Are you looking to sponsor a skilled worker? Do you have a family member you wish to bring to Australia temporarily or permanently? Are you highly skilled in your industry and looking to travel to live and work in Australia?
If so, see our information on Sponsorship Visas to determine the relevant visa type for you.
Three types of Sponsorship Visas
Employer Sponsored Visas
Employer sponsored visas are a visa category that require the visa applicant to be sponsored by their employer. In general, this means the sponsor guarantees an employment position, salary and responsibilities and obligations are also owed to the applicant.
SID 482 Visa
The Skills in Demand 482 visa lets an employer sponsor a suitably skilled worker to fill a position they can’t find a suitably skilled Australian to fill. It has 3 streams or pathways, Core Skills Stream, Specialist Skills stream, Labour agreement stream (essential skills)
TSS 482 Visa
The Temporary Skill Shortage Visa allows employers to sponsor workers in a nominated occupation. The worker must have the relevant skills and must have 2 years of experience in the nominated occupation. The duration of the subclass 482 visa can be from 1 to 4 years.
For further information about the Subclass 482 Visa, see our page here.
186 Visa
The Employer Nomination Scheme Visa is a direct entry stream where applicants are required to produce a positive skills assessment for their nominated occupation. If there are registration or licensing requirements for the nominated occupation, this must be satisfied. There are no geographical restrictions for this visa type and the employment must be for at least a period of 2 years after the visa grant. The subclass 186 visa is a permanent visa that allows visa holders to live and work in Australia permanently.
For further information about the Subclass 186 Visa, see our page here.
494 Visa
The Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) Visa is an employer sponsored stream that requires applicants to undertake a skills assessment for their nominated occupation. There are geographical restraints on this visa subclass as the work conducted must be in a designated regional area. The employment will be for at least a period of 5 years after the visa grant.
For more information about the Subclass 494 visa, see our page here.
400 Visa
The Temporary Work (Short Stay Specialist) Visa is a highly specialised work stream that permits visa holders to perform short-term, highly specialised work in Australia. Visa applicants must work in a highly specialised job and the employer must provide a letter of invitation, job offer or employment contract as evidence of the position.
For further information about the Subclass 400 visa, see our page here.
407 Visa
The Training Visa is a visa that allows visa holders to participate in work-based occupation training activities to improve skills in their occupation, studies, or field of expertise or in a professional development program in Australia. To be eligible for this visa, you must be sponsored and nominated or invited by the Australia business that is providing the training. It should be noted that for the 407 Training Visa the Australian business nominating you must be approved as a Temporary Activities Sponsor. This visa is generally valid for stay in Australia for 2 years.
For more information about the Subclass 407 visa, see our page here.
GTES Visa
The Global Talent Employer Sponsored Visa Program allows employers to sponsor overseas workers for highly skilled positions. This program is designed to ultimately provide benefit to Australia and Australian employees. Therefore, the program requires that the employer demonstrate how employing this highly skilled overseas worker will either create more jobs for Australians or pass on specialised knowledge to Australian workers. The employer must be also able to demonstrate that they cannot fill the position with Australian workers or through existing skilled visa programs. There are two streams of this program: Established Business Stream and Start-up Stream. Visa applicants must demonstrate a minimum of 3 years work experience that is directly relevant to the nominated position. The GTES Visa is a permanent visa that allows visa holders to live and work in Australia permanently.
For more information about the GTES Visa, see our page here.
Family Sponsorship Visas
Family sponsorship visas are a visa category that enable families to bring their family members to Australia whether it be through a skilled visa, parent visa or child & adoption visas.
491 Visa
The Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) Visa – Family Sponsored is a visa for skilled works who want to live and work in regional Australia. To be eligible for the family sponsorship stream of the 491 visas, you must be sponsored by an eligible family member residing in a designated regional area. An eligible family member can be:
- A parent
- A child or step-child
- A brother, sister, adoptive brother, adoptive sister, step-brother or step-sister
- An aunt, uncle, adoptive aunt, adoptive uncle, step-aunt or step-uncle
- A nephew, niece, adoptive nephew, adoptive niece, step-nephew or step-niece
- A grandparent
- A first cousin
You will then be invited to apply for the visa, after your submission of an Expression of Interest (EOI) in SkillSelect. The Subclass 491 Visa is a skilled and points-tested visa that allows visa holders to remain in Australia for 5 years.
To view more information about this visa, see our page on 491 Visa (Skilled Work Regional Visa) – Provisional.
