On 18 April 2017, the Hon Malcolm Turnbull MP, Prime Minister of Australia and the Hon Peter Dutton MP, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection jointly announced that the Temporary Work (Skilled) visa (subclass 457 visa) will be abolished and replaced with the completely new Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) visa which will support businesses in addressing genuine skill shortages.
This visa allows a business to employ someone from outside Australia in a skilled job in Australia.
Features
This visa allows a business to employ someone from outside Australia in a skilled job in Australia.
If you hold this visa, you can:
Work in Australia for up to four years
Bring your family with you
Travel in and out of Australia as often as you want
Requirements
You can apply for this visa if you:
Are sponsored by an employer to fill a nominated skilled position
Have skills, qualifications, experience and an employment background that match those required for the position
Have demonstrated your English language ability
Are eligible for any relevant licences or registration required for the nominated position
Have health insurance.
How this visa works
The subclass 457 visa is for skilled workers from outside Australia who have been sponsored and nominated by a business to work in Australia on a temporary basis.
A business can sponsor a skilled worker if they cannot find an appropriately skilled Australian citizen or permanent resident to fill a skilled position listed in the Consolidated Sponsored Occupations List.
The information on this page provides an overview of the sponsorship – nomination – application process. Read the following information before starting any process under this visa:
Sponsoring – how to become a sponsor
Nominating – how to nominate a skilled worker
Applying – how to apply for a visa
After applying – waiting for a decision
Obligations – the conditions and obligations of sponsors and skilled workers under the subclass 457 visa program
Become a sponsor
This information explains how a business can sponsor skilled workers from outside Australia.
The purpose of the sponsorship stage is to confirm that the business wanting to employ the skilled worker:
Is a lawfully operating business
Has no adverse information about it or any of its directors
Meets the department’s training requirements (Australian businesses only).
Australian businesses must also demonstrate their commitment to employing local labour and non-discriminatory employment practices.
As an approved sponsor, you can nominate an unlimited number of subclass 457 visa applicants (or visa holders) as long as your standard business sponsorship or labour agreement is valid.
If you are not familiar with the subclass 457 visa process read the following information pages to understand the sponsor application process. Lodging an incomplete or incorrect sponsorship application could lead to substantial delays.
If you are familiar with the eligibility requirements and employer obligations for the subclass 457 visa, you can go directly to Prepare and lodge your sponsorship application.
Nominate a skilled worker
Nomination is the process of identifying an eligible occupation in a business to be filled by a skilled overseas worker. The nomination process is required for both standard business sponsors and parties to a labor agreement. The purpose of the nomination process is to identify all of the following:
The occupation relevant to the position to be filled
The skills and experience required for the position
The market salary rate for the position and the salary rate to be paid to the prospective overseas employee
The name of the prospective overseas employee
The location where the employee will be working
If you are not familiar with the subclass 457 visa process, please read the following information pages to understand the nomination process. Lodging an incomplete or incorrect nomination application could lead to substantial delays.
