The TSS subclass 482 visa was introduced on 18 March 2018. It replaced the 457 visa which will no longer be granted. While applications for the 457 Visa are no longer being accepted, applications that were filed before 18 March 2018 will still be processed. View the full list of 457 and 482 Visa differences here.

10 points on the TSS 482 Visa:

1. Stages and Streams
2. Labour Market Testing
3. Training Requirements and Sponsor Obligations
4. Genuine Need for Position
5. The Annual Market Salary Rate (AMSR)
6. Skills Assessments and Work Experience requirements
7. Providing Complete Documents
8. School Fees and Giving Birth in Australia
9. Alternatives to the 482
10. Pathway to PR in Australia

 1) Stages and Streams In The TSS 482 Visa

A key feature of the TSS Visa 482 is that it splits the list into three streams:

• Short-Term stream
  • $1,330, per applicant over the age of 18.
• Medium-Term stream
  • $2,770, per applicant over the age of 18.
• Labour Agreement Stream
  • $2,770 per applicant over the age of 18.

Short-Term stream:

• Only allowed visa for duration of up to 2 years
• Only one onshore renewal possible – this means that after 4 years on TSS the applicant will have to go offshore to apply again.
• Occupations listed on STSOL
• No pathway to PR provided for short term occupation (unless covid-19 concessions apply for 186 TRT Stream, this is a new temporary concession for 482 Visa short term to PR 186)

Medium-term stream:

• TSS visas granted for up to 4 years
• No limit on number of onshore renewals
• Occupations listed MLTSSL
• Offers a pathway to Australian PR after 3 years holding visa with the same employer through:
  • ENS Temporary Transition (subclass 186)
  • (Only for certain applicants)RSMS Temporary Transition (subclass 187)

This means that if you are applying through the medium-term stream, your 482 visa will be valid for up to 4 years. You will then be able to meet permanent employer sponsored visa requirements, which are not available to 2-year TSS visa holders. You should note that if you are applying under the Short-term stream, you will need to meet Genuine Temporary Entrant (GTE) requirements.

We have writtern a blog related to the GTE issue for student visa in the 7 Policy Reforms For Australian Migration

Labour Agreement Stream:

The Labour Agreement stream is for where occupations are not on the TSS list. The employer applies for a Labour Agreement to allow them to sponsor specific occupations not on the list or to access certain concessions to requirements.

This includes DAMA, industry labour agreements, GTEs and company-specific labour agreement.

2) Labour Market Testing

While there are many requirements for the labour market testing, the most important features include:

• Advertising in at least three instances or mediums (one of which must be Workforce Australia)
• Running the job ad for at least 28 days
• Job ads must have been run in the last 4 months before lodging nomination stage
• Mentioning the salary of the position in the advert (If salary is less than $96,400)
• You may be exempted from the Labour Market Testing, if International Trade Obligations apply.

However, once the Skilling Australians Fund is implemented, 28 days of advertisement will be required.

3) Training Requirements and Sponsor Obligations

Since the Skilling Australians Fund was implemented, the TSS 482 visa programme no longer utilises training benchmarks A or B which were used by the 457 visa. Instead, employers have to contribute towards the Skilling Australians Fund by paying the nomination training contribution charge upfront when lodging the nomination application. The levy will differ according to the length of the visa and size of business. There are a large number of requirements for approved 482 Business Sponsors and 482 visa holders to comply with. 

Conditions applicable for business include:

• Applicant works in the nominated occupation
• Business should retain all the records
• Cooperate with any inspections

Conditions applicable for the applicant:

• Primary applicant can only work for the approved sponsor
• There are a limited number of occupations with exemption to work rights
• They must inform Department of Home Affairs if applicant stops working
• Must find have new nomination within 60 days if employment ends
• Ensure equivalence between Australians and foreign workers

The department undertakes monitoring upon all approved business sponsors.

