Migration Agent for Employer Sponsored Visas

If you can’t fill a role from the Australian labour market, employer sponsorship lets your business bring in a skilled worker from overseas or from onshore. This page is written for the sponsoring business, not the applicant. It covers the three Commonwealth employer sponsored pathways – Skills in Demand (subclass 482), Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) and Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (subclass 494) – and where a Western Australian Designated Area Migration Agreement changes the numbers.

Indeedvisa is a registered migration agency based in South Perth. We act for WA businesses across construction, resources, hospitality, aged care and trades on sponsorship, nomination and visa applications, and for the workers they go on to employ.

Which pathway fits your business

The right visa depends on whether the role is temporary or permanent, whether the occupation sits on a skilled list, and whether your business is inside a WA designated area. Four options sit under the employer sponsored umbrella.

Skills in Demand (subclass 482) – the temporary pathway. Core Skills, Specialist Skills, Labour Agreement and Subsequent Entrant streams, each with its own income threshold. More on the 482 visa.
Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) – the permanent pathway, reached directly or via the Temporary Residence Transition stream after time on a 482. More on the 186 visa.
Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (subclass 494) – a provisional visa for regional employers, with a pathway to permanent residence through the 191 after the qualifying period. More on the 494 visa.
WA Designated Area Migration Agreement (DAMA) – not a separate visa, but a labour agreement that widens the occupation list and relaxes age, English and experience requirements for the 482, 494 and 186 above, for businesses in an eligible WA area. More on the WA DAMA.

Sponsorship, nomination, visa: the three approvals

Every employer sponsored pathway runs through the same three approvals, in the same order, and the first two are your responsibility as the business, not the applicant’s.

Sponsorship – your business is approved as a Standard Business Sponsor. Approval currently runs for five years, after which you can nominate multiple workers without reapplying for sponsorship itself.
Nomination – you nominate a specific position, evidencing that it’s genuine, that the occupation qualifies, and that the salary meets both the relevant income threshold and the market rate.
Visa application – the worker applies, meeting health, character, English and skills requirements for the subclass and stream.

What you have to pay a sponsored worker

Government-set income thresholds are indexed on 1 July each year against wages growth, and you must pay whichever is higher: the threshold or the market salary rate for the role.

Core Skills Income Threshold (CSIT) – applies to the 482 Core Skills stream and to 186 nominations. Currently $79,423 per year.
Specialist Skills Income Threshold (SSIT) – applies to the 482 Specialist Skills stream, for higher-paid, higher-seniority roles. Currently $146,576 per year.
TSMIT – the older threshold, still the operative figure for the 494 visa. It isn’t indexed on the same schedule as CSIT and SSIT and needs a separate instrument to rise, so check the current figure before you budget a 494 nomination.

The threshold that applies is fixed by the date you lodge the nomination, not the date it’s decided, so confirm the current figures before you make an offer.

What sponsorship costs your business

Beyond the worker’s salary, three costs sit with the business by law and can’t be passed on to the person you’re sponsoring: the Standard Business Sponsorship application charge, the nomination charge, and the Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) levy.

The SAF levy is the largest of the three for most employers. For a 482 nomination it’s calculated per year of the nomination period, at a rate that depends on your business’s annual turnover. For a 186 nomination it’s a one-off charge instead. Recovering the levy, the sponsorship fee or the nomination fee from the worker breaches the Migration Act, with sponsorship cancellation and civil penalties as consequences – a condition employers get caught on more often than the amounts involved would suggest.

Government charges are reviewed every 1 July, so we give you the current figures for your specific nomination rather than relying on a number that may already be out of date.

Labour market testing

For the 482 Core Skills and Labour Agreement streams, you generally need to advertise the role before nominating: two separate advertisements, each running for a minimum period, placed within the 12 months before nomination, each stating the position, required skills, location, salary and your business name. General classifieds and social media posts aren’t accepted, and advertising for the wrong duration or leaving out the salary is the single most common reason a nomination runs into trouble.

