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Within the 2018/2019 programme year, Australian immigration has witnessed some massive changes. These changes range from new government, policy changes, the abolishment of the 457 visa, and new visas being implemented. Below you will find a brief summary of changes and what we predict will come in 2019.
This article is updated regularly. Last updated: Monday, 4 August 2025
Genuine Position Requirements for the ENS Subclass 186 Visa & SID subclass 482 Visa. How To Prove Nominated Position Is A Genuine Position.
The Genuine Position Requirement is enforced by the Department of Home Affairs for Skills in Demand Visa (SID) applications and other work experience entry streams. Whether you would like to migrate to Australia, the nominated occupation in the business must be proved to be a genuine position. Common visas that include a genuine position requirement are the Ens 186 visa and the Skills in Demand (SID) 482 visa. Registered migration agents can assist you through the migration processes, ensuring you meet all the requirements to regional certifying bodies and the Department of Home Affairs.
The Genuine Position Requirement is a criterion of all employer-sponsored visa applications that the position which is identified in the nomination application is a genuine position. This requirement is in place to ensure that the employer-sponsored visa pathways are being used to fill genuine positions which the employer has not been able to fill from the Australian labour market.
Genuine Position requires that the position associated with the nominated occupation must be genuine. This means that situations, where the actual position needed in the business does not match the nominated ANZSCO occupation will fail the genuine position requirement.
It is also important to remember that the nominated occupation must be on the relevant list. Without this, no matter how genuine the position may be, the nomination application will not be approved.
Genuine position applies to all employer-sponsored visas.
This includes the following visas:
If you are applying for one of these visas, it is important that adequate information and supporting evidence is provided to show to the Department that the nominated position is genuine.
It is important to provide a large collection of supporting documents and detailed information to show that the position is in fact genuine.
These include:
Evidence of the need for the work of the position within the business, such as:
The Department is concerned to ensure that the employer-sponsored program is being used to fill genuine labour shortages for Australian businesses. Through considering a number of applications, there are certain circumstances which more frequently attract heavy scrutiny by your case officer.
The range of aspects:
While case officers are not always experts in the field of the business which they are making a decision about, they expect that the nominated position is one which makes sense for the type of business.
As such, an application will be scrutinized where it does not fit within the business. This may include nominations such as for a pastry chef to prepare fresh baked goods in an engineering firm, or
There are other circumstances where the position may be within the field of the business, but may not be deemed reasonable due to the size of the business. A common example of this is a nomination for a full-time accountant in a small business, such as a grocery or restaurant.
If there is a particular reason why an unusual position is needed within your business, then it is important to make sure that this is clearly explained to the Department and to provide a very strong genuine position statement, understanding that the application will be even more carefully looked at.
Any nomination must specify an occupation from the ANZSCO which best fits the nominated position within the business.
As the different visas have specific lists of occupations which can be nominated, it is important that the nominated position clearly matches the selected ANZSCO occupation. Certain occupations are given more attention by case officers than others, and where there are duties specified for the position that fall outside of the ANZSCO description, this may get flagged by the assessing officer as not being a genuine position.
Duties which appear too routine in nature or below the skill level of the nominated occupation may lead the Department to find that the nominated position is not genuine.
However, when considering whether a position is genuine, a job description which seems to be a copy and pasted off the ANZSCO description will not be looked upon favourably.
Nominating relatives for an employer-sponsored visa is very unlikely to be successful and will attract the scrutiny of a decision maker. Such a nomination will usually be found to have been contrived to achieve a migration outcome.
As listed in the Specification of Income Threshold and Annual Earnings and Methodology of Annual Market Salary Rate, the nominated position must be paid at or above the Australian Market Salary Rate.
This is the salary which an equivalent Australian citizen or permanent resident working in the nominated position would be earning. If there are no Australians employed by the business in the same role, then you must look at a relevant award or relevant information about how Australian workers in similar positions are paid.
This is a strict requirement for the SID subclass 482 visa, ENS subclass 186 visa and 494 visa.
The Department will look at a business' attempts to locate somebody in Australia to fill the position in the business.
Strict labour market testing requirements must be met for the following visas:
The labour market testing requirements are different for each kind and you should refer to the requirement for the relevant subclass.
On top of these, the case officer will be looking at how the business attempted to look for someone. If the advertising and recruitment process looks as though it was not a genuine attempt to locate an Australian PR or Citizen worker, the decision maker may not find that the nominated position is genuine.
