reforms Applicable to Australia's Health Workforce:
|
Action / Aim |
Measures |
More information |
Indicative Implementation timeframe |
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Targeting temporary skilled migration to address skills needs and promote worker mobility |
Annually index the minimum salary threshold for temporary skilled migrants in line with annual market salary rates. |
In July 2023, the government raised the Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT) from $53,900 to $70,000. Employers who wish to nominate workers for subclasses 482, 494, 186 and 187 must now pay their overseas worker an annual salary of the current TSMIT ($70,000) or the annual market salary rate, whichever is higher. |
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Provide a pathway to permanent residence for temporary skilled visa holders. |
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Develop a new Skills in Demand visa, with full mobility and clear pathways to permanent residence. |
The Skills in Demand visa will replace the employer-sponsored Temporary Skills Shortage (TSS) 482 visa. It will include x3 pathways - including a Specialist Skills Pathway, a Core Skills Pathway, and a yet-to-be-developed Essential Skills Pathway. All pathways will provide a four-year stay period. |
To be implemented late 2024 |
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Develop a Specialist Skills Pathway - to drive innovation, job creation, and make it easier for Australia to attract highly skilled workers. |
The Specialist Skills Pathway will be available to applicants who: |
To be implemented late 2024 |
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Develop a Core Skills Pathway - to meet targeted workforce needs (supported by a simpler, regularly updated occupation list by Jobs and Skills Australia). |
The Core Skills Pathway would be available to applicants who: |
To be implemented late 2024 |
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Evaluate how to develop an Essential Skills Pathway - considering how best to regulate migration for lower paid workers with essential skills. |
The Government is primarily considering this pathway in the context of the care and support economy. |
Area of future reform - tripartite consultation to begin early to mid-2024. |
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Establish a best practice service level agreement for visa processing times. |
The Government will establish a median service standard of 21 days for the new Skills in Demand visa and 7 days for the Specialist Skills Pathway. |
Implement mid to late 2024. |
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Streamline Labour Market Testing (LMT) to reduce complexity. |
In Dec-23, the Government removed the requirement to advertise on the Australian government website, Workforce Australia. The advertising validity period will increase from 4 to 6 months in late 2024. |
To be implemented late 2024. |
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Strengthening the integrity and quality of international education |
Increasing minimum English language requirements for student and graduate visas. |
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Tackling worker exploitation and the misuse of the visa system |
A new public register of employer sponsors to improve integrity and support migrant worker mobility. |
A public register of approved sponsors, including the number of migrants sponsored and their occupations, will be developed to assist migrants wishing to find a new sponsor. |
Implement late 2024 in line with new Skills in Demand visa. |
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Planning migration to get the right skills in the right places |
A new approach to planning permanent migration over the long-term, with greater state and territory collaboration on net overseas migration forecasts. |
This will utilise Jobs and Skills Australia’s advice for where genuine shortages exist. |
Implement late 2024 |
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Simplifying the migration system to improve the experience for migrants and employers |
The removal of 20+ unnecessary and |
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Initial consolidation to occur in 2024. |
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Trailing employer fees |
The Government will explore a model for employers to pay trailing charges and fees (e.g. monthly or quarterly) to make hiring a new migrant less onerous. Currently, sponsors are required to pay a range of fees upfront including sponsorship ($420), nomination ($330) fees and the Skilling Australian Fund (SAF) levy (up to $7200). |
Possible implementation late 2024 in line with new Skills in Demand visa. |
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Streamlined visa applications |
Visa applications will be backed by a service standard for visa processing, enabling employers to fill a vacancy quickly. See visa processing times above. |
Implement late 2024 in line with new Skills in Demand visa. |
Under the new Skills in Demand visa (including the Specialist, Core Skills and Essential Skills pathways), businesses supporting foreign workers will enjoy faster processing times and reduced costs (e.g. trailing fees), whilst workers will have more flexibility to move employers and attain permanent residency.
The Australian Government’s new Migration Strategy will improve skilled migrant and permanent residency pathways, promote system integrity, and encourage extensive tripartite consultation for future reforms. It has the potential to sustainably improve health sector recruitment activity and workforce supply into the future. We will be watching this space with interest as the government implements these phased-in actions.
