I am successful investor in my home country but I wish to make Australia my new home.
Lawyer Answers (1): Answers from lawyers are general preliminary responses. They are not formal legal advice and cannot taken account of all your circumstances. They do not create a lawyer–client relationship.
Answer by Kert Stavorn, Belmore 2192 NSW
- You can apply for a Significant Investor visa (subclass 132) if you have complying assets of a minimum AUD$5 million invested in Australia either in a new or established business or through approved Commonwealth, state or territory government bonds.
- During the first four years a Provisional Business visa (subclass 188) is given to the applicant. During this time you must meet certain milestones in your investments in order to be given the permanent visa.
- The Significant Investor visa now falls under the SkillSelect program so an Expression of Interest must be lodged through the system first: http://www.immi.gov.au/Work/Pages/SkillSelect/SkillSelect.aspx.
- Once your Expression of Interest is in the SkillSelect system it can be viewed by the state and territory governments who may decide to sponsor your visa application as they see fit. Each state or territory may have its own criteria for deciding which applicants to nominate. Some may contact you to discuss business possibilities. Others may wait for you to contact them. The Department of Immigration has comprehensive FAQ pages which may help or you may seek advice from a lawyer on the specific requirements of your situation.
- Complying investments may refer to:
- approved government bonds;
- ASIC regulated managed funds that invest primarily in Australia; or
- any direct investment into Australian companies by means of share acquisitions.
- This form of visa is also known as the Business Innovation and Investment visa (subclass 188 or 888) either under the Business Innovation stream or the Investment stream.