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Employer Sponsored Visas
These visas are for people who have had an offer of employment from an eligible Australian employer. In general terms you will still have to meet the same requirements as for a skills visa in terms of age, occupation, qualifications, English language and work experience. These visas are faster to obtain than skills visas as they have the highest priority for processing - so you can be on your way in as little as 6 months!
Through our Australian office we have extensive contacts with employers and recruitment agencies and can therefore offer assistance to prospective clients to help then to find employment. Our Australian office is ideally placed to help your prospective employer obtain the approval to employ that all these visas require whilst our U.K. office can deal directly with you the applicant.
Age Requirements
The normal cut off age for this visa is 45. However, unlike the skilled visa program you can still apply if you are over this age if your prospective employer can demonstrate what are called exceptional circumstances. What normally constitutes exceptional circumstances varies depending on how old you are and what occupation you are in. As these criteria are guidelines rather than cast iron rules it is possible to put forward an application which does not meet the guidelines - but this can only be done on a case by case basis and the further outside the guidelines the application is the harder it will be to prove.
Between 45 and 50:
Your employer must be able to show that the position is essential to the running of the business and they have not been able to recruit a suitable person from overseas or already in Australia who is under the age of 45. If they can establish these facts then your application will normally be accepted. In general terms if you are in a trade occupation then the cut off age for these visas is 50.
Between 50 and 55:
The criteria are exactly the same as above with the additional restriction that your occupation should be in one of the major ANSCO code groups 1-3 (Trades are in ANSCO group 4!)
Between 55 and 60:
This is normally only considered when the applicant is exceptionally qualified and experienced in one of the professions such as a senior academic or scientist and the employer can demonstrate a quite exceptional need. It is restricted to occupations in ANSCO code groups 1 and 2.
There are 3 principle offshore visas in this category.
Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 121)
This scheme allows Australian employers to employ prospective migrants whose occupations are included in the Employer Nominated Skills Occupations List (ENSOL) and leads directly to permanent residency for the applicant. It is also worth noting that the occupations on this list are unaffected by the changes to the skilled occupations list. The employer will put forward a nomination to the Department of Immigration and once that has been approved the visa application can then proceed. From the applicants point of view the process is the same as for a skills visa i.e. first you must have your qualifications and work experience approved by the relevant assessing authority for your occupation before you can lodge your visa with the department of Immigration.This visa has the highest processing priority. Once the nomination has been approved you must make your application within 6 months. Although your visa application cannot proceed until the nomination is approved it is not uncommon to submit he employer nomination and visa application at the same time to speed the process up.
Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (subclass 119)
This scheme allows employers in regional areas of Australia to employ prospective migrants in any occupation and leads to permanent residency. The process is very similar the Employer Nomination Scheme in that the employer will put forward a 2 step nomination and once that has been granted the prospective migrant is then able to lodge their visa application. Again as it is employer sponsored it has one of the highest processing priorities leading to a much shorter waiting period for the prospective migrant.
The principle difference from the prospective migrants’ point of view is that the occupation does not have to be on the ENSOL list and in certain circumstances they may also consider lesser qualifications than would normally be required.
Temporary business (long stay) (subclass 457)
This is a temporary visa for up to 4 years and does not directly lead to permanent residence. Recently there has been some discussion that the government is considering introducing a direct pathway to permanent migration for this visa but at this moment in time it does not exist. Since September 2009 the department has allowed visa holders to change employer without applying for a new visa, the time remaining on you visa will remain exactly the same same as before.
In order for an employer to sponsor you for this type of visa they must first be approved as a sponsor and the occupation must be on the specification of occupations list. Once those conditions are met the employer may then put forward a nomination to employ you and once granted then the visa application can proceed.
At This moment in time U.K. nationals are not required to obtain a skill assessment, however this may change in the future. In addition the applicant will also be required to take out initial health insurance to satisfy condition 8501 (provision for adequate health care) on the visa. Once in Australia you may then register with Medicare under the reciprocal arrangements between Australia and U.K. which will satisfy this condition. As Medicare does not cover the whole cost of treatment health insurance should be considered, but it is not mandatory.
In addition an employer may employ you if they have negotiated what is called a labor agreement. The visa on offer may be permanent (subclass 120) or temporary (subclass 457) depending on the terms of that agreement and in addition the agreement will specify the occupations that they will be entitled to sponsor.
In general terms the process is exactly the same as for the other visas in this category i.e. the employer will put through a nomination for permission to employ and then your visa application can proceed. As with the other visas in this category you will require a skills assessment if you are applying for the permanent visa. As each labor agreement is different it is not possible to give generalized information on who may or may not be eligible for this type of visa.
Useful Information
Department of Immigration.
Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme
Health Insurance requirements for long term business visa applicants
If you would like to know more about the Employer Nomination Scheme please contact us on Tel: 0208 996 0120 or by e-mail.
