Accountants highlight Australia’s skilled visa farce

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Chartered Accountants Australia & New Zealand (CA ANZ) claims there is an acute shortage of accountants, which necessitates a big lift in the nation’s ‘skilled’ migration program:

A survey of 18 firms in July revealed 519 outstanding skilled visa candidate applications for junior to intermediate level jobs, and on average at least one drop-out due to visa delays…

CA ANZ executive advocacy Simon Grant said the delays were “crippling the industry” in Australia’s challenging labour market.

“The skills shortage in Australia is dire – there is no sugar coating that,” said Mr Grant…

Mr Grant said that skilled migration was a key factor and on average it was taking up to six months to fill positions…

“For Australia to thrive, that includes tapping into the global talent market, but the current delays and restrictions on visa applications for our skilled migration workforce is crippling our industry and many others.”

CA ANZ’s whining is curious given accountants were the third highest occupation to receive permanent residency visas in 2020-21:

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And they were the main occupation to receive permanent residency visas in 2019-20:

Permanent residency visas 2019-20

Meanwhile, last year’s skilled migration report from the Grattan Institute showed that accountants have routinely exploited Australia’s immigration system, despite there being “tens of thousands of prospective skilled workers qualified in accountancy”:

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Current occupation lists, which notionally target skills shortages, do not prioritise migrants in high-skill, high-wage occupations likely to best benefit the Australian community. Further, occupation lists are not well placed to identify skills shortages, since relevant data on wages are not available at a sufficiently detailed level. Instead, occupation lists are heavily shaped by vested interests…

The most prominent contemporary example is accounting. In SkillSelect, there are tens of thousands of prospective skilled workers qualified in accountancy. As Figure 7.11 shows, the number of expressions of interest for a points-tested visa submitted by qualified accountants is equivalent to roughly one fourth of the total number of accountants employed in Australia today. People appear to be studying accountancy because it is on the list.

Accountant visas

The federal government’s own historical skills shortage list shows that accountants have not been in shortage since 2008 (i.e. 13 years ago).

The Department of Education, Skills and Employment’s latest skills shortage report for accounting, which is curiously no longer available on its site, also noted that “employers attracted an average of 14.6 qualified applicants per vacancy” for accounting positions in 2017-18. However, because employers preferred candidates with two or more years of experience, “a large proportion of these applicants were considered to be unsuitable”.

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According to the ABS, the average accountant in Australia was 40.5 years old and earned $78,988 in 2018. This compares to the average Australian, who was 39.8 years old and earned $67,012.

Therefore, despite sacrificing three-to-four years of study at university, the average accountant in Australia earned only 18% more than the national average in 2018, which includes unskilled workers and casuals.

Given there is a bonafide surplus of accountants across Australia, why is accounting even included on Australia’s skilled occupations list?

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It’s time to cut through the bull and require all skilled visas to be paid above the median full-time salary, which was $83,000 late last year.

Currently 60% of temporary ‘skilled’ visas are issued below the median full time salary, due to the Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT) being set at the appallingly low level of $53,900.

Setting the threshold above the median full-time salary, and applying it to all temporary and permanent skilled visas, would end low-wage ‘skilled’ immigration. It would ensure that businesses only hire migrant workers to fill genuinely skilled positions, rather than as a tool for undercutting local workers, reducing wage costs, and eliminating the need for training. And it would maximise benefits to the federal budget and economy.

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About the author
Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness. Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.