The world is short-staffed. And this is especially felt by the health sector.

Australia needs more health workers.

According to the report prepared by the International Centre on Nurse Migration, Sustain and Retain in 2022 and Beyond, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the global shortage of nurses was estimated at 5.9 million. This has been exacerbated by the pandemic.  And this skill shortage is across the health sector.

Australia has not been spared of the shortage of health workers and the Australian Commonwealth government and the different state governments had been implementing programs to attract overseas health workers to tackle staff shortages.

If you are a health worker and is interested to migrate you might be interested in the following support and programs offered by the different state governments.

*Note that all health professionals wishing to practice in Australia must hold Australian registration, have appropriate levels of education, skills, English language proficiency and experience and the appropriate visa to work in Australia.

Victoria

The Victorian government has announced that it will be providing relocation support for international and returning Australian health and mental health workers who have secured a job in a public health service.

This program is for health professionals who:

• are currently living overseas, which may include Australian citizens returning home or non-residents who meet Commonwealth visa requirements
• are international candidates whose occupation is on the Skilled Occupation list (SOL) and
• have secured a job with a Victorian health service between 1 April 2022 and 30 June 2023 and intend to work within the Victorian public health system for at least two years, and
• can access relevant Australian registration or accreditation for their profession
• are fully vaccinated (including travelling families) for COVID-19 by a Therapeutic Goods Administration approved or recognised vaccine.

The support is for international travel allowance to help with relocation costs:

• $10,000 for healthcare workers who secure a role in a public metropolitan health service
• $13,000 for healthcare workers who secure a role in a rural or regional health service

The money will be transferred to the employing health service.

South Australia

SA Health is looking for internationally trained health professionals to express their interest to work for them in South Australia.

They are looking for international applicants with transferable skills and qualifications for medical, nursing and midwifery, and allied and scientific health positions.

The guidelines for the online application can be found in the SA Health website. 

If you meet the eligibility criteria, SA Health will sponsor your visa and help you work through the visa process.

New South Wales

The New South Wales government announced that the state will have a $4.5B recruitment drive to increase its health workforce by more than 10,000 staff over the next 4 years.  This included giving a one-off ‘appreciation payments’ and raising the public sector wage cap.

Some regional NSW districts such as the Western NSW Local Health District are also recruiting overseas medical and nursing professionals who are registered or close to completing their AHPRA registration process and have an IELTS score of at least 7. They can offer incentives of up to $10,000 and can provide sponsorship for the visa.

Queensland

Queensland is looking for international applicants with transferable skills and qualifications in the following professions:

• Medical
• Nursing and midwifery
• Allied Health

And information for overseas application can be found in the Queensland Health website.

Tasmania

If you get a position with Tasmania's Department of Health, they may be able to provide vis sponsorship either permanent or temporary sponsorship.

They can also provide relocation support which may include:

• reimbursing your travel expenses (private motor vehicle use, rail fares, economy class airfares)
• contribution to transfer of furniture and personal effects
• temporary accommodation
• registration support
• immigration and visa support.

More information can be found in the Tasmania Department of Health website.

Northern Territory

The Norther Territory regularly have job opportunities throughout the territory for registered nurses, enrolled nurses and a variety of internationally trained Medical Officers or International Medical Graduates (IMGs).

For assistance with the application process, IMGs may contact:

For Top End Health Service (TEHS) job enquirers:

• specialist and registrar roles: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
• interns and resident medical officers roles: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
• emergency department registrar and specialist roles: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

For Central Australia Health Service (CAHS) job enquirers: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

More information can be found in the Northern Territory Government NT Health website.

Western Australia

Western Australia is also recruiting international health professionals and often advertise job vacancies on the WA Health Jobs Board

The WA government had previously offered relocation incentives and offered experienced health professional reimbursement for their relocation costs if they are appointed to a permanent or fixed term contract of 12 months or longer with WA Health on, or after, 1 July 2022 and up to 30 September 2022.

Australian Capital Territory (ACT)

The ACT government has a national campaign to recruit more nurses and midwives to the ACT.

The ACT Nurses and Midwifery Enterprise Agreement 2020-2022 contains the provisions for the reimbursement for relocation expenses, allowances, etc.

Reimbursement for relocation expenses can be provided to interstate or overseas employees.

The relevant pre-determined ceiling is as below:

Information as to what the ACT offers to nurses and midwives can be found in the ACT Health website.

Work Visa Lawyers has extensive experience in assisting international health workers apply for a visa in Australia.

Contact us if you need our assistance you can contact us at (+61) 08 8351 9956 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

You can also book an appointment online.

Our team of experience Immigration lawyers and Migration Agents will be happy to assist you.

