Requirements for the employer and the employee when applying for an employer-sponsored visa

TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR THE SPONSORSHIP THE EMPLOYEE MUST:

 

- be younger than 45 years(for a permanent visa). Exemptions are available to some applicants who are nominated by Australian employers as senior academics, scientists, researchers, technical (scientific) specialists or in some cases medical practitioners. There a few other exceptions. 

 

There is no age requirement for the temporary visa TSS SC482.

 

- Demonstrate appropriate level of English skills: 

 

For permanent visas ENS SC186 and RSMS SC 187 – the employee must set one of the approved English tests (IELTS, OET,   TOEFL iBT, PTE Academic or CAE) and demonstrate Competent English , unless the employee holds a valid passport issued by the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Canada, New Zealand or the Republic of Ireland.

 

For the temporary SC 482 visa the requirements for English fluency depend on the chosen stream . 

 

- have professional qualification confirmed by the formal Skills Assessment. This requirement currently is mandatory for SC 186 visa and for some primary TSS SC482 visa applicants. For the applicants for RSMS SC 187 visa the mandatory Skills Assessment requirements should come into effect from 1st of July 2018. 

 

The Skills Assessment is the formal process which confirms that the employee’s knowledge and skills are up to the level required for nominated occupation in Australia.

 

- must have 3 years of relevant work experiencein the target occupation (confirming by references from previous employers and evidence of official salary payments).

 

IN ORDER TO BE A SPONSOR  the employer must be an actively operating business which can pay an employee base salary of AUD$53, 900 plus 9, 5% superannuationloading. 

 

The employer must prove that it has a genuine need for an employee in a skilled occupation and that the business cannot find such an employee on the Australian job market. 

 

The occupation must be approved for immigration purposes– must be included to the list of skilled occupations for the relevant visa.   it is impossible to sponsor an employee for work that does not require professional qualifications (for example, as a waiter or a handyman).

 

In addition to the above requirements a sponsoring employer must contribute to the training of Australians(from $3000 to $5000 for each sponsored employee).   

 

 

To sponsor an employee on the Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS) 186 visa, the employer can be located anywhere in Australia, including the largest and most populated Australian cities. However, only the employee whose occupations specified in the Medium and Long term Strategic Skills List (208 occupations)    can be sponsored for this visa.

 

 

 

If the nominated occupation is listed on Short Term Skilled Occupation List (which contains 242 occupations) the employee could be sponsored on a temporary basis only and the visa will be granted for a maximum of 2 years with the possibility to renew this visa once. 

 

If the nominated occupation is listed in Medium and Long Term Strategic Skills List or Regional Occupation List the employer could sponsor the foreign employee for 4 years. 

 

This stream can lead to permanent residency if the employee worked for the sponsoring employer on TSS SC 482 visa for at least 3 years and the sponsoring employer will nominate the employee in the same position for ENS SC 186 or RSMS SC187 visas. 

 

If the employer decides to terminate the contract before TSS SC482 visa expiry, the employee will be not able to start working for another employer until this new employer would be also approved as a sponsor and nominate the employee (TSS SC 482 visa holder) for the position within the business.  If a new sponsoring employer cannot be found quickly – the TSS SC482 visa will be cancelled.

 

For the employee the TSS SC482 visa has only a few benefits:

 

-Slightly reduced requirements for the fluency in English at the moment of applying for a temporary TSS SC 482 visa; and

-Waiver of the Skills Assessment requirements during the application for ENS SC186 and RSMS SC187 visa, when after 3 years of work with the sponsoring employer the holder of SC 482 visa will apply for a permanent residency.