Employer Sponsorship FAQs
31 clear answers for Australian employers — Standard Business Sponsorship, the Core Skills Occupation List, nominations, the SAF levy, sponsor obligations, audits, and PR pathways via the 186 visa.
What do Australian employers ask most about visa sponsorship?
This page answers 31 common questions about Australian employer-sponsored visas — covering Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS), the Core Skills Occupation List (CSOL), nomination decisions, the SAF levy, sponsor obligations, audits, and PR pathways via the 186 visa. Verified May 2026 by a Registered Migration Agent.
Getting Started as a Sponsor
Employer-sponsored migration allows Australian businesses to hire skilled overseas workers when suitable local candidates are unavailable. The employer first becomes an approved sponsor, then nominates the specific role, and the worker applies for the visa.
The three primary employer-sponsored visas are the Skills in Demand Visa (Subclass 482) for temporary workers, the Employer Nomination Scheme (Subclass 186) for permanent residence, and the Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Subclass 494) for regional businesses.
Most lawfully operating Australian businesses can apply for sponsorship approval, including:
- Pty Ltd companies, partnerships, and sole traders
- Non-profit organisations and charities
- Government bodies and agencies
- Foreign companies with an established Australian presence
Your business must be actively trading in Australia and have a genuine need for the role. Newer businesses can apply, but must demonstrate genuine business activity and the financial capacity to pay the nominated salary.
- Subclass 482 – Skills in Demand: Temporary visa (2–4 years). Suitable for most skilled roles on the Core Skills Occupation List (CSOL). Can lead to permanent residence via the 186 Transition to Permanent stream.
- Subclass 186 – ENS: Permanent residence. Available via Direct Entry or Transition to Permanent (after 2+ years on a 482).
- Subclass 494: Temporary regional visa for businesses outside major cities. Leads to permanent residence via Subclass 191 after holding the visa for 3 years, complying with its conditions and providing ATO notices of assessment for 3 income years.
Processing times change monthly. Check the Department's current processing times before you plan.
Accredited sponsors receive priority processing for Subclass 482 and 494 nominations and visa applications.
You are not legally required to use a migration agent. However, employer-sponsored migration is among the most complex areas of Australian immigration law. Errors in sponsorship, nomination, or visa applications can cause significant delays, refusals, or sponsor bans.
A Registered Migration Agent (MARA-registered) assesses your eligibility, identifies risks before lodgement, prepares compliant applications, and represents you with the Department of Home Affairs — protecting both you and your sponsored worker.
Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS)
Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS) is the Department of Home Affairs' formal approval confirming your business is authorised to sponsor overseas workers. Without SBS approval, you cannot nominate any worker for a 482, 186, or 494 visa.
SBS is lodged online via ImmiAccount. Once approved, it is typically valid for 5 years and allows unlimited nominations. Your business must be lawfully operating and demonstrate it will meet all sponsor obligations.
Accredited sponsorship is a higher tier with significantly faster processing — typically 1–2 weeks for nominations vs 2–6 months for standard sponsors. Eligibility is restricted to:
- ASX or NZX listed companies
- Australian or foreign government agencies
- Businesses with high-volume sponsorship activity (generally 30+ sponsored workers per year)
Most small-to-medium businesses will not meet accredited criteria and should apply as a standard sponsor.
Yes. Profitability is not a strict legal requirement. What the Department assesses is that your business is lawfully operating and has the financial capacity to pay the nominated salary for the visa period.
Start-ups and recently established businesses can apply, but should provide evidence of business activity (contracts, invoices, client relationships) and financial projections or funding arrangements demonstrating capacity to pay.
There is no legal cap on the number of simultaneously sponsored workers under SBS. You can sponsor multiple workers at once, provided each has a genuine position and you can demonstrate financial capacity to pay all nominated salaries.
Each worker requires a separate nomination application and the full SAF levy payment for their individual stream, visa period, and salary level.
Nomination Requirements
The Core Skills Occupation List (CSOL) is the official list of eligible occupations for the Core Skills stream of the Subclass 482 visa. It consolidated the occupation lists previously used for employer-sponsored skilled visas.
If your role is on the CSOL, the worker can be sponsored under the Core Skills stream. Roles not on the CSOL may qualify under the Specialist Skills stream (income threshold applies) or a Labour Agreement.
- Core Skills stream: For CSOL occupations. Worker must be paid at or above the Annual Market Salary Rate (AMSR) with a minimum floor (currently $79,423 p.a. for 2026–27).
- Specialist Skills stream: For high-income professionals not on the CSOL. Requires income of at least $146,576 p.a. for 2026–27. No occupation list restriction applies.