It is important to ensure that the recruitment process is clearly outlined in your genuine position statement and that the reason why any Australian applicants were not suitable is clearly explained.
The genuine position statement is the cornerstone of a strong employer-sponsored nomination application.
We understand that some applicants are interested in using a genuine position statement template to strengthen their application.
So as to be genuine, it is important that any information is specific to the business and to the nominated position. Generic statements will not strengthen your application and may, in fact, put it at a disadvantage.
The best genuine position statement is an authentic letter, written by a representative of the business who understands the important role the vacant position plays in the business and the difficulties experienced by the company in sourcing an Australian citizen or permanent resident worker to fill the position.
While the genuine position requirement is an important consideration, there is also a range of other requirements which must be met for the application to be successful.
Many ENS 186 visa applicants will also need to obtain skills assessments, through the relevant skills assessment authority, such as VETASSESS. Certain SID 482 visa applicants will also need to obtain a skills assessment, depending on their nominated occupation and country of passport.
At Work Visa Lawyers we are experienced in assisting applicants in all matters relating to Australian visa applications, including state sponsorship applications. 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 Migration Review Tribunal, Judicial Review and Ministerial Intervention.
If you require further information regarding your Australia visa options you can contact us through:
(08) 8351 9956
or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
When it comes to Australian immigration it is essential to know what deadlines you have and that you abide by them. The Department of Home Affairs adheres to strict time limits that apply to all applicants. With that being said, in November 2018 the Federal Court of Australia (FCA) set a new precedent that grants the AAT power to extend time limits for review cases. This meant that the Australian visa appeals and migration review tribunal, on a case by case basis, would be able to allow a refused applicant extra time to appeal the administrative decision. Less than a month later though, the Full Court repealed the decision of the FCA and decided that every applicant in a migration matter must apply to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) within the allotted time limit.
The Department of Home Affairs requires Australian Skilled Visa applicants to provide detailed information regarding their qualifications and employment history. To ensure you meet the Australian qualifications, Home Affairs requires that you complete a migration skills assessment form an assessing authority.
The application process and processing times for the Australian Offshore Partner visa 309/100, Prospective Marriage Visa 300, and Onshore Partner Visa 820/801 can be very long. To be eligible for a Partner Visa you must be legally married to, or in a de facto relationship (common law), with an Australian citizen or permanent resident.
Although this may seem straightforward it depends on your eligibility and whether there is enough evidence to support the visa application and whether your visa conditions allow you to apply for another visa. Migration Agents can assist in the application process by informing you on the correct Partner, Marriage, or Spousal Visa you should apply for.
There are three types of partner visas that you may be eligible for:
The Prospective Marriage Visa subclass 300 also known as the Fiancé visa, as it allows a person to come to Australia and marry their fiancé within 9 months of being granted.
You then apply for the combined temporary and permanent partner visa 820/801 in Australia after marriage and within the 9-month period of the visa.
The Onshore Partner Visa subclass 820/801 is an application for visa applicants to make while they are physically in Australia. Visa applicants must check their current visa conditions to ensure that they are eligible to apply for the Partner visa application as well as providing the minimum criteria
The Offshore Partner Visa subclass 309/100 is an application for visa applicants who are physically outside of Australia and is granted when the applicant is outside of Australia. Applicant should check other eligibility criteria before applying for the Partner visa application as well as providing the minimum criteria
The Partner Visa is a combined application for permanent residency. The Department must be satisfied with your identity. Therefore, before you apply for the visa, ensure that you have already had your identity documents certified as true copies and if they are not in English, have the documents translated by an accredited NAATI translator.
You probably did not think about applying for a partner visa when you first met your soul-mate, but as time goes on, you think to yourself that being separated from each one another is simply not an option. You want to see each other every day for the rest of your lives but demonstrating that your relationship meets the criteria for a Partner Visa is a different story.
Your number one aim is to get a successful partner visa through fast. To do this you need to demonstrate that you and your partner have been together for the period you say. For de facto partner visas, demonstrate that you have lived together for at least 12 months (subject to exemptions). For married couples, you must demonstrate that you have a genuine and continuing relationship from at least the time of marriage or better if you had met and courted each other for a period before marriage. Each relationship should demonstrate a reasonable amount of evidence taken from the beginning of the relationship up to the period of lodgement demonstrating that your relationship is genