subject: The Significance Of The New Pass Mark Score For Skillselect Visa Subclasses [print this page] The New pass mark score for Skillselect visa subclasses is an outcome to the Australian governments initiatives to attract talents from around the world to come to Australia to live and to work. The migration policy seems to have made the visa application process more flexible so as to attract more applications of the intending migrants. Earlier the visa application process made it mandatory for the candidates to attain a minimum of 65 points, which has now been reduced to just 60. The reduction in the pass marks for Skillselect visa subclasses now makes it comparatively easy for the intending migrants. The more the number of eligible migrants, more is their cumulative contribution to the economy of Australia.
The Department of Immigration and Citizenship runs the Skillselect programme as the screening process based on a thorough assessment of the migrants education, experience and qualifications. First and foremost, the intending migrants are supposed to submit the Expression of Intent as part of their declaration on education, professional experience and eligibility criteria. During the assessment phase the authorities would take into consideration the past experience and academic qualification to assess the candidature for the preferred occupation. A ranking would subsequently be drawn based upon the marks obtained by the migrants. Earlier the pass marks were 65 but the new pass mark score for Skillselect visa subclasses have been reduced to 60. This reduction in the pass marks applies to certain subclasses of the visa system which are 189, 190 & 489.
Much credit for this reduction in pass marks goes to the fact that the Australian government has stepped up its plans to augment the talent pool to suffice the industrial demand. The last decade has seen a considerable development in the field of natural resources, ores and energy, thereby creating substantial employment opportunities. Unfortunately the shortage of skilled manpower has nullified the benefits of development. As a strategic move to the migration policy, the Australian government now plans to acquire the skilled manpower from overseas and the reduction in pass marks sees the application of this policy. Skillselect forms part of this strategy that focuses on selecting the most appropriate and suitable candidates for the visa, based on a customized assessment of the candidates.
The Department of Immigration and Citizenship has reportedly mentioned that the pass-marks of 65 were part of policy to acquire the skilled manpower from the sponsored category. However, the new pass-marks of 60 take into consideration the needs of the skilled migrants from the un-sponsored category. The new pass mark score for Skillselect visa subclasses also increases the spectrum of eligible candidate across various subclasses. The policy addresses the demands of the migrants that belong to the subclass 189 that comprises of skilled manpower not sponsored by any state representative or Australian employer. In a way such a policy amendment makes sure that the industry demand of skilled manpower is met. Also, the Skillselect visa application process makes sure that the formalities are done efficiently and in the minimum possible time frame.
