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Everyone is curious on the effect of the significant changes to partner points from 16/11/2019.
The following changes will be implemented on that date:
Partner points (only 1 score allowed)
10 points – if you are single
10 points – if you have a partner who is an Australian citizen or Permanent resident
10 points – if partner has an acceptable skills assessment and competent English:
05 points – if your partner has competent English (IELTS 6,6,6,6 or equivalent)
00 points – any other case
This will affect ALL the points test categories for EOIs not yet invited (189,190,491).
Also note that the 489 will close on that date as well.
Also EOIs are then ranked the following way if points are EQUAL:
Ranking Order (if all other points claims are EQUAL)
First – primary applicants with a skilled spouse or de facto partner
Equal First – primary applicants without a spouse or de facto partner
Second – Primary applicants with a spouse or de facto partner who can demonstrate competent English but does not have the skills for skilled partner points (age and skills)
Third – Primary applicants with a partner who is ineligible for either competent English or Skilled partner points.
These applicants will be ranked below all other cohorts, if all other points claims are equal. Currently 66% of points test applications have a partner included and 34% are single people. So going forward approximately one third of all EOIs (the single applicants) will gain 10 extra points on 16/11/2019.
The other two thirds of all EOIs (those people with a partner) will gain 0, 5 or 10 points depending on the skills and English language ability of their partner. To break this down only 10% of those applicants with a partner are currently claiming partner points (i.e. they have an acceptable skills assessment). The other 90% of those with a partner will have to hope their partner’s English is at least competent (IELTS 6,6,6,6 or equivalent) to get 5 points. Currently only 12% (of all application) declare partner English skills at this level in their visa applications. Although presumably some could do better if they had to, and we have assumed this will happen.
(In the past DHA required the partner’s occupation to be on the same list as the primary applicant to claim partner points. Until we see something different we will have to assume that is the same rule in November 2019).
So in summary from 16/11/2019 we believe that on an existing EOI score on 16/11/2019:
34% will gain 10 points from being single or having an aussie partner
06% will gain 10 points from a partner with skills assessment and competent English
20% will gain 5 points from having a partner with competent English
40% will gain 0 points
The effect of this is if you are competing in an occupation where the invitations are being given at 80 points AFTER 16/11/2019, and your partner has no skills assessment and poor English you are going to struggle. This is because if you only get 80 points, you will be ranked at the BOTTOM of all the 80 point EOIs. So you are going to need 85 points for an invitation.
That is going to be hard when you can’t claim any partner points at all!
In short what DHA are saying is that if you have a partner on your application they are potentially taking away an invitation that could have gone to another single highly skilled applicant. So your partner had better have skills or at least good English language ability.
These new changes (there are also specialist study points) will affect the time taken for people to get an EOI invitation to lodge their points test visas. We will factor these in when we have more information about DHAs policy on this asap.

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