Sources:

International Centre on Nurse Migration, Sustain and Retain in 2022 and Beyond,  chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.icn.ch/system/files/2022-01/Sustain%20and%20Retain%20in%202022%20and%20Beyond-%20The%20global%20nursing%20workforce%20and%20the%20COVID-19%20pandemic.pdf

Victoria Department of Health website, Support for international healthcare workers, https://www.health.vic.gov.au/jobs/migrating-to-victoria/support-for-international-healthcare-workers

The Guardian, “NSW to raise public service wage cap, pay health workers $3,000 ‘appreciation payments’ “ Tamsin Rose, 6 Jun 2022  - https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/jun/06/nsw-to-raise-public-service-wage-cap-pay-health-workers-3000-appreciation-payments

New South Wales Government, NSW Government lifts wages and recognises health workers, https://www.nsw.gov.au/media-releases/budget-2022-public-sector-wages#:~:text=The%20policy%20will%20apply%20to,of%20the%20COVID%2D19%20pandemic.

New South Wales Government Health, Western NSW Local Health District, https://wnswlhd.health.nsw.gov.au/join-us/diversity-inclusion/overseas-trained-professionals/

SA Health -  International applicant guidelines https://www.sahealth.sa.gov.au/wps/wcm/connect/public+content/sa+health+internet/careers/how+to+apply/international+applicant+guidelines

Queensland Health - https://www.health.qld.gov.au/employment/overseas

Tasmanian Department of Health -  https://www.health.tas.gov.au/

Northern Territory - https://health.nt.gov.au/ ]

Western Australia -  https://ww2.health.wa.gov.au/Careers/International-applicants

Do you know Australia has more than just 1 employer sponsorship visa 482?

Have you heard of the skilled employer sponsored regional 494?

All those visas have permanent residency pathway options and a guaranteed market salary for you.

Today we are going to talk about the 2 most popular employer sponsored: visa subclass 482 (temporary skills shortage) and lesser known 494 Visa (Skilled employer sponsored regional).

An approved Standard Business Sponsor might be able to nominate skilled workers.

Normally there must be involvement from both employer and employee sides for the visa application.

In this blog, we only mention what applicants need to know about the difference between 482 visas and 494 visas.

482 visa – Temporary skills shortage (TSS)

The TSS visa, or 482 visa, is a temporary visa that permits the holder to

• Live in Australia with their immediate family members, children can go to school and secondary applicants over 18 years of age can work in Australia
• Working full-time for the sponsoring employer, in a nominated occupation that is listed on the Short Skilled List or Medium Long Term Skilled List.
• Transition to Permanent residency if their occupation is eligible – 186 Visa Transition stream

You are required to:

• Have a job offer
• At least two years’ experience in the position
• Genuine intention to work in the nominated position
• Qualifications that are relevant to the position
• Adequate arrangements for health insurance
• Meet health, character and English requirements

494  Visa – Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional)

The 494 Visa Australia allows skilled workers to be sponsored by an Australian employer in a regional area for up to five years

494 Visa holders can:
• live and work in Australia for up to five years
• include immediate family on 494 visa
• transition to permanent residency (if eligible) via the 191 Regional Skilled Visa

494 Visa Requirements
To be eligible to apply for visa 494, applicants must

• be under 45 years
• have at least 3 years work experience
• have a valid skill assessment
• demonstrate competent English
• meet the health and character requirements

This table below will show you the comparison between the 2 visa eligibility criteria

NOMINATION REQUIREMENTS FOR 482 VISA AND 494 VISA 

Similarities

Start with some similarities between the 2 visa subclass

It is obvious that both the 482 and 494 require applicants to be nominated by their employer.

Also, they need to be nominated with an occupation that is in each of the visa occupation list.

There are some more similarities between the 482 visa and visa 494 in terms of:

• Labour Market Testing (This is to show there is no suitable Australian citizen/permanent resident who can fill the nominated position)

• The requirement to demonstrate the nominated salary is at least $53,900 (excluding superannuation)
• Meets the Australian Market Salary Rate (AMSR) i.e.,

This ensures that the worker receives the salary that would be paid to an equivalent Australian worker in the same position at the same location.

In general, those are all the basic requirements to protect international workers.

Let’s move on to the most interesting part

Advantages and disadvantages between Visa 482 and Visa 494

There are 3 significant differences between the 2 visa streams

The dependence and Independence on Employer for Australian PR application

The most significant difference between the 494 visas and the 482 visas is the PR requirement.

With the 494 visas, you don’t need an employer to nominate you for PR.

Provided that you have met other 191 PR requirements such as:

• Living and working in a designated regional area for 3 years
• Have earned 53,900 per annum for those 3 years

*Please note this income threshold can be adjusted periodically in line with the inflation rate or consumer price index

For 482 Visa medium-term holders, they must be sponsored for a transition stream of PR 186 Visa.