4) Genuine Need for The Nominated Position

There must be a genuine need for the nominated position, which must be on the 482 occupation list. A leading reason for refusals is failing to demonstrate that the position is genuine and required for the business. The 482 occupation list can be regularly revised by the department, so you will need to check the list to see if your occupation is there when you are lodging the 482 nomination application. It is highly advised that all applicants submit strong and supported nomination applications for the 482 Visa.

5) The Annual Market Salary Rate (AMSR)

The Annual Market Salary Rate (AMSR) replaces the market salary rate previously required for the 457 visa applications. The AMSR is now more defined with strict differentiation between monetary and non-monetary remuneration. The salary must be at or above the Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT).This is the income threshold that is set by the Department of Home Affairs. Currently, the TSMIT is set at $53,900.

We advise that employers check with their migration agents or immigration lawyer to ensure the structure of the remuneration package for their sponsored employee meets AMSR requirements. Having too much of a non-monetary component as remuneration may result in the AMSR not being met.

6) Skills Assessments and Work Experience Requirements

Currently, a specified list of occupation and country of passport pairing are required to provide skills assessments for the TSS visa application. The list required to do skills assessments is mainly for trade related occupations plus for the occupation of program and project coordinator. The Department has not made any steps to extend this requirement so far. When the skills assessments are made compulsory (due to holding a specified passport when applying for a specified occupation), applicants will need to make sure they have enough time to complete the skills assessments before visa application is lodged, otherwise different options may need to be considered.

There is a new work experience requirements for the TSS 482 visa.

• TSS visa applicants will now need to demonstrate 2 years of relevant work experience before they can apply. 

This is a major change from the previous 457 visa requirements. Many international graduates may not have the 2 years of full-time and relevant work experience to apply for the TSS visa. This has been a major barrier to international graduates in Australia being able to seek employer sponsorship.

7) Providing Complete Documents

To avoid refusal of any application stage, it is important that all necessary documents are attached to your application. Furthermore, there have been cases where applications are refused due to only one or two documents missing from the employer or applicant. After the application is submitted, applicants may not be requested to provide further documents, especially for nomination applications, so it is advisable that all documents be attached to the online applications at the time of submission.

8) School Fees and Giving Birth in Australia

TSS visa holders need to be aware there if you have school age children enrolled in public schools, additional school fees may apply. For example in the state of South Australia, TSS 482 visa holders are expected to pay a levy for each child in school, which can amount to:

• Approximately $5900 per primary student per year
• Approximately $7000 per secondary student per year

Also, many temporary work visa holders are unaware that your health insurance coverage may not cover delivery or birth of newborn children in Australia. If you give birth to a baby in Australia while holding a TSS 482 visa, you may have to pay medical fees applicable to a foreign visitor, which will be a high amount.

9) Alternatives to The 482 Visa

If your Occupation is not on the list or you do not have the experience:

• Labour Agreement –The Labour agreement process is usually extended and would require professional assistance.
• Other temporary work visas such as the 407 training visa or 400 specialist temporary activity visas might be considered.
• Partner visa - might be an option if you have an Australian Partner.
• Or the Student visa – to increase your skills, as Australian has world class education providers

This is not the full range of options, but just some of the most common.

10) Pathway to Australian Permanent Residency (PR)

Permanent Australian residency is only available for the medium-term stream and not the short-term stream. For Medium-term Stream Visa:

• The pathway will be through the temporary transition ENS 186 (or RSMS 187 Visa, in rare cases)
• After working with the approved Sponsor for three years, applicants can apply for a Permanent Visa

Previous holders of the 457 visa may still be able to access a two year pathway to permanent residency. Legacy 457 visa workers may also be able to access an age concession.

Do you need help with a Sponsorship or TSS visa application?

At Work Visa Lawyers we are experienced in assisting applicants in all matters relating to Australian visa applications.

• If you are a holder of a 457 visa or intend to apply under the new rules, we can assist you.
• We assist businesses of all sizes that are looking to sponsor and nominate a visa applicant.
• Advise businesses how to meet the Labour Market Testing requirements.
• We advise visa applicants on their eligibility to make the 482 visa application or who are transitioning from a 457 or 482 to permanent migration.
• We assist permanent migration for eligible 457 visa holders through the ENS 186 visa pathway.
• Advise visa holders with responses to the Department meeting the 8607.
• Advise visa holders with responses to ‘Notices of Intention to Cancel’.
• Advise Employers of their ongoing sponsorship obligations.
• Assist employer with application for accredited sponsorship.

