Australia’s first ever lottery-style visa, the subclass 192 – Pacific Engagement visa, which will grant up to 3,000 permanent visas for citizens of Pacific Island nations and Timor-Leste this program year, will commence from 29 March 2024.

According to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the exact countries that will be eligible for this scheme have yet to be confirmed. Priority will be given to countries whose citizens do not have other permanent migration opportunities or citizenship rights to other developed nations.

The regulations for this visa have been registered. For those who have been selected, the base visa application charge for the primary applicant is $325 with additional partner or dependent children costing $80 each in a combined application.

Visa applicants can be in Australia but must hold a substantive visa or a Bridging visa A, B or C.

Further requirements for the primary visa applicant to lodge a valid visa application include:

• Having been selected in the visa pre‑application process,

• Being at least 18 years old and no more than 45 years old when the visa pre‑application process is opened,

• Holding a valid passport from a specific country for the visa pre‑application process,

• They, or one of their parents, was born in a country specified for the visa pre‑application process, they are a citizen of that country, and are not a New Zealand citizen,

• They have lodged their visa application before a date specified when they are selected.

The criteria for approval require:

• either the primary applicant or their partner if they are included in the visa application, have an offer of genuine, ongoing employment in Australia, and the terms and conditions of that employment are no less favourable than that which apply, or would apply, to an Australian citizen performing equivalent work,

• their employer must not have any adverse information or if they do it can be disregarded.

• they have access to adequate means to support themselves,

• all visa applicants complied substantially with their previous visa conditions unless it is reasonable to disregard this, other than visa condition 8303 which is to not become involved in activities disruptive to, or violence threatening harm to, the Australian community or a group within the Australian community

• the primary applicant and their partner, if made a combined application, satisfies an as yet unknown level of English language ability

• all visa applicants and members of the family unit who are not visa applicants (partner and/or dependent children) satisfy health and character requirements. The health requirement has access to a health waiver.

There are many references to technical definitions, however, most stem from the visa pre‑application process. This is the mechanism that creates the ballot, which will also come into effect on 29 March 2024.

Tickets for the ballot will cost $25 according to the relevant instrument that sets the amount.

If the ballot closes and the registration is not selected, the aspiring visa applicant must submit another registration and pay another ballot fee.

Hopefully, a full list of participating countries and English language requirements will be provided in due course to give certainty to interested parties.

As there is a need for an offer of employment in Australia, registrations should be heavily dominated by those already in Australia and likely the holder of a subclass 403 - Temporary Work (International Relations) visa in the Pacific Labour Scheme stream.

With the legislation creating a ballot system in place, it just may be that a ballot may extend to other types of visas in the future.