The Australian tech industry was just gifted a much more flexible visa for migrant workers

• 457 visa scheme ended yesterday, cutting intake from 130,000 to 70,000.
• New scheme opens on a trial basis, largely targeted at tech industry.
• Enables companies to ‘import skills the government doesn’t know they need’.

The Australian tech industry has largely welcomed a new visa scheme which could give migrant workers permanent residency in Australia after just three years.

On the face of it, the new visa, issued through the Global Talent Scheme on a trial basis, allays some of the industry’s significant concerns about the abolition of the 457 visa scheme, which ended yesterday.

Many tech leaders, notably Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes, have campaigned against the Federal Government’s plans to abolish the 457 visa scheme since April last year, when Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull announced it would be replaced with the Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) visa.

Among the reforms, the TSS visa notably would “significantly condense” the occupation list used for 457s, tighten English language requirements, and, under the short-term stream, allow just one onshore visa renewal.

The impact, according to the fourth annual Crossroads Report by national advocacy group StartupAUS, was immediate. Read more

Peter Farquhar - Business Insider Australia - 19 Mar 2018