Chinese,Indians and Brits top applicants for Australian 457 visa

It seems that the Chinese love affair with Australia is blossoming with the latest figures from the Department of Immigration showing that they are among the top three applicants for 457 visas.

Indeed, Indian, British and Chinese workers are queuing for jobs in Australia, with overall applications for 457 work visas, a temporary four year visa, up by 15% in a year.

The data also shows that some 1.5 million people from overseas are currently working in Australia, including students, temporary 457 workers and backpackers on working holiday visas.

Some 40,870 457 visa applications were lodged in the nine months to March this year compared with 35,440 during the same time last year.

The 457 visa is popular with nurses and engineers as well as technicians, mining workers and hospitality trades. Indeed, it is estimated that almost one in every 50 tradespeople and professionals employed in Australia is a foreign worker hired on a 457 visa.

Applications in the hospitality, IT and scientific sectors have increased by 37% while there has been a 27% rise in applications for 457 visas in the professional, scientific and technical category.

Half the applicants are from India, Britain and China and foreign students and backpackers already living in Australia accounted for more than a quarter of the 457 visas granted.

However, overall there has been a 4.5% fall in the total number of 457 visa holders in Australia in the 12 months to March this year.

Some 832 work visas were approved for nurses despite the profession no longer being on the in demand list, and 2,349 for engineers in the nine months to March 2015, although both are no longer on the Department of Employment’s ‘in-demand’ list.

In total, 8,667 foreign nurses have been granted 457 work visas since 2011, the last year there was officially a national shortage of nurses and 5,935 have been granted to engineers since the profession was removed from the skills shortage list in 2013.

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