My visa is delayed and I am lodging a complaint. Can you share some tips and tricks?

Some points to consider if you are lodging a complaint to immigration :

1.⁠ ⁠First apologize to them that it is unfortunate that you have had to come to them with your problem. You were aware of the processing delays but never expected to wait this long.

2.⁠ ⁠Clearly mention your visa subclass, occupation and date of lodgement.

3.⁠ ⁠Explain your occupation and how it will improve the regional areas (or the state you are moving to) and how you would contribute to the economy, infrastructure and growth of the area you will be living in. For 491, focus on the regional demands for your occupation.

4.⁠ ⁠Explain to them that according to DHA they are following ministerial direction 105 and in both of them there are 5 points of order, and although we are non priority occupations we still fall under point D and E of the ministerial direction as follows:

• A - Healthcare professionals and teachers
• B - Employer sponsored visas
• C - Offshore candidates and jobs where work is to be carried out in regional areas
• D - Provisional and permanent visas (491,190)
• E - Processing of visas will be in order as the date the cases were lodged

5.⁠ ⁠Make it known to them that in that FY when you lodged your application, immigration ruled for the influx of skilled workers, as they were trying to recover as quick as possible from the pandemic, and more so from absence of staff in regional areas to prevent businesses closing. It is at that point that you lodged your visa so you are unsure as to why there is a long delay in your visa processing.

6.⁠ ⁠Explain the financial and emotional burden the wait is causing on you and your family.

7.⁠ ⁠Make sure to explain to them that you are an understanding person and you have respected the wait times diligently and patiently, you are not coming to them after a few months wait, but rather forced to come to them because the wait has exceeded more than 12 months, and heading into a new financial year in 4 months. Emphasise on the adverse effects it has on everything from your age vs your future growth and where you could have already been in Australia by now contributing and benefiting and growing as a individual. Your life is frozen until you know what is going to happen.

8.Try not to use too much emotional reasons but rather statistics and DHA's own rules to make your case.

🍀 FAQ contributed by an offshore SmartVisaGuide user who, as at 22 Feb 2024, has been waiting for a 491 grant since Oct 2022.