THE
ZIMBABWE CONNECTION

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 CONTACTS:

Department of Immigration: http://www.immi.gov.au

 

South Australian Dept of Skilled Migration : http://www.immigration.sa.gov.au

 

TIPS AND HINTS

We know that after all you have been through in the last few years, you will arrive with many mixed feelings - most of you have never wanted to leave, many will leave with absolutely nothing.   We also know that this is not a good time to make decisions, so we have put some hints and tips together for you.

We have divided them into four sections and by clicking the link, it will take you straight there, or you can read right through.

 

USEFUL DOCUMENTS

Please feel free to download the following documents by clicking on the links below. These have either been drawn up by the Zimbabwe Connection or are also available on the Department of Immigration webstie. They include:

The Grief Cycle

Resume Template - before trying to fill this in, go to FILE / SAVE AS - then find the file in which you would like to put it, and give it a name. In this way you will be able to keep your own copy and attach it as a document to your friends and family in Australia.

Assessing Authorities - this is a list, with connections to their websites, of all the assessment authorities - one of which will probably be relevant to your qualifications.

This will give you information on State Sponsorship see STNI

Trades Assessment form see TRA form

Although this can be applied for once you arrive in Australia, it can sometimes be useful to get this done in advance. You must have one before you start work. This is a Tax File Number application seeTFN application

 

OVERVIEW ON IMMIGRATION                                                      Immigration to almost any country in the world is now a very tricky business - there are no easy escape routes any longer.  The UK and New Zealand have recently both made it more difficult to gain access and our intelligence suggests that South Africa is doing or is about to do the same.

Australia admits approximately 80,000 immigrants a year (it does vary each year) and there are hundreds of thousands of applicants.   The country can afford to be selective, in the interests of what is best for Australia.   At the moment, the country needs youth and skills - with particular needs in rural Australia.   We have been able to find jobs for farmers, because Australia's rural areas need those skills - and sometimes they can only be found in someone slightly older.   

For Zimbabwean farmers, or related trades and industries, the message is, that instead of having to go to an alien city environment and battle with a business which you know nothing about we have found renewed hope for regional and rural area sponsorships, through working with Australia's agricultural industries and individual States like Queensland, the Northern Territory, South Australia, Tasmania and Western Australia and the rural areas of Victoria and New South Wales.   

 

WORKING WITH IMMIGRATION DEPARTMENTS/AGENTS.     There are rules here too - and these are the ones we give to those who approach us.

  • if you have a trade, make sure you have your trades recognition process underway (see our useful links page Links to find out about this)

  • you will need to have your qualifications assessed. The DIMIA website will give you all the leads you need to find out who to approach. Have a look at the DIMIA website

  • if you have to write the English test don't protest, just do it!   It is a nuisance and no doubt an affront to think you might not speak English, but it is one of the rules.

  • there are so many visa possibilities, including RSMS which is the Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme mentioned above, particularly to states outside Queensland and New South Wales.   If you possess a skill one of these other States requires, the State can sponsor you and this will not only increase your priority, but also your point count.

THE BOTTOM LINE : 

  • PERSISTENCE, PERSISTENCE, PERSISTENCE

  • RESPONDING IMMEDIATELY TO E-MAILS

  • KEEPING IN TOUCH