For WA employers
Sponsoring a skilled worker in Perth and Western Australia
When a skilled role cannot be filled locally, the Skills in Demand (subclass 482) visa lets an approved sponsor employ a skilled worker in it. We act for Western Australian businesses on the whole sequence, from sponsor approval to the visa, or on the stages you need, and map any route to permanent residence at the start.
The sequence
Six steps, start to finish
Employer sponsorship is three linked approvals with steps between and after them. A defect in one can surface in the next, so order matters as much as paperwork.
Sponsor approval
Your business must be, or have applied to be, an approved sponsor before a nomination is lodged, or be negotiating a labour agreement. A party to a labour agreement is an approved work sponsor under the Migration Act, so the agreement takes the place of this step.
Labour market testing
Outside a labour agreement, the Migration Act requires the business to have tested the Australian labour market for the position first, with some exceptions. Testing must follow the manner and period the Minister sets, and the Minister must be satisfied that no suitably qualified and experienced Australian citizen or permanent resident (or, in agriculture, a working holiday maker you already employ) is readily available. A labour agreement sets its own terms. Before one is made, the business must show recent and genuine efforts to recruit Australian citizens or permanent residents, except for ministers of religion and religious assistants. We plan testing before the first advertisement runs.
Nomination of the position
The business nominates the role. Outside a labour agreement, which stream fits depends on the occupation and the fixed base earnings written into the contract: Core Skills nominations draw on the Core Skills Occupation List, and Specialist Skills nominations are assessed against a higher income threshold. Labour Agreement nominations follow the terms of the agreement.
The worker's visa
The worker applies against their own criteria: qualifications and any skills assessment for the occupation, recent relevant work experience and English as set for the stream, and the standard health and character requirements.
Sponsorship obligations
Sponsorship brings obligations set by the Migration Regulations, and for a labour agreement by its terms, such as keeping records and notifying Home Affairs of certain events. They can bind you after you stop sponsoring.
Permanent residence: a separate application
From the 482, the common next step is the Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186), through its Temporary Residence Transition, Direct Entry or Labour Agreement stream. None is automatic. Each is a fresh application assessed on its own criteria, and the transition settings have changed more than once in recent years.
Before you commit
What we check first
- Whether the business is genuine and actively trading, and whether its structure (labour hire, a group entity, a newly incorporated company) raises questions the Department may probe
- Which stream, if any, fits the role, the ANZSCO classification and the salary
- The fixed base earnings in the employment contract against the current income threshold that applies, not the advertised salary range
- Whether the duties actually performed match the ANZSCO description for the nominated occupation
- Whether the worker's references, qualifications and English evidence will carry the visa stage
- The route to permanent residence, so the first application does not close it off
Where sponsorships go wrong
Three common problems
Stream mismatch.
A role is nominated under Core Skills when the salary and classification point to Specialist Skills, or the reverse. It is usually caught late, after the business has committed to a salary structure that does not fit.
Obligations underestimated.
Sponsorship is treated as a one-off administrative step rather than an ongoing compliance relationship with the Department.
Job description mismatch.
The duties the worker actually performs do not match the ANZSCO description used for the nominated occupation. This surfaces at monitoring or at the permanent visa stage, not always at the first grant.
A rule every employer should know
Sponsorship cannot be sold
Under the Migration Act it is an offence, and a civil penalty applies, to ask for or receive a benefit in return for a sponsorship-related event, such as sponsoring or nominating a worker. Offering or providing such a benefit also attracts a civil penalty. A reasonable payment for a professional service is exempt, but the Migration Regulations separately bar a sponsor, and for a time a former sponsor, from passing sponsorship or nomination costs, including migration agent costs, on to anyone else.
If anyone asks you or your worker for a payment for sponsorship, or offers one, get advice before you go further.
Employer questions
Questions WA employers ask
What do you check about our business?
Whether it is genuine and actively trading, and whether its structure raises questions the Department may probe.
Do we have to advertise the job first?
Outside a labour agreement, yes, with some exceptions: labour market testing is a condition under the Migration Act, and it currently has to be done by advertising the position in Australia. A labour agreement has its own recruitment test. We check exceptions first.
Which occupations can be sponsored?
It depends on the stream. Core Skills needs an occupation on the Core Skills Occupation List. Specialist Skills covers particular ANZSCO major groups at a higher income threshold and excludes technicians and trades workers, machinery operators and drivers, and labourers. Labour Agreement nominations cover the occupations in the agreement. We check your role against the current settings before anything is lodged.
Does the worker need to be overseas?
Not necessarily. Many 482 workers are already in Australia on a student, working holiday or other temporary visa, and others apply from overseas on a job offer. Conditions on a worker's current visa can affect where they can apply from.
Is there a points test?
No. The 482 has no points test and no competition against other applicants. It turns on whether the sponsorship, the nomination and the worker's criteria are each met, one after another.
Can the worker become a permanent resident?
They can, commonly through the subclass 186, but it is never automatic. It is a separate application with its own criteria.
How we work with employers
One agent on the file
Better Immigration is the practice of Jagroop Gill, Registered Migration Agent (MARN 2318039), based in Canning Vale, Perth. We act for sponsoring businesses and for applicants, on the full sequence or on the stages you need. Fees are quoted at consultation for your specific matter.
General information only, not advice about your circumstances.
Planning to sponsor a worker?
A Registered Migration Agent assesses your position against current law and, if your matter needs one, writes a strategy.