- Labour Agreement stream: For occupations and special arrangements negotiated directly between an industry or employer and the Australian Government.
Labour Market Testing (LMT) requires you to demonstrate a genuine attempt to recruit locally before sponsoring an overseas worker. Standard requirements:
- Advertise on at least 2 platforms — one must be a national jobs board (Seek, LinkedIn, etc.)
- Ads must run for at least 4 consecutive weeks within the 4 months before lodging the nomination
- Keep full records: copies of ads, applications received, and written reasons why local candidates were not suitable
LMT is required for most Core Skills nominations. Exemptions apply where international trade obligations exist or where the worker is an intra-company transfer.
The Annual Market Salary Rate (AMSR) is the total compensation you would pay an equivalent Australian employee in the same role, same location, with the same experience and duties. You must pay your sponsored worker at least this rate.
The AMSR includes all monetary remuneration (base salary, superannuation, allowances) but excludes non-monetary benefits unless standard for the role in Australia.
Where no comparable Australian employee exists, the AMSR is established using industry salary surveys, enterprise agreements, and award rates.
The Department of Home Affairs must be satisfied that the nominated position genuinely exists within your business, is consistent with your size and operations, and the duties accurately match the nominated ANZSCO occupation code.
Nominations are refused where the Department believes the role was created primarily to enable someone to migrate, or where the duties are inconsistent with the ANZSCO classification. A detailed position description and supporting organisational evidence significantly reduce this risk.
Visa Application & Processing
Yes. Eligible secondary applicants — typically a spouse or de facto partner and dependent children — can be included in the same visa application. They receive identical visa conditions and expiry dates as the primary holder.
Secondary applicants generally have full work and study rights in Australia on the same visa. The employer bears no financial responsibility for secondary applicants' visa fees.
- Core Skills stream: Skills assessment required for most occupations unless the worker holds a qualifying qualification or meets a legislative exemption.
- Specialist Skills stream: No skills assessment required.
Each occupation has a designated assessing authority — Engineers Australia (engineering), VETASSESS (most trades and professionals), AHPRA (health). Assessments typically take 2–6 months. Building this into your timeline early is critical.
A worker already in Australia holding a substantive visa with work rights (e.g., student visa, another temporary visa) may be able to work for you while the 482 is being processed — if their existing visa conditions allow it.
Offshore workers must wait for their visa to be granted and then enter Australia before commencing employment.
If your nomination is refused, you may apply for merits review at the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) — provided the refusal was not for certain mandatory refusal grounds. Review applications must be lodged within 28 days of the refusal decision (14 days if you are in immigration detention). The 28 days run from the day the Department's email or ImmiAccount notice is sent, not the day you read it, and cannot be extended.
Alternatively, you may be able to address the deficiencies and lodge a fresh nomination. A migration agent can assess which strategy — review or re-lodgement — is more likely to succeed.
Costs & SAF Levy
The Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) levy is a mandatory training contribution paid by the employer at nomination for Subclass 482, 494, and 186 visas. It funds vocational training for Australian workers.
- Small business (under $10M turnover): $1,200 per year per worker
- Large business ($10M+ turnover): $1,800 per year per worker
Example: a 4-year 482 nomination with a large employer = $7,200 total paid upfront at nomination.
No. It is illegal to recover the SAF levy, sponsorship application fee, or nomination application fee from the sponsored worker — whether directly, via salary deductions, repayment agreements, or any indirect means.
This is a strict sponsor obligation under the Migration Act. Breaching it can result in civil penalties, sponsor sanctions, and cancellation of your sponsorship approval.
Employer costs (government fees):
- Standard Business Sponsorship: $420 (one-off, valid 5 years)
- Nomination application: $330 per worker
- SAF levy: $1,200 or $1,800 per year of visa period
Worker costs (government fees):
- Primary visa applicant: approximately $4,015
- Secondary applicants: additional fees per person (check current DHA schedule)
If the nomination or visa is refused: the SAF levy is generally not refundable.
If the worker's visa ceases early (e.g., the worker leaves before the visa period ends): a partial refund of the unused portion may be available. This refund is not automatic — you must apply to the Department of Home Affairs, and conditions apply.
Yes, in certain circumstances. If the sponsored worker requests it and the relevant conditions are met, you may be required to pay for the worker's return travel to their home country at the end of the visa period or when they cease employment.
This obligation ceases if the worker has been granted a further visa, becomes a permanent resident, or leaves for another reason.