Where a WA DAMA changes the numbers

A Designated Area Migration Agreement sits on top of the standard programme rather than replacing it, and only applies if your business operates in an eligible WA area. Where it applies, it can open up a wider occupation list – including semi-skilled roles – and concessions on age, English and work experience that the standard 482, 494 and 186 don’t offer. It’s more work up front than a standard nomination, so it’s worth pursuing when your occupation isn’t on the standard lists or a concession is what makes your candidate viable. See how the WA DAMA works.

From temporary sponsorship to permanent residence

For most 482 holders, the visa is a step rather than a destination. After a qualifying period working for your business in the nominated occupation, the Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) Temporary Residence Transition stream is the usual route to permanent residence. That qualifying time has to be worked for the sponsoring employer, in the occupation nominated, so a change of role or employer partway through can reset the clock. The 494 has its own permanent pathway through the subclass 191 after the qualifying regional period.

What we do for sponsoring employers

We work the employer side of sponsorship from the first assessment through to a granted visa: confirming which pathway and stream fits your position, preparing and lodging the sponsorship and nomination applications, drafting compliant labour market testing, and managing the visa application for the worker and their family. Where a WA DAMA is the better fit, we handle the endorsement and labour agreement stages as well.

If you’re weighing up a 482, 186, 494 or DAMA for a role you can’t fill locally, our registered migration agents in Perth can confirm the right pathway, the current thresholds and the realistic timeline before you commit to the cost. Book a consultation.

Frequently asked questions

What is an employer sponsored visa?

It’s a visa where an Australian business, rather than the applicant, drives the application – the business becomes an approved sponsor, nominates a position, and the worker then applies for the visa itself. The 482, 186 and 494 are the three Commonwealth employer sponsored visas; a WA DAMA is a labour agreement that sits alongside them.

Which employer sponsored visa should I use?

It depends on whether you need the worker temporarily or permanently, whether the occupation is on a standard skilled list, and whether your business is in a WA designated area. A temporary shortage usually points to the 482; a permanent role usually points to the 186; a regional business with an occupation off the standard lists is where a DAMA is worth checking.

How long does employer sponsorship take?

Sponsorship, nomination and visa processing times vary by stream and by how quickly your evidence comes together, and Home Affairs publishes indicative processing times that change over the year. We give you a realistic timeline for your specific occupation and stream once we’ve reviewed your position.

Can I recover sponsorship costs from the worker?

No. The Standard Business Sponsorship fee, the nomination charge and the SAF levy are legally the employer’s cost, and recovering any of them from the worker breaches the Migration Act. This applies whether the arrangement is written into an employment contract or agreed informally.

Does my occupation have to be on a skilled occupation list?

For the standard 482, 186 and 494, yes – the nominated occupation has to appear on the relevant Commonwealth occupation list for that stream. A WA DAMA can open up occupations that aren’t on those lists, including some semi-skilled roles, if your business is in an eligible area and the occupation is on that DAMA’s own list.

What’s the difference between a standard nomination and a DAMA labour agreement?

A standard nomination uses the Commonwealth’s own occupation lists, thresholds and requirements. A DAMA labour agreement is negotiated between a Designated Area Representative and Home Affairs for your business specifically, and can widen the occupation list and relax age, English and experience requirements – but it takes longer to set up and only applies if you’re in an eligible WA area.

Related employer services

Skills in Demand (subclass 482) – the temporary skilled pathway, inside and outside a labour agreement.

Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) – permanent employer nomination, including the DAMA transition pathway.

Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (subclass 494) – regional employer sponsored provisional visa with a pathway to permanent residence.

DAMA Migration Agent for WA Employers – wider occupation lists and concessions for eligible WA businesses.

Training visa (subclass 407) – workplace-based occupational training for overseas workers.

Business visas – pathways for business owners and investors.