The most common temporary visa that allows work in Australia is the subclass 457 Temporary Work (Skilled) visa.his visa lets a skilled worker travel to Australia to work in their nominated occupation for their approved sponsor for up to four years.
You might be able to get this visa if:
- you have been sponsored by an approved business
- you have the required skills to fill a position nominated by an approved business.
By far the most common type of subclass 457 visa applications is one that comes under a Standard Business Sponsorship (‘SBS’). Applying for this type of subclass 457 visa involves 3 steps:
1. The sponsoring company applies for approval as a Standard Business Sponsor;
2. The sponsoring company applies for approval of the nominated position;
3. The prospective employee applies for a subclass 457 visa to fill the nominated role with the nominated sponsor.
Standard Business Sponsor
Who can become a sponsor: To become a sponsor, you must be able to show that your business:
- is a lawfully operating business
- has no relevant adverse information against your business.
The standard business sponsorship arrangement is the most common way to sponsor a skilled worker using the subclass 457 visa program. You must lodge an application to become a standard business sponsor.
You can have only one standard business sponsorship approved at any given time (that is, one sponsorship approval per legal entity) which is usually valid for five years. You can apply to extend your sponsorship at any time during this five-year period by lodging a variation application.
The requirements for approval as a standard business sponsor differ for businesses that are outside and in Australia.
Business in Australia
You must attest, in writing, that you have a strong record of, or a demonstrated commitment to employing local labour. You must also declare that you will not engage in discriminatory recruitment practices.
Make the attestation and the declaration about your workplace record in your sponsorship application form.
You must also meet training requirements. This means you must either:
- meet the training benchmarks if you have traded in Australia for 12 months or more
- have an auditable plan to meet the training benchmarks if you have been trading in Australia for less than 12 months.
Business outside Australia
You must be seeking to employ a skilled worker to either:
- establish, or help establish, a business operation in Australia
- fulfil obligations for a contract in Australia.
Nomination
Nomination is the process of identifying a position to be filled by a skilled worker from outside Australia in an approved business. Nomination is required for both standard business sponsors and parties to a labour agreement.
The nomination process identifies:
- the occupation is 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
- where the employee will be working.
Apply for 457 Visa
To apply you must:
- be nominated to work in an approved occupation on the Skilled Occupation Lists
- meet the skill requirements for the nominated occupation
- meet registration and licensing obligations
- speak vocational English
- have been nominated by an approved business.