The short stay activity visa allows the visa applicant to enter Australia to:

• Undertake highly specialised work or;
• Participate in an event or events on a non-ongoing basis at the invitation of an Australian organisation

Conditions include:

• The work must be non-ongoing
• The visa is automatically for 3 months stay although a maximum term of 6 months, can be provided if the applicant can demonstrate the need.
• The visa is activated upon arrival in Australia, so it is important that the start date for the project is close to the arrival date

Overseas employers can remain to manage all payroll and business expenses during the short-term assignment

The Training Visa subclass 407 is for people with at least 12 months’ work experience in the nominated occupation, who are seeking to undertake a structured workplace-based training programme in relation to an occupation specified on the Skilled Occupation List or the Consolidated Skilled Occupation List.​​​There are three types of occupational training (nomination eligibility types) covered by this visa:

• workplace-based training required for registration
• structured workplace-based training to enhance skills in an eligible occupation
• training that promotes capacity building overseas

The visa applicant must be sponsored by an approved Temporary Activities Sponsor or an existing Training and Research Sponsor. The occupational training must be conducted by the sponsor under a structured workplace based training programme, specifically tailored and timed to the training needs of the nominated person.

This visa allows you to come to Australia to do specific types of work on a short-term, temporary basis under the following categories:

1. 1. • Special program
      • Religious work
      • Research activities
      • Invited for other social and cultural activity
      • Sporting activities
      • Entertainment activities
      • Superyacht crew
      • Exchange arrangements
      • Australian Government endorsed events
      • Domestic work for executives

This visa has two parts

1. 1. 1. Sponsorship – an Australian organisation, government agency, foreign government agency or eligible individual applies to become a Temporary Activities Sponsor
      2. Visa Application – the visa applicant applies for the Temporary Work subclass 408

This visa allows the applicant to:

1. • stay in Australia for the period of the nominated position – the term can be up to 2 – 4 years subject to the visa category
   • do the work or activity specified in your nomination
   • bring your family to work or study in Australia
   • travel in and out of Australia as often as you want

This is the most commonly used employer sponsored visa for skilled employment. The Temporary Skilled Shortage visa subclass 482, or also known as the TSS Visa allows skilled workers to come to Australia and work for an approved business. The visa applicant must be sponsored by an approved business. A business can sponsor someone for this visa if they cannot find an Australian citizen or permanent resident to do the skilled work. You can be in or outside Australia when you lodge your application which allows you to:

• work in Australia for your sponsored employer
• bring your family to work or study in Australia

Visa validity is based against the type of occupation that you are nominated under. There are two occupation streams for the subclass 482 visa;

1. Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL) provides up to a 4 year visa with an option to go onto Permanent Residency in the future
2. Short-term Skilled Occupation List (STSOL) provides up to 2 year visa with one extension for another 2 years

The occupation lists can be found in the following link The visa applicant must:

• have been nominated by an approved Australian employer
• be offered employment under a signed contract and be paid a market rate salary for the position
• meet the skills, qualifications, English language requirements (unless exempt), character and health

This visa enables regional employers to address identified labour shortages within their region by sponsoring skilled workers where employers can’t source an appropriately skilled Australian worker The company must be an approved Standard Business Sponsor to be able to access this visa program which allows an overseas applicant to:

• work in Australia for the sponsoring employer
• bring their family to work or study in Australia

The visa conditions allow for:

• the visa applicant to be restricted to live, work and study only in designated regional areas of Australia for 5 years
• travel to and from Australia as many times as you want while the visa is valid
• if eligible, apply for permanent residence after 3 years from the time the visa is granted

If eligible, the visa holder can apply for permanent residence holding a subclass 494 visa for 3 years. Unless the visa holder has held a subclass 494 visa for more than 3 years, they are unable to:

• Make a valid application for a subclass 820 (Partner) visa or;
• Be granted any of the following visas:
• Subclass 132 (Business Talent)
• Subclass 186 (Employer Nomination Scheme)
• Subclass 188 (Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional))
• Subclass 189 (Skilled (Independent))
• Subclass 190 (Skilled (Nominated))
• Subclass 858 (Distinguished talent)

The Employer Nomination Scheme visa subclass 186 is for skilled workers who want to work and reside in Australia on a permanent basis.

The visa has two parts:

• a nomination by an approved Australian employer
• an application completed by the visa applicant

The visa has three streams:

1. The Temporary Residence Transition stream is for subclass 457 /482 visa holders who have worked for 3 years**, while holding a subclass 457/482 visa, in the same occupation with their nominating employer (who has lodged a valid nomination with us under the Temporary Residence Transition stream), who wants to offer them a permanent position in that occupation. 
2. The Direct Entry stream is for people who have been nominated by their employer under the Direct Entry stream:
   1. who have never, or only briefly, worked in Australia, or
   2. who are temporary residents that have not worked for their sponsoring employer for more than 3 years 
3. The Agreement stream is for people sponsored by an employer through a labour agreement.

