BIA Victoria - Hiring Overseas Workers?

Employers – looking to bring a worker from overseas?

The following is a summary of Australian visa programs which are available to employers who may wish to employ and/or sponsor overseas workers.

Who can come ?
Australia has a “skilled” migration program. Briefly, for migration purposes “skilled” occupations are those which can be categorised within the managerial, professional, associate-professional and trades occupations.

How can they come ?
Overseas workers can be sponsored by an employer here or they can apply to come without a sponsor. They can get a temporary work visa or a permanent/migrant visa. Immediate family members may be included.

Many Australian employers sponsor a skilled person under the temporary 457 visa scheme. This allows the worker to remain here for between 3 months and 4 years depending on the needs of the sponsoring employer, for whom they must work full time.

If the employer wishes to sponsor a skilled worker on a longer term/permanent basis they can sponsor under the Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS). The work must be fulltime, offered for at least 3 years and the sponsored employee must be under 45.

Skilled persons may wish to come permanently without sponsorship. They can do this under the General Skilled Migration program. The main applicant must be under 45, have skilled qualifications/experience and satisfy a Points Test.

More information on these visa schemes is available at the Dept of Immigration website www.immi.gov.au , click on ‘Visas & Immigration’ and ‘Employers’.

Supplied by Department of Immigration (December 2007)