Australia has plans to introduce a lottery system to grant entry to 3000 international workers annually. The lottery system will be launched under a new law, which will adopt the green card system followed in the United States to award citizenship to selected applicants.

The Federal government will make the new scheme available for individuals across the Pacific, allowing them to seek permanent residency in Australia with the hope of being selected in the lottery.

What’s important to note here is that this would be a two-step scheme. Those selected in the first stage will be required to secure an employment offer in Australia and take tests to prove their character, health condition, and language skills before coming to the country. Plus, the applicants must be aged from 18 to 45 years.

According to the Minister for International Development and the Pacific, Pat Conroy, the new proposed law will be introduced to the Federal parliament soon with a promise to help build new communities in Australia with strengthened ties to the area.

He labelled this law as revolutionary, claiming that Australia has allocated a portion of its permanent migration program to a specific region for the first time in history.

While the scheme is expected to be launched in July, discussions are currently being held with regional leaders before the Pacific Island Forum that’s scheduled for the upcoming week. It should be noted that Foreign Minister Penny Wong will represent Prime Minister Anthony Albanese at the Forum next week at a time when many people are questioning China’s influence in the region.

One of the main reasons for the introduction of the new lottery system is to address the unfairness of a visa system that selects applicants based on a hierarchical list of skills, which leads to the selection of only a handful of people with specific skills from every country.

Another thing to note here is that applicants from different countries who have applied for permanent residency under the skills program have a wait time of six months, and they won’t be eligible for the new program, according to the Department of Home Affairs.

We hope you found this information helpful. Follow our blogs for the latest updates and informative content on Australian immigration.

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