here we go its your chance !!!
Helping Deliver Skills for Flood Reconstruction
The government has announced fast-track processing of 457 visa applications specifically for reconstruction jobs in flood-affected areas, providing quick access to skilled overseas labour where local supply is insufficient.
The subclass 457 visa provides a fast and flexible route for the entry of skilled workers to Australia. Under the program, a wide variety of skilled construction and engineering occupations are available for sponsorship, and employers can sponsor skilled workers for up to four years with no limit on the number of workers they sponsor.
The government is offering personalised assistance with visa applications to employers involved in reconstruction work so that they provide assistance to the reconstruction effort.
The 457 program is available to businesses of any size – in fact, the vast majority of sponsors approved for the 457 program are small to medium enterprises.
Available occupations
The 457 visa is part of Australia's broader skilled migration
program. There is a wide range of occupations that can be sponsored
including professionals such as engineers and tradespeople including
electricians, plasterers, and builders. The full list of eligible
occupations is available on the ComLaw website.
See: Subclass 457 Visa Eligible Occupations (275KB PDF file)
How you can sponsor someone
The process is straightforward. There are three key steps:
- you apply to be a business sponsor
- you nominate the position you need from the list of eligible occupations for the 457 program
- overseas skilled workers apply for 457 visas under your sponsorship.
Processing times
The department will give you priority processing at each stage of the
application process. To ensure that you receive priority processing it
is important that you make it known to the department that you require
overseas workers to contribute to flood reconstruction. Please see below
for contact information.
When we have received completed applications at each step along the
way, we will process them within five working days for each application.
Assuming that these applications meet our requirements you should have access to skilled workers in a matter of weeks.
For the documents you need to provide to the department to lodge a complete application, please see the following checklists.