In first such move since the 1950s, tax breaks to be offered by government ‘strike teams’
Australia is setting its sights on top global companies and talent to help bolster economic recovery in the wake of COVID-19.
A newly created government taskforce has been called on to formulate incentives – such as tax breaks, special visas and research grants – to convince high-value foreign businesses and talent to relocate to Australia.
The Global Business and Talent Attraction Taskforce, to be overseen by the home affairs department, will focus on businesses worth more than $250m which have the potential to generate employment opportunities as part of the Morrison government’s JobMaker program.
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The government is open to helping businesses currently operating in key markets such as Hong Kong, Singapore, the US and the UK set up operations in Australia. Incentives will initially be offered to companies in advanced manufacturing, financial services and financial technology, as well as pharmaceutics and medical, agricultural and food technology, The Australian reported.
The initiative will highlight Australia’s advantages in light of the global health and financial crisis.
Despite the challenges of the pandemic, the country has managed to keep its record of COVID-19 cases low; maintained social harmony; and performed relatively better than other economies.
“Australia has always been an attractive destination for talent and investment, but given our relative success economically, from a health perspective, and socially, we will be even more attractive,” said Acting Immigration Minister Alan Tudge, who unveiled the plans.
“We want to capitalise on this and be very focused on attracting key businesses and global super talent to Australia,” he said.
Government “strike teams” across states and territories aim to recruit highly skilled individuals such as scientists, entrepreneurs, investors and tech gurus.
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The taskforce will likely expand the country’s global talent visa scheme which enables Australian companies to sponsor highly skilled foreign workers to fill niche positions.
The international campaign is expected to see the first wave of entrants in early 2021.
Tudge said the program is Australia’s first attempt since the 1950s to attract global talent on a massive scale. “The global context had significantly changed, and many talented people and businesses will now be looking to places like Australia,” he said.
The Global Talent Employer Sponsored program will only allow employers to sponsor overseas workers for highly-skilled niche positions that cannot be filled by Australian workers or through other standard visa programs such as the Short-term stream and Medium-term stream of the Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) visa, according to the Home Affairs website.
Before the Department enters into an agreement, businesses will need to demonstrate that they can’t fill the position through existing skilled visa programs.
