Western Australia has announced 10,000 additional skilled migration places for 2024-25.
Western Australia Premier Roger Cook confirmed the new agreement with the Australian federal government to provide 10,000 skilled migration places.
This initiative will address critical skill shortages in the state in key sectors such as healthcare and construction.
Boosting skilled migration places will also work towards stimulating the state’s economy.
Speaking on the agreement, Mr. Cook said his government is particularly focused on supporting the residential construction industry to speed up the delivery of homes.
He also said this agreement with the Commonwealth will inform overseas markets that Western Australia is open for business.
Karen Ho, Director General of Western Australia’s Department of Training and Workforce Development (DTWD), said the 10,000 places will be divided between the Western Australia Designated Area Migration Agreement (WA DAMA) and the State Nominated Migration Program (SNMP).
The skilled migration places will be split evenly, and both programs will get 5,000 places.
She also said Western Australia needs more skilled migrants to meet growing demands from key businesses and industries, including healthcare, tourism, building and construction, hospitality, social assistance, and education and training.
DTWD Minister Simone McGurk said that securing additional skilled migration nomination allocations is crucial for filling skills gaps that cannot be filled with the local workforce.
Western Australia has already opened its 2024-25 skilled migration program.
The state has offered 3,000 skilled migration places for the Skilled Nominated (subclass 190) visa and 2,000 places for the Skilled Work Regional (subclass 491) visa.
Professor Amanda Davies, a demography expert at the University of Western Australia, said that employment opportunities primarily drive skilled migrants to choose regional Western Australia.
Western Australia is currently facing significant labour shortages across several key industries.
The state also has fewer restrictions, such as work experience requirements, than states like New South Wales or Victoria.
These factors have allowed Western Australia to offer more skilled visa opportunities with relatively straightforward conditions.
