Fix the System, Keep the Doors Open: Ai Group's Skilled Migration Asks Explained for Workers and Employers

News · 2026-08-25 · 3 min read

A major employer voice has joined Australia's debate about skills shortages, and what it is saying matters to anyone dreaming of a skilled job there. The Australian Industry Group (Ai Group), one of the country's most influential employer associations, has formally made its case on skilled migration. Its message to policymakers is simple: do not reduce the intake, improve how the system works.

Who said what, and where

The views were set out in a submission to the Joint Standing Committee on Migration's inquiry into the value of skilled migration. Ai Group chief executive Innes Willox said businesses need a migration system that is predictable instead of driven by politics. According to him, the industries at the heart of modern Australia, namely housing, infrastructure, manufacturing, health and aged care, cannot keep running without migrant talent, because local training pipelines are not producing enough people quickly enough to fill those roles.

Whether you already work overseas, for example in the Middle East, or you are still building experience back home in the Philippines, it helps to understand this kind of submission. It is more than industry talk. It shows where policy pressure is likely to build over the next 12 months, for businesses that hire internationally and for skilled workers hoping to settle in Australia.

The four requests, one by one

1. Keep permanent intake where it is

Ai Group is not asking for more places. Its stance is to protect what exists by keeping permanent skilled migration at current levels. The reasoning is easy to follow: vacancies in construction, energy and care are still running ahead of local supply, so any cut could slow down big projects that have already started.

2. Make qualification recognition simpler

Employers and migrants alike often complain that getting overseas qualifications and licences recognised in Australia is slow and inconsistent. Ai Group wants that process streamlined, particularly for occupations with critical shortages. For a worker, this would mean less waiting between receiving a visa grant and actually starting the job.

3. Faster, steadier visa processing

The submission names the Skills in Demand visa and the Subclass 186 (Employer Nomination Scheme) as visas where delays are causing genuine uncertainty for businesses. Employers often plan their workforce months ahead, and turnaround times that cannot be predicted can hurt them as much as the shortage itself.

4. Better public communication

Perhaps the most notable request is for a proper communication strategy that helps everyday Australians see how skilled migration supports the essential services, housing and infrastructure they rely on. It reflects a growing understanding in industry that public opinion, and not only policy design, influences how much political appetite there is for migration settings.

Why the timing is sensitive

This contribution comes at a delicate time. Migration numbers are still a politically charged subject, and some groups keep pushing to tighten intake as a way to improve housing affordability. Ai Group challenges that view head-on, arguing that cutting skilled migration would make pressure on housing delivery, infrastructure timelines and business investment worse rather than better.

For migration agents, employers and future applicants, the lesson is that Australia's skilled migration settings are still very much under discussion. Committee hearings over the coming months could influence visa processing times, occupation lists and sponsorship pathways for years ahead.

What you can do now

Stay patient and stay informed. Follow updates from the inquiry through official government sources, keep your qualification documents organised and ready, and check any changes to occupation lists or processing times yourself before making big decisions. Kaya natin ito with good preparation.

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