The visa applicant must:

• have been nominated by an approved Australian employer for an occupation listed on the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL)**
• be within the approved age limit
• meet the skills, qualifications and English language requirements, unless exempt
• apply under the correct stream – see above

The visa is a permanent visa which then allows the applicant a pathway to citizenship in the future.

**transitional arrangements apply for certain 457 visa holders  where the occupation / term of working for the sponsor will differ from above – this will be reviewed during a consultation 

The Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme visa subclass 187 is for skilled workers who want to work and reside in Australia on a permanent basis. The visa has two parts:

• a nomination by an approved Australian employer
• an application completed by the visa applicant

This visa is only available for applicants who meet the following:

• Transitional 457 visa worker – Held a subclass 457 visa or was an applicant for a subclass 457 visa that was subsequently granted  on 18 April 2017 or;
  
  
• Transitional 482 worker – a person who on 20 March 2019 either held a TSS visa (subclass 482) in the Medium-term stream, or was an applicant for a TSS visa in the Medium-term stream that was subsequently granted.

The visa has just one stream

• The Temporary Residence Transition stream is for subclass 457/482 visa holders who have worked for three years*, while holding a subclass 457/482 visa, in the same occupation with their nominating employer (who has lodged a valid nomination with us under the Temporary Residence Transition stream), who wants to offer them a permanent position in that occupation.

*Transitional 457 visa holders may be able to access this visa after 2 years of work with their nominated sponsor.

The visa applicant must:

• have been nominated by an approved Australian employer for an occupation listed on the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL) or Regional Occupation List (ROL)
• be within the approved age limit
• meet the skills, qualifications and English language requirements, unless exempt

The visa is a permanent visa which then allows the applicant a pathway to citizenship in the future.

This visa is for people who have lived, worked and studied in designated regional area Australia on a previous, eligible visa.

With this visa you can:

• stay permanently
• work and study anywhere in Australia
• Sponsor eligible relatives for permanently residence
• apply for Australian citizenship, if eligible.

You must:

• hold an eligible visa – subclass 491 or 494
• have lived for at least 3 years and have a taxable income at or above a specific income threshold for at least three years
• both primary and secondary applicants have complied with the conditions of the eligible visa you hold or have held

The Global Talent Employer Sponsored program allows employers to sponsor overseas workers for highly-skilled niche positions that cannot be filled:

• by Australian workers
• through other standard visa programs – in particular, the Short-term stream and Medium-term stream of the Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) visa

Before the Department enters into an agreement, businesses must be able to demonstrate that they can’t fill the position through existing skilled visa programs. You will then be able to sponsor workers for a TSS visa under the GTES. The GTES is designed to benefit Australia and Australian workers. It aims to bring globally mobile, highly-skilled and specialised individuals to Australia who can act as ‘job multipliers’ in Australian businesses, helping them to hire more local staff and fill critical areas of need. Any position filled through a GTES agreement must provide opportunities for Australians by, for example:

• creating new jobs for Australians
• transferring skills and knowledge to Australian workers

You must demonstrate how you realise these opportunities throughout the GTES agreement period. The main features of the GTES are:

• trusted employers can access highly-skilled roles – you are not restricted to occupation lists for the TSS visa short-term or medium–term streams
• there are 2 streams – Established business and Startups
• the earning threshold for applicants is higher than under the standard TSS stream
• you can negotiate variations on the standard TSS visa requirements
• the visa is valid for up to 4 years and allows access to a permanent residence pathway
• you can negotiate age requirements for the permanent residence pathway
• priority processing of GTES agreements

Approved businesses must meet specific criteria and requirements to be considered for the GTES.

Businesses must meet their obligations under the term of the agreement when applying to become a Standard Business Sponsor (482) or Temporary Activity Sponsor (403, 407, 408). It is important to ensure that the company maintains its compliance obligations and notifiable updates to the department to ensure that you maintain your Sponsorship status. It is important to ensure that these notifiable events are provided to the Department promptly and that any potential issues that you face are managed quickly. Our team can support your business in providing you with a full understanding of the obligations and supporting you with a process to manage your compliance obligations. Please contact our team today to discuss.

There are two type of sponsorship subject to your business needs that includes:

• Standard Business Sponsorship for subclass 482 or;
• Temporary Activity Sponsorship for subclass 403, 407 and 408

To sponsor a worker the business must:

• be a lawfully operating business
• demonstrate it is financially stable
• have no relevant adverse information against your business
• Australian businesses must also demonstrate their commitment to employing local labour as well as non-discriminatory recruitment practices

For fuller details, please contact one of our team today.