From 1 July 2022, a new group of prior Subclass 457 Visa holders may apply for Permanent Residence through the Subclass 186 Employer-Sponsored Permanent Visa if they are over 45 years of age.
What is a legacy 457 worker?
The new age exemption category has been introduced for the 186 Temporary Residence Transition Stream for a ‘legacy 457 worker’.
The new category provides a benefit to those former Subclass 457 visa holders who remained in Australia throughout the COVID-19 period of border closures when, as temporary visa holders, they were not restricted from departing Australia, but faced significant difficulty returning to Australia if they did depart the country.
The new age limit exemption recognises the work of those visa holders and aims to provide a pathway to permanent residence based on their residence and employment in Australia.
Age Limit Exemption Categories for 186 visa
The age limit for the Subclass 186 Employer Sponsored Permanent visa is 45 years of age. Applicants must be 44 years of age at the time of application or satisfy an age limit exemption.
Current legislation provides several categories of age limit exemptions for the 186 Employer Sponsored Permanent Visa. These include:
186 Direct Entry Stream Age Limit Exemptions
- Academic applicants
- Science applicants
- Subclass 444/461 workers
186 Temporary Residence Transition Stream Age Limit Exemptions
- Academic applicants
- Regional medical practitioner applicants
- Science applicants
- Subclass 457/482 workers
- Subclass 457/482 coronavirus concession workers
- Transition 457 workers under 50
- Legacy 457 workers (from 1 July 2022)
How this change could benefit you
Until July 2022, prior Subclass 457 visa holders could apply for permanent residence through the 186 Transition Stream visa using the ‘Transition 457 workers under 50’ category, if they were under 50 years of age at the time of application. If they were over 50 years of age, they had to rely on other categories which required the applicant to work with their sponsoring employer for three years on a temporary sponsored work visa and be paid the Fair Work High Income Threshold in each of those years.
The Fair Work High Income Threshold (FWHIT) is set annually by Fair Work Australia and for the financial year 2023 is $162,000 (increased from $158,500 in 2022). The changes mean that former Subclass 457 visa holders that are over 45 years of age can apply for permanent residence, even if they have not been paid the FWHIT in the three years prior to their application.
Interstaff | Migration Agents Australia
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