Sponsor Obligations & Compliance
Sponsor obligations are ongoing and apply for the duration of each worker's visa. Key obligations include:
- Pay the AMSR — always pay at or above the market salary rate
- No cost recovery — never charge the SAF levy, sponsorship fee, or nomination fee to the worker
- Record-keeping — maintain specified records for at least 2 years after sponsorship ceases
- Cooperation with inspections — allow Department of Home Affairs inspectors access to records and premises
- Notification obligations — report changes: worker ceasing employment, business structure changes, business ceasing to operate
- No unlawful work assignments — do not allow the worker to work outside the nominated occupation without approval
Records must allow the Department to verify compliance with all obligations. Required records typically include:
- Payslips and salary records confirming AMSR compliance
- Employment contracts and all variations
- Records of tasks and duties performed
- Copies of all visa and nomination correspondence
- Training records demonstrating workforce investment (where applicable)
Records must be retained for 2 years after the sponsorship obligation ceases.
If a sponsored worker leaves your employment (for any reason), you must notify the Department of Home Affairs within 28 days of becoming aware the employment has ceased.
The worker's visa is not automatically cancelled. They generally have up to 180 consecutive days (365 in total across the visa) to find a new sponsor, apply for a different visa, or arrange to depart Australia.
Consequences for non-compliance can be severe and include:
- Civil penalties of up to $87,360 per contravention (240 penalty units at $364, from 1 July 2026) for a sponsor that is not a company, and up to $436,800 for a company sponsor (five times, Migration Act s 486R(5)(a)), under s140Q of the Migration Act 1958 for serious obligations
- Infringement notices for less serious breaches
- Cancellation or suspension of sponsorship approval
- Being barred from sponsoring workers for a specified period
- Public naming as a non-compliant sponsor
The Department actively monitors sponsors through audits, data matching, and worker complaints.
Pathways to Permanent Residence
The primary pathway from a 482 visa to permanent residence is the Subclass 186 – Transition to Permanent (TTP) stream. General requirements include:
- Held a 482 (or predecessor TSS/457) visa for at least 2 years in the same or a closely related occupation
- Nominated by the same or an associated employer for a permanent, full-time position
- Continue to meet health and character requirements
- Be under 45 years of age (some occupational and regional exemptions apply)
The Direct Entry (DE) stream allows employers to nominate a worker for permanent residence without requiring them to have first held a 482 visa. This is suitable when the employer wants to offer a permanent position from the outset and the worker meets all skills assessment, English, and age requirements.
The DE stream still requires SBS approval, a valid nomination, and generally Labour Market Testing unless an exemption applies.
Yes. For the Subclass 186, the employer must nominate the worker for a full-time, ongoing (permanent) position. The role cannot be project-based, casual, or fixed-term.
Once the 186 is granted, there is no minimum period the worker is required to remain with that employer — the visa is permanent and unconditional. However, the employer's genuine intent at nomination is assessed and must be real.
The Subclass 494 is a 5-year temporary visa for employers in regional Australia. After the worker has held the 494 for at least 3 years, complied with its conditions and can provide ATO notices of assessment for 3 income years (no minimum income is currently set), they may be eligible to apply for the Subclass 191 – Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional) visa.
For regional employers who want to build a stable, long-term workforce, the 494 → 191 pathway is increasingly popular. Salary requirements and regional area definitions apply.
Still have questions about sponsoring overseas workers?
Get answers specific to your business, role, and candidate. Speak directly with a MARA-registered migration agent — MARA-registered migration agent, 18+ years experience.
Sources and last checked dates
- Migration Act 1958 — sections 140Q, 347, 486R and 494C, Federal Register of Legislation checked 29 September 2026 open ↗
- Migration Regulations 1994 — Schedule 1 item 1139, Schedule 2 clauses 186.226 and 191.221–191.222, and regulation 2.72 checked 29 September 2026 open ↗
- Administrative Review Tribunal — Immigration and citizenship review checked 29 September 2026 open ↗
- Department of Home Affairs — cost of sponsoring (Skilling Australians Fund levy) checked 8 September 2026 open ↗
- Department of Home Affairs — salary requirements to nominate a worker (CSIT and annual market salary rate) verified 19 August 2026 open ↗
- Department of Home Affairs — Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482) checked 8 September 2026 open ↗
- Department of Home Affairs — Employer Nomination Scheme visa (subclass 186) checked 8 September 2026 open ↗
- Department of Home Affairs — Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 494) checked 16 September 2026 open ↗
- Department of Home Affairs — Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional) visa (subclass 191) checked 21 September 2026 open ↗