If you are a potential visa applicant, please book a consultation to discuss your visa options. We are experienced in all types of Employer Sponsored visas.

Our areas of expertise include Skilled Migration visas, Business Skills Migration visas, Employer Sponsored Work Visas, Partner and other Family Migration visas as well as the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) Review, Judicial Review and Ministerial Intervention.

If you require further information regarding your Australia visa options you can contact us through:

(08) 8351 9956 or +61 8 8351 9956

or   This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Overview of Australian Skilled Migration and the Employer Sponsored 482 Visa Australia

Australia’s migration program is divided into four streams:

• Family
• Special eligibility
• Child
• Skilled migration program – for migrants with skills to boost productivity and fill gaps in Australia’s labour market

In 2020-21, a total of 160,052 visas were granted and the Skill stream comprised 50.7% of those grants. There are different visa types in the Skill stream such as Skilled regional Visa 491 or Skilled Nominated by State Visa 190, but Employer Sponsored Visa program makes up the largest majority (nearly a third) with 23,503 employer sponsored visas granted.

There are a few major streams for Employer Sponsorship program in Australia: 494 Regional Skilled Employer sponsored, Global Talent Visa which might ask a nominator is a company or an Australian organization, or DAMA, just to name a few

However, within the scope of this article, we will be talking about the Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) 482 visa program 

The Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) 482 Visa program was designed to address identified skills shortages, allowing businesses to enhance their workforce by sponsoring workers from overseas to live and work in Australia on a temporary 482 visa. 

The 482 Visa Australia is getting more popular and being focused by Australian Government in this financial year ending June 2023 to solve the skills crisis in Australia post-pandemic Covid-19.

According to the migration planning levels announced in April, there are 30,000 places added to Skilled Migration program which has 8,000 more allocations for Employer Sponsored Visas in 2022-2023 Financial year.

The government has also announced the new stream for TSS 482 Short Term Visa holders to be eligible to apply for Australian Permanent Residency 186 Visa.

Even though there are just over 200 occupations each on the Short-Term Skilled Occupation List (STSOL) and Medium and Long-Term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL) for the TSS 482 Visa program, certain occupations are clearly in greater demand than others.

Get access to 482 Visa Occupation lists here >>

Which Occupations are in high demand for Employer Sponsored Visa Australia?  

According to data collected in 2021, the most popular occupations in the Employer Sponsored Category can be grouped into 4 key sectors:

• Health (Registered Nurse or General Practitioner)
• Finance and Accounting (Accountants )
• IT (Software Engineer) or ICT Business and Systems Analysts
• Trades (Chef and Automotive like Motor Mechanic)

Most of these occupations are classified in the ANZSCO classification guide as Skill Level 1 (the highest level).

Only 2 of the top 10 occupations are Skill Level 2 (Chefs) or Skill Level 3 (Cooks and Motor Mechanics).

Nominations in the Employer Sponsored space appear to be skewed in favour of a level of skills commensurate with a Bachelor degree or higher qualification (or otherwise 5 years+ of relevant experience).

The majority of these occupations most in demand (except for Cooks) all come under the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL) meaning visa holders can be sponsored for up to 4 years with a pathway to permanent residency from the 482 Visa.

It is necessary to make sure your occupation for 482 Visa is listed in MLTSSL so that you may be eligible for Australian PR

Australia’s growing needs in the Information Technology field is reflected in the published statistics. By far the most common occupation group in the Employer Sponsored category is Software and Applications Programmers.

This is followed by Registered Nurses and Accountants, with ICT Business and Systems Analysts and University Lecturers coming close behind.

