Move to Australia, skip the recession

IT professionals recession-proofing careers by emigrating to Australia

It seems to be all doom and gloom for the IT industry with many home-grown professionals finding it hard to find job security in the UK amidst mass redundancies and job losses to temporary overseas workers. However, increasing numbers of skilled workers are skipping the recession by emigrating to Australia, where IT professionals are in high demand.

Last year, Australia was again the top destination for migrating Britons with some 23,000 making the move, and Australia is no longer seen as the financial backwater of the world and just a lifestyle move.

“Of course the lure of the glittering beaches, open spaces, and high quality of life Down Under will never be overlooked, but Australia is increasingly attractive to emigrants because it looks to be pulling out of the global recession sooner than Britain,” said Guy Bradley, Director of the Australian Visa Bureau.

Australia’s economy is expected to soar out of the economic downturn sooner and more sharply than Britain, according to forecasts from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development who are understood to have the backing of the Australian Treasury.

IT professionals are also in an enviable position in the Australian General Skilled Migration system and have a number of migration pathways open to them.

“As many IT professionals have critical skills needed throughout Australia, and/or are on specific state and territory sponsored lists, the Government will fast-track them through the skilled migration process, and process their visas as a matter of priority,” said Guy Bradley from the Australian Visa Bureau.

IT professionals who are on the Australian Critical Skills List, and most State and Territory lists, for priority processing include systems managers, systems designers, software designers, applications and analyst programmers, and systems programmers.

Also for priority processing are computing professionals specialising in:

CISSP
C++/C#/C
data warehousing
Java and Java script
J2EE
Linux
IT risk management
Lotus notes
.Net technologies
Network Security/Firewall/Internet Security
Oracle
PeopleSoft
SAP
Systems analysis
SIEBEL (especially Siebel Analytic)
Unix
Solaris
Unix
Cobol

CORBA
DB2
DELPHI
E-commerce security
E-commerce security (non-programming)
GIS (eg. MAPINFO)
HP-UX
IT project management
Microsoft SQL server
PKI
Powerbuilder
Powerhouse
Progress
SNA
Sybase SQL server
VMS
Networking LAN/WAN
IPX
Advanced web design

The Australian General Skilled Migration program is points based. Points are allocated based on age, language, skill, occupation and experience. To determine how many points you are eligibile for, take the online assessment.

Applicants whose skills are found on the Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL) are given additional points; with those with skills found on the Critical Skills List (CSL) or who receive sponsorship from an Australian State or Territory have fast-track visa processing.

Australian Visa Bureau is an independent immigration advisory service specialising in visas and immigration for UK nationals looking to live and work in Australia. Based in central London, the company offers a range of services and free online assessments for individuals and families considering a new life abroad. Visit visabureau.com/australia for up-to-date news, information and free online visa assessments.