Migration Rates Increased by 20% During Second Half of 2011

According to a recently published immigration report of the Australian Department of Migration, from July to December 2011, the number of permanent additions to the resident population in Australia was 116,600, indicating a 20% increase over the corresponding period for 2010. This comprised of 76,187 settler arrivals plus 40,413 onshore grants. Non-program migration increased by 40.5%. Australia’s net permanent addition was 74,635—an increase of 36.2% over the previous period.

Most migrants come from New Zealand (11.5%), India (11.3%), Great Britain (11%) and China (11%). Migration from Greece amounted only to a few dozen.

Meanwhile, Australia plans on “importing” construction workers, plumbers and electricians from the USA for a temporary residence in the country in an effort to address Australian skill shortages in those fields.

Skills Minister Chris Evans said this week that the government would move to recognize US workers’ trade skills in the country to ease their path to Australia. Meanwhile, the Greek Australian community continues its efforts to try to pave the way for potential migrants from Greece, and found the news rather surprising.

Australia unofficially claims that Greece is to blame, as its government is the one to delay the respective agreement due to “other priorities.”

Melbourne cab company Taxi-Link, which sought to recruit drivers from Greece last month to meet the shortage of taxi drivers in Victoria, now has its focus set on Ireland as a result of that delay. Because Ireland and Australia already have a bilateral agreement on Working Holiday visas allowing young Irish nationals to work for 12 months in Australia, the procedure for recruiting from Ireland rather than Greece would be far easier.

Katsiabanis said that despite the problems encountered over the plan to recruit Greek drivers, 32 applicants have already begun training in Melbourne for Taxi-Link and that half of them were from Greece.