More details can be watched the video below about how to get PR with 482 Visa:

However, there is no minimum income requirement to apply PR for 482 Visa holders.

The flexibility of location of work for 482 visa holders

Another difference between these two visas is flexibility in the location of the work.

The 482 does not require the visa applicant to work in a particular area, meaning they can work anywhere in Australia.

However, it depends on the occupation that applicants are holding to determine if they are eligible for PR or not.

That is why the 482 visa is very popular for skilled migrants who are currently working in Melbourne, Sydney, or Brisbane because it is hard for them to get PR with Skilled nominated Visa 190.

As a result, international workers from metro areas are moving regional just for permanent residence options.

Read this article about the best state for Skilled Visa 491,190, 189 or Employer Sponsored Visa 482,494, 186

Because It is hard for them to get PR with Skilled nominated Visa 190 or even 189 independent visa during the last 2 years.

As the name would suggest, the 494 visa holders need to work in a regional area.

Any area except for Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney, is considered a regional area.

More occupations available for the 494 Occupation List than 482 Visa Occupation list

494 Visa occupation list includes many more occupations than the 482 visa

Moreover, 482 visa occupation list provides a PR path to only medium-term occupations

While that 494 list provides a PR path to all occupation included.

That means in terms of PR pathway only, 494 applicants will have a better chance.

There are always work needed from both sides for any employer sponsored visa in Australia.

- Employer Sponsored Visa nomination for employer

- Visa application for employee (main applicant)

As an employer trying to fill a skills shortage in your organisation, the requirements for sponsoring an overseas worker can feel overwhelming sometime. If you do not have a good team who is able to handle it, Work Visa Lawyers is here to help.

As skills shortages continue to get worse rather than better, I hope to set out some of the key steps in any employer sponsorship process to make the system easier to understand. Of course, this short blog could not include every possible requirement and is a starting point only.

We can summarise the “skeleton” of an employer sponsorship program as:

• Standard Business Sponsorship (if required)
• DAR endorsement (if required)
• Labour Agreement negotiation (exclusively for Labour Agreement Stream including DAMA)
• Nomination application (may require Labour Market Testing)
• Visa application stage

Before Diving In

The very first step before jumping in is determining which of the employer sponsorship streams is most appropriate for you and your business.

The most common visa options for employer sponsored visas include:

• Temporary Skills Shortage Visa 482 ( TSS 482 Visa) - This includes Designated Area Migration Agreements (DAMA)
• 186 Employer Nominated Scheme ( Permanent) Visa
• 494 Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) Visa

The main factors for business to decide are:

• The nature of the role you are trying to fill
• How long you need to fill it

If you have already conducted recruitment efforts at this point and located the worker you are looking to sponsor, their age, English language ability, qualifications or years of work experience can influence which programs you are limited to.

The DAMA program is specifically designed to allow sponsorship of workers in areas of key need where the worker may be older or have a lower level of English language ability than is permitted under the other programs.

Labour Market Testing (job ads)

Labour Market Testing is an important part of the Government's systems for “putting Australian workers first”. The requirements have grown more rigid of the last 4 years and have moved further away from modern business practices.

Often the Standard Business Sponsorship is described as the first step of “sponsoring a foreign worker”. However, as Labour Market Testing takes a minimum of 4 weeks to run properly, this is often the first thing you want to do to get your new staff member onboard as soon as possible.

Generally, 3 online ads are the best way to go, one of which being on JobActive. There are requirements to include the salary if the worker will be paid under a certain threshold.

Most DAMA programs currently allow for 2 job ads that have been run in the last 12 months before submitting the linked nomination application.

Labour Market Testing is not required where International Trade Obligations override the Government’s interest in putting Australian workers first.

It is important to note that the 186 visa program does not formally require Labour Market Testing, however, conducting job ads can be a good way to demonstrate that the position being nominated is genuine in the Direct Entry stream.

Standard Business Sponsorship

If you are using the medium-term stream or short-term stream of the 482 visa program, or the employer-sponsored stream of the 494 visa program, your first application to the Department of Home Affairs will be a Standard Business Sponsorship.

This is centred entirely on your business and requires demonstrating that you are lawfully operating a business (two requirements: lawful and operating). The Department will also consider any adverse information and determine whether your business’ track record is suitable for the employer sponsorship program (this can include records of breaches of laws, especially employment laws, insolvency, or untruthfulness).

Designated Area Representative (DAR) endorsement

For the DAMA program, you need the endorsement of the Designated Area Representative (who would have negotiated the DAMA for the area) before you can “negotiate” a Labour Agreement with the federal government.

