The April 2019 SkillSelect invitation round information has been released by the Department of Home Affairs (Home Affairs). Invitation quotas have dropped significantly in a lead up to the May 2019 Federal Election and the end of the financial year. The figures provided by Home Affairs indicate that since the last round information:
- The number of invitations for the Subclass 189 (Skilled Independent) visa has been substantially reduced from 1,490 to 100.
- The minimum points score for a 189 visa invitation is currently 80 points, with a one month processing time Expression of Interest (EOI) at this score.
- The number of invitations for the Subclass 489 Skilled Regional (Provisional) remained the same at 10, requiring a minimum point score of 80. Processing times are around 5 months from lodgement of an EOI.
The minimum points score for pro-rata occupations, or those classified as occupations for which there is more demand for places, are as follows:
- Accountants: 90
- Auditors, Company Secretaries and Corporate Treasurers: 85
- Electronics Engineer: 80
- Industrial, Mechanical and Production Engineers: 80
- Other Engineering Professionals: 80
- ICT Business and System Analyst: 85
- Software and Applications Programmers: 80
- Computer Network Professionals: 80