Partner Visas
Partner Visas allow a de facto partner or spouse of an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen to live in Australia permanently. Visa applicant must be in a genuine relationship with your spouse or de factor partner.
If you are in Australia and applying for a Partner Visa, you apply for the Subclass 820/801. For more information about this visa subclass, see our page here.
If you are outside Australia and applying for a Partner Visa, you apply for the Subclass 309/100. For more information about this visa subclass, see our page here.
Parent Visas
Parent visas allow Australian citizens or permanent residents to bring their parents to Australia. There are many types of parent visas including:
- Sponsored Parent Visa – Subclass 870
- Parent Visa (Offshore) – Subclass 103
- Contributory Parent (Temporary) Visa (Offshore) – Subclass 173
- Contributory Parent Visa – Subclass 143
- Aged Parent Visa – Subclass 804
- Contributory Aged Parent (Temporary) Visa – Subclass 884
- Contributory Aged Parent Visa – Subclass 864
To be eligible to apply for a one of the parent category visas above you will need to have a sponsor who lives in Australia as a temporary or permanent resident. A sponsor must be an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident, or eligible New Zealand citizen who:
- Is 18 years of age or older
- Has lived in Australia lawfully for at least two years before the parent lodges their visa application
For more general information about Parent Visas, see our page here.
Child & Adoption Visas
A child needs an Australian visa where they are not the holder of a permanent visa and they are intending to travel, enter or remain in Australia indefinitely. There are six different types of Child or Adoption Visas, this includes:
- Child (Permanent) – Subclass 802
- Orphan Relative (Permanent) – Subclass 837
- Child (Permanent) – Subclass 101
- Orphan Relative (Permanent) – Subclass 117
- Adoption Visa (Permanent) – Subclass 102
- Dependent Child Visa – Subclass 445
All child visas above require that the child applying for the visa is sponsored by a parent or relative. A sponsor must meet the following requirements:
- Must be 18 years of age or older
- Must be one of the following:
- Australian citizen;
- Australia permanent resident; or
- Holder of a permanent visa; or
- Eligible New Zealand citizen
For more general information about Child Visas, see our page here.
Nomination Visas
Nomination visas are a category that do not require sponsorship however require nomination. Nomination differs from sponsorship as the nominator owes less responsibilities and obligations to the visa applicant than an employer sponsor. Nomination relates to a recommendation relating to an individual’s skills and qualifications or expertise in a specific industry.
GTI – Global Talent Independent Visa
The Global Talent Independent Visa is a streamlined and priority visa pathway for highly skilled and talented applicants to migrate to Australia to live and work permanently. To be eligible for the GTI program you must either be referred by a Global Talent Officer or nominated by a nominator.
The Nominator:
- Must have a national reputation in the same field as the applicant; and
- Is either an:
- Eligible Australian citizen
- Permanent resident
- Eligible New Zealand citizen
- Australian organisation
Depending on the industry in which the highly skilled applicant works, the nominator can be a university, employer, industry body or industry peers.
For more information about the requirements and how to apply for the GTI program, see our page here.
491 Visa – Regional State Nomination
The Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) Visa enables skilled workers and their families to live, work and study in a designated regional area of Australia. The duration of stay in Australia is 5 years. To be eligible for the Subclass 491 visa, you must be nominated by an Australian state or territory government agency. If you are nominated for the subclass 491 visa, the state or territory will invite you to apply. Each state and territory have their own visa requirements, to view these see our page on State Requirements for 491 Visa.
To view more information about the Subclass 491 visa, see our page here.
190 Visa – Skilled State Nominated
The Skilled Nominated Visa is a points-based visa that allows skilled workers who are nominated by an Australian state or territory government to live and work in Australia as a permanent resident. Each state and territory government have their own list of occupations that in demand.
- NSW Skilled Occupation List
- QLD Skilled Occupation List
- TAS Skilled occupation List
- WA Skilled Occupation List
- NT Skilled Occupation List
- VIC Occupation List
- ACT Occupation List
If your occupation is on the relevant list, you can submit an Expression of Interest with details of your nominated occupation, skills, and qualifications. The Australian state and territories will then determine whether they want to nominate you. Each state and territory have their own visa requirements, to view these see our page on State Requirements for 190 Visa.
To view more information about the Subclass 190 visa, see our page here.
Core Skills List (CSOL), Skills in Demand (SID) and National Innovation visa (NIV) available 7 December 2024
RPL and TSS 482 visa
Excessive waiting times for parent visas
Northern Territory – Nomination Requirements (2024-2025)
Ending ‘visa hopping’ – 600 and 485 visas to student