Employers across Australia have been calling out about their desperate struggles with skills shortages in critical, high-demand sectors. The demand for skilled workers in these key industries is clearly strong, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Half of these occupations can also be found on the Priority Migration Skilled Occupation List (PMSOL), including:

• Accountant (General) (221111)
• Management Accountant (221112)
• Taxation Accountant (221113)
• Civil Engineer (233211)
• Geotechnical Engineer (233212)
• Structural Engineer (233214)
• Transport Engineer (233215)
• General Practitioner (253111)
• Resident Medical Officer (253112)
• Medical Practitioners nec (253999)
• Registered Nurse (Aged Care) (254412)
• Registered Nurse (Critical Care and Emergency) (254415)
• Registered Nurse (Medical) (254418)
• Registered Nurse (Mental Health) (254422)
• Registered Nurse (Perioperative) (254423)
• Registered Nurses nec (254499)
• Analyst Programmer (261311)
• Developer Programmer (261312)
• Software Engineer (261313)
• Software and Applications Programmers nec (261399)
• ICT Security Specialist (262112)
• Chef (351311)

One of the added advantages is the Department of Home Affairs gives priority processing to employer sponsored nomination and visa applications for an occupation on the PMSOL.

These occupations were calculated in the migration report of financial ending 2021 and these are not all the occupations that you can get permanent residency from a TSS 482 Visa.

Moreover, Covid-19 has made a lot of impacts on how the employer sponsored streams go. 

Please be minded that the more popular an occupation is for any migration program, the higher competitiveness you may face against until you meet the eligibility criteria.

Australia: the land of opportunity

A recent look at one of Australia’s popular job recruitment websites revealed more than 10,000 Civil Engineer positions advertised for Civil Engineers, 5000 for Software Engineers, more than 6000 for General Practitioners and an astounding 20,000 advertisements posted for Registered Nurses.

If you have sought-after skills, qualifications and employment background in the IT and health industries, there’s a good chance an Australian employer wants to hire you!

However, choosing the right occupation and work in a great location could be difficult to decide. There are actually many factors to come up with a decision of where to stay and work and what to do.

That is why Work Visa Lawyers are here to help.

If you are skilled workers, Please book an appointment to talk to one of our professional Immigration Lawyers or Registered Migration Agents about the Employer Sponsorship program in Australia.

There are a few substantial differences between the medium-term stream and the short-term stream of the TSS 482 visa.

At their core, both streams are part of the same temporary, skilled, employer-sponsored visa in Australia.

Many clients have made questions whether there is a pathway of 482 Visa to Permanent Residency.

Yes, even neither stream has an age requirement, but there is an age requirement for the ENS 186 visa that could be accessed via the Temporary Residence Transition stream if you hold a Visa subclass 482 in the medium-stream. This stream is a pathway to PR from 482 visa.

The key differences of are:

• Length of stay in Australia
• English test scores required
• Genuine Temporary Entrant requirement
• Possibility for “renewal”
• Availability of PR pathway (through ENS 186 visa temporary residence transition stream)

The English “exemptions” are the same for both streams (while the test scores required are different, where an “exemption” is not available).

Have a look at this TSS 482 Occupation List to determine which stream you are in.

There are many Employer Sponsored Visas in Australia, 482 Visa is the most popular amongst those. However, each scenarios will fit in each type of Sponsored Visa. 

Please have a look at all Employer Sponsored Visas in Australia here ! Or Click here for arranging an appointment with our Immigration lawyers !

What determines the stream I am in?

With sponsored and skilled work visas, selecting the correct occupation is essential. If the wrong occupation is used, this can lead to refusal of nomination and/or visa application.

For TSS 482 visa, it is important this occupation is consistently used all the way through Labour Market Testing, nomination application, contract, visa application, work experience, skills assessment (if required).

For the TSS subclass 482 visa, you are in either the medium-term stream or the short-term stream based on your occupation. If your occupation is on the MLTSSL, then you would be in the medium-term stream. If your occupation is on the STSOL, then you would be in the short-term stream. Some occupations are on the regional-occupation list (ROL) , which has some perks of the medium-term stream (4-year visa) with some of the drawbacks of the short-term (not eligible for the 186 PR pathway).