There are temporary and permanent visa options available to Australian companies that have a genuine need to employ skilled foreign workers.
The most popular and often controversial option to hire and retain foreign workers in Australia is the Temporary Work (Skilled) subclass 457 visa.
Applying for a 457 visa is a three stage process.
Before being able to hire a foreign worker on a 457, an Australian company has to first get approval from the Department of Immigration to be a ‘Standard Business Sponsor’. When applying for sponsorship approval the Australian company must demonstrate to the Department of Immigration, amongst other requirements, that they are in a sound financial position and that they will meet ‘Training Benchmarks’.
After the Australian company has been approved as a sponsor they are then able to nominate a position to be filled by a foreign worker. In order for the nomination to be approved, the Australian company must be prepared to pay the foreign worker a salary that is above the Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold. The terms and conditions of employment must be the same as the terms and conditions provided to an Australian citizen or permanent resident. The Australian company may also have to undertake labour market testing depending on the type of occupation that the nomination is for.
The final stage is to apply for the visa itself. Depending on the applicant’s occupation, salary, and experience it may be necessary to provide a skills assessment and also evidence of English proficiency.
Once granted a 457 visa holder can stay in Australia for up to 4 years (although the grant may be for a period of only 12 months if the business sponsor is a new ‘start up’ business).
For more information click here or contact West Aussie Migration.
The subclass 186 Employer Nomination Scheme allows employers to sponsor foreign workers for permanent residence so that they can fill genuine vacancies in their business.
The subclass 186 Employer Nomination Scheme has three steams:
- Temporary Residence Transition (TRT) Stream – for people who have already been working for their employer on a 457 for two years,
- Direct Entry Stream – for people who do not meet the two year requirement under the TRT stream, and the
- Agreement stream – for people being sponsored by any employer that has negotiated a labour agreement with the Federal Government.
Similar to the application process under the Temporary Work 457 scheme, the business must nominate a position to be filled by a foreign worker, and then apply for the visa itself.
In order to make a valid nomination under the Employer Nomination Scheme, the occupation must be one that is listed on the Consolidated Sponsored Occupations List.
Once the nomination is approved, the Department of Immigration then assess the visa application. If an applicant applies for the visa under the Temporary Residence Transition Stream, they only have to prove functional English, applicants under the Direct Entry Stream have to show evidence of competent English.
For more information about nomination and visa application requirements under the Employer Nomination Scheme please do not hesitate to contact West Aussie Migration.
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