When Labour Market Testing Is Not Required for a 482 Nomination

Most 482 nominations need labour market testing (LMT): advertising the job in Australia before nominating an overseas worker. But there are important labour market testing exemptions, mainly because of Australia’s trade agreements. Knowing them can save a sponsor months. For the standard rules, see our labour market testing guide.

Exemptions for trade agreement countries

Under the Department’s trade obligations instrument, LMT evidence is not needed if the worker:

• is a citizen or national of Brunei, China, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Thailand or Vietnam;
• is a citizen, national or permanent resident of Canada, Chile, South Korea, New Zealand, Singapore or the United Kingdom;
• is a current employee of an associated entity of the sponsor located in certain trade partner countries, including Canada, Chile, China, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, the UK, New Zealand, Peru, several Pacific nations and the ASEAN countries;
• is a current employee of an associated entity in any WTO member country, nominated as an executive or senior manager responsible for all or a large part of the Australian operations;
• is nominated by an overseas business sponsor in a WTO member country as an executive or senior manager to establish a new Australian operation;
• is a citizen or eligible permanent resident of a WTO member country who has worked for the sponsor in the nominated position in Australia, full time, for the 2 years before the nomination.

A missed claim is not fatal. The Department’s instructions say that if a trade agreement exemption applies but the sponsor forgot to claim it, LMT is treated as met.

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Select positions

Some positions do not need the standard ads. Instead, the sponsor gives a written submission explaining why no suitably qualified Australian is readily available. Select positions include:

Select position	Example
Internationally recognised record of exceptional and outstanding achievement	Leaders in a profession, sport, academia, research or top-talent chefs
Intra-company transfer	An employee of an established overseas business nominated by its Australian associated entity
New nomination only because the salary changed, or the business structure changed	An existing 457, 482 or 494 holder staying in the same position
Annual earnings of 250,000 dollars or more	Senior executives
Medical practitioners in ANZSCO minor group 253	Except General Medical Practitioner and Medical Practitioners nec
Ambulance officers and paramedics	ANZSCO unit group 4111

See our guide to intra-corporate transfers on a 482 for more on transfers.

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Major disaster and occupation exemptions

The Migration Act allows the Minister to exempt sponsors after a major disaster, or to exempt specified occupations. The Department’s current instructions say no exemptions have been specified under either power, so sponsors cannot rely on them at present.

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If LMT is required

• advertise within the 4 months before lodging the nomination;
• place at least two ads, in English, on national recruitment websites, national print or radio, or your own website if you are an accredited sponsor;
• keep each ad open for at least 4 weeks;
• include the job title, skills or experience needed, the employer or recruiter name, and the salary if annual earnings are below the figure set in the instrument (96,400 dollars in the Department’s current policy).

Social media posts and classifieds pages alone do not count. See occupations requiring LMT.

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What you should do now

• Check the worker’s passports: list every citizenship and permanent residence the worker holds. One of them may give an exemption.
• Check your group structure: if the worker already works for a related overseas company, consider the intra-company transfer options.
• Claim it in the form: state the exemption and give evidence, such as a passport copy or employment records.
• Otherwise advertise early: run compliant ads within the 4 months before lodging.