Requirements for DAR endorsement are thoroughly unique to the local area and the occupation(s) being nominated.

Generally they will require you to demonstrate that you have a business in the local area, a need to use the program, and will also want to check almost all requirements for the business and visa applicant before endorsing.

Labour Agreement negotiation (DAMA and other labour agreements)

Once endorsed by the DAR if required, the business then applies to the federal government to enter into the desired labour agreement.

If successful, the Department of Home Affairs will send you a labour agreement to sign, which might include a range of different terms depending on the particular labour agreement program being used.

Nomination application

For the sponsoring business, the nomination application is the one constant through all programs. Whether you are using the 482, DAMA, 186, 494 or any other employer-sponsored program: no-one escapes the nomination.

While the Standard Business Sponsorship is not related to any particular roles in the business, and the DAR endorsement and labour agreements can set out multiple roles the business is seeking to fill with overseas labour, the nomination identifies one single position and one single person who will be filling that role.

If you have 5 nurses to fill workforce shortages, that means you will be doing 5 nomination applications – one for each of them.

Visa application

Once all above steps have been successful or at least sent to the Department, the worker can submit their visa application.

This is the main stage where the worker’s qualifications, work experience and English language ability, as well as heath and character, are assessed by the Department. If partner and/or children are included in the application, the Department will be checking that they also meet their own requirements.

Applicant skills and English requirements are set, among other reasons, to ensure that foreign workers are able to enter Australia and fill the required skills shortage quickly and effectively.

Once it’s all over (or is it?)

Once you have the visa, the endpoint of all this, it is time for the worker to travel to Australia to join your business.

Once on-staff, it is important that you comply with all the sponsorship obligations. You can read more about sponsorship obligations here. Obligations will vary to some extent between 482, 186, DAMA and 494, but are largely overlapping for the 482 and 494, as well as the DAMA route of accessing those.

Put simply, it’s important to follow through on the range of commitments made to the Government throughout the sponsorship processes discussed above, most obviously paying the worker at least the guaranteed amounts you had set out. The Department can undertake monitoring activities to ensure this is being done.

Sources/further reading:

• https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/employing-and-sponsoring-someone/sponsoring-workers/learn-about-sponsoring/how-to-sponsor-a-worker
• https://www.workvisalawyers.com.au/services/employer-sponsored-visas/tss-482-visa/tss-482-sponsorship-obligations.html
• https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/employing-and-sponsoring-someone/sponsoring-workers/nominating-a-position/labour-market-testing
• https://www.workvisalawyers.com.au/services/employer-sponsored-visas/tss-482-visa/tss-482-nomination-labour-market-testing-lmt.html

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.

Australia has been known for exceptional high-quality education and a quality lifestyle, with four of its cities – Adelaide, Perth, Melbourne, and Brisbane being in the top 10 livable cities the world over.

Australia is home to 43 universities, some of them in the world’s top 100 Universities.

Australia is a safe and welcoming country; most students want to settle in Australia and get Australian Permanent Residency.

It is to be mentioned here that only a qualification cannot get a Permanent residency in Australia; you would also need to work in your occupation for a year or two to secure PR options in Australia.  So, you must have a genuine interest in the subject you study, and you are willing to work in the area after completing your study.

Being in the migration industry long enough, we have seen many students push themselves into a course of study for PR purposes, and after a few months, they want to change their major because they did not have any interest in the subject.

To follow the article about “where I should study in Australia ”, international students may be in the middle of career pathway (Big cities with giant organizations and job opportunities to grow) and PR pathway (Regional areas with higher chances of getting permanent residency).

The 2 goals do not normally share the same way for most international students. So which states in Australia are the best for each type?

Click here to read the article >

Before choosing suitable courses to study, we may need to look at some points to understand better how you will get an Australian permanent residency.

There are two most popular visa streams to get Australian PR:

• Skilled Visa (Subclass 189, 190, and 491)
• Employer-Sponsored Visa (Subclass 482, 494, DAMA and 186 Visa)

The standard requirements listed in those streams are:

• Qualification of your study that meets the Australian Qualification Framework (AQF)
• Postive Skill Assessment
• Work experience in nominated occupation
• English and Age requirements

Book an Appointment

Here we discuss a few courses from the Australian Permanent residency point of view.

Here are certain things you should consider about courses that can lead to Permanent Residency in Australia:

• You must complete a minimum of two years of study in Australia, depending on the level or course of study.
• Your study program should be CRICOS
• You should apply for a PSWV (Post Study Work Visa 485) 485 visa or Temporary Graduate Visa 485 within six months of completing your course in Australia.
• You must follow ANZSCO(Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations) job descriptions.