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As part of the Australian government’s focus on attracting the best global talent to grow the country’s innovation and technology economies, the number of permanent visas that can be granted in the 2020-2021 financial year through the Global Talent Independent visa program has tripled to 15,000.
This is currently one of the fastest pathways to Australian permanent residency.
Global Talent Independent (GTI) program
The Global Talent Independent (GTI) program is a streamlined permanent visa pathway for highly skilled professionals to work and live permanently in Australia.
To be granted a visa under the Global Talent Visa Program, a candidate must be highly skilled (eg a PhD and/or significant industry experience at a high, well paid level) in one of the ten target sectors:
(a) Resources;
(b) Agri-food and AgTech;
(c) Energy;
(d) Health industries;
(e) Defence, advanced manufacturing and space;
(f) Circular economy;
(g) Digitech;
(h) Infrastructure and tourism;
(i) Financial services and FinTech;
(j) Education.
To be eligible to apply for the GTI program under the Distinguished Talent visa, individuals must:
- prove they are internationally recognised with evidence of outstanding achievements;
- be prominent in their field of expertise;
- provide evidence that they would be an asset to Australia, in their area of expertise;
- prove they have no difficulty obtaining employment in Australia or becoming established in their field;
- have a recognised organisation or individual in Australia endorse them as global talent, in the same field as the applicant; and
- evidence that that have the ability to attract a salary at or above the Fair Work High Income Threshold (currently $153,600).
The first step in the application process is to submit an Expression of Interest (EoI) to the Department of Home Affairs. If you are assessed as satisfying the criteria, you will receive an invitation to apply for a Distinguished Talent permanent visa. Once the application has been lodged, a decision is usually made in a few weeks (during no COVID times!).
Advantages of a GTI Subclass 858 Visa
- No age limit
- You only need “Functional English”
- You can bring your spouse or de facto partner and children, if applicable
- Fast visa processing
Statistics on Invitations Issued in 2020
Between January 2020 to September 2020, the Department of Home Affairs received 3,730 Expressions of Interest for the Global Talent Independent program. The Department made a decision on whether or not to issue an invitation to apply for the permanent visa in less than a month for over 67% of cases.
| Time Period | Decisions | Percentage |
| Within 14 days | 1447 | 38.8% |
| Between 14 days and 1 month | 1058 | 28.4% |
| Between 1 month and 3 months | 1027 | 27.5% |
| Greater than 3 months | 198 | 5.3% |
Of the 3,730 Expressions of Interests received, the Department issued 2,685 invitations to apply for a permanent Distinguished Talent visa through the GTI program. The nationalities that received the most invitations were:
| Nationality | Number of Invitations |
| Iran | 539 |
| Bangladesh | 384 |
| India | 265 |
| China | 218 |
| United Kingdom | 135 |
| Pakistan | 101 |
| Sri Lanka | 85 |
| United States | 81 |
The Global Talent Visa program will continue to be prioritised by the Australian government, as it seeks highly skilled, talented individuals that can create opportunities for Australians by transferring skills, promoting innovation, creating jobs in the post-pandemic era.
By including tourism in the speciality areas since December 2020, it seems the Australian government is optimistic about growth in tourism after the travel restrictions are eased.
Connect with our experience in Successfully obtaining Global Talent Independent visas for our clients, and let us lodge an expression of interest for you
Our team have extensive experience with preparing the necessary documents and submissions for the Expression of Interest for the Global Talent Independent program, and then liaising with the Global Business and Talent Attraction Taskforce to obtain fast-track approval of permanent Distinguished Talent visas.
Please contact our office for a consultation to discuss if the Global Talent program is suitable for you. Call us on +61 3 9573 5200 or book online below.
