Australian Agriculture Visa
The Australian government have declared the establishment of the Australian Agriculture visa to build on the highly successful existing pacific schemes.
This visa act in response to workforce shortages in the agriculture and primary industry segments, and recent changes to the Working Holiday maker program developed as part of the UK-Australia Free Trade Agreement.
The Australian Agriculture visa will be accessible to workforces through the forestry, and agriculture including meat processing sectors and provide a basis for the ongoing growth of Australia's primary industries as they strive to reach $100 billion in worth by 2030.
The program will be functioned by the Department of Foreign Trade and Affairs, building on the strong outcomes from Pacific labour mobility programs.
The Australian Government will straightaway begin industry consultations to understand requirements across the agricultural sectors. The branches of Foreign Affairs and Trade Affairs, Home and Water, Agriculture, and the Environment will design the visa to make sure a high degree of integrity and safeguards for workers. We will work thoroughly with partner governments also, including our Pacific family, to make sure their interests are protected.
Regulations to permit the creation of the Australian Agriculture visa will be in place by the end of Sept 2021. The operation of the visa will based on negotiations with partner countries.
The Government's growing and main method for meeting agricultural workforce shortages are the existing Pacific Labour Scheme (PLS) and Seasonal Worker Programme (SWP), and the new visa program will build on these. Between now and February 2022, the number of Timorese and Pacific workers in Australia will double to over 25,000. These staffs are highly esteemed by Australian industry and are serious to Australia's meat processing and agricultural sectors, including during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Australian Agriculture Visa will be open to applicants from a variety of countries negotiated through mutual agreements. Full circumstances will be developed and applied over the next few years as the visa is operationalized. During this implementation period, we will work to achieve a demand-driven tactic and consider permanent residency pathways and regional settlement.
Isolation places continue the major constraint to bringing in overseas workers where there are no Australians to fill staff deficiencies. The Government is working closely with States and Territories to make sure we can meet future workforce requirements across all sectors.
Changes to the working holiday visa program:
This visa leases people 18 to 30 years old and French, Irish and Canadian citizens 18 to 35 years old to have their first extended holiday in Australia and work here to support fund their trip. A gap year is an incredible opportunity for learning, self-discovery and development. As you travel, you'll encounter new people, learn about new values and develop new interests and skills. The Working Holiday Maker program has two types of visas: Work and Holiday visa (Subclass 462) and Working Holiday visa (Subclass 417) depending on your country of residence.
These kinds of visas let you to work and stay in Australia in all forms of part-time, full-time, shift and casual work for up to 1 year. Voluntary work is also permitted.
