Submission to Inquiry into Australia’s Migration Program

AAMRI’s submission to the Joint Standing Committee on Migration’s inquiry into Australia’s Migration Program emphasises the importance of the international exchange of people and ideas for the future success of Australia’s world-class medical research sector. AAMRI’s submission makes a number of specific recommendations including:

  1. Australia’s migration program should continue to prioritise job opportunities for Australians but should also be flexible enough to provide migratory pathways for outstanding international medical research talent.
  2. Appropriate employer sponsored pathways should continue to allow medical research institutes to recruit highly specialised and skilled medical researchers.
  3. In line with the age exemptions provided to the universities and government agencies for certain visas, consideration should be given to extending age exemptions to medical research institutes.
  4. Visa prioritisation for accredited employer sponsors should be extended to the Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) visa.
  5. Continue the Global Talent Visa Program and highlight its benefits to employers.
  6. Medical research institutes should be exempt from the Skilling Australia Fund Levy and instead use this funding to help directly train the next generation of medical researchers.
  7. As and when the public health situation allows find ways to allow the migration of overseas medical researchers and the recruitment of international research students.