• All the DAMA visa regions

All the DAMA visa regions

Below is a list of all the Designated Area Migration Agreement (DAMA)  and their requirements:

There are currently 12 DAMAs in place:

Two new DAMAs

Two new DAMAs have been announced this week, the South West WA DAMA and the Goulburn Valley DAMA in Victoria.

South West WA DAMA

This DAMA will assist in filling the large number of vacancies in Dardanup and South West Western Australia.

The Shire of Dardanup will administer the process for accessing the South West DAMA which will be open to businesses operating in any of the 12 local governments areas covered by the agreement – City of Busselton, City of Bunbury, Shire of Capel, Shire of Collie, Shire of Augusta/Margaret River, Shire of Boyup Brook, Shire of Bridgetown/Greenbushes, Shire of Dardanup, Shire of Donnybrook/Balingup, Shire of Harvey, Shire of Manjimup and the Shire of Nannup.

Local businesses can apply individually to access the DAMA from 2022.

Goulburn Valley Victoria DAMA

The Goulburn Valley region, bordered on the south by the Great Dividing Range and to the north by the Murray River, is a significant agricultural region but also includes important retail, manufacturing and tourism industries.

The Greater Shepparton City Council will administer the process for accessing the Goulburn Valley DAMA which will be open to businesses operating in any of the Greater Shepparton, Moira and Campaspe local government areas.

Local businesses can apply individually to access the DAMA from 2022.

New Designated Area Migration Agreement for South West WA

Western Australia’s South West region will look to fill critical labour shortages for business and industry with the Federal Government creating a Designated Area Migration Agreement (DAMA) with the Shire of Dardanup.

The Shire of Dardanup will administer the process for accessing the South West DAMA which will be open to businesses operating in any of the 12 local governments areas covered by the agreement – City of Busselton, City of Bunbury, Shire of Capel, Shire of Collie, Shire of Augusta/Margaret River, Shire of Boyup Brook, Shire of Bridgetown/Greenbushes, Shire of Dardanup, Shire of Donnybrook/Balingup, Shire of Harvey, Shire of Manjimup and the Shire of Nannup. Local businesses can apply individually to access the DAMA from 2022.

DAMA visa eligibility

  • The new Designated Area Migration Agreement (DAMA) lets employers sponsor skilled and semi-skilled overseas workers for positions they are unable to fill with local workers. It is tailored to address current and emerging labour market shortages and local terms and conditions of employment.

    DAMA utilises the labour agreement stream of the Temporary Skill Shortage visa (subclass 482), businesses enter into a labour agreement with the Australian Government and workers are then granted a subclass 482 visa.

    Note: The DAMA is an employer-sponsored visa program and individual workers cannot apply for a visa independently.

    The key elements of DAMA are:

    • pathways to permanent residency for DAMA visa holders (including transitional arrangements for existing visa holders)
    • a broad range of occupations that reflect skilled and semi-skilled shortages, with no caveats to apply
    • English language concessions for some occupations
    • salary concessions that reflect market rates, ensuring that worker terms and conditions of employment are not eroded, and businesses and consumers are not subjected to inflationary costs
    • a range of risk and integrity actions to ensure that the rights of both employees and employers are protected
    • a five year agreement to reduce red tape.

Users of the Designated Area Migration Agreement (DAMA)

Businesses can access the DAMA if they are actively operating in the above regions and:

  • are viable and have been operating for at least 12 months
  • have no history of not meeting its obligations to employees
  • are looking to employ overseas workers to fill full-time positions with duties that align with one of the occupations on the DAMA list
  • can demonstrate they cannot fill the position locally with Australian citizens or permanent residents
  • can provide terms and conditions of employment to overseas workers that are in accordance with those offered to Australian workers employed in the region.

Occupations included in the agreement

The occupations that are eligible for sponsorship under the Designated Area Migration Agreement (DAMA) are specified in each region’s page.

It also shows the concessions that may be applied.

Your business can seek a Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT) concession. However, there must be a strong business case provided to support a TSMIT concession.

Your business has to show that the salary offered to a prospective overseas worker is at least what an Australian citizen or permanent resident could expect doing the same job in the same location.

Am I eligible for a TSS 482 visa?

If you would like to find out more about the current skilled occupations list or discuss your visa options further and evaluate which pathway to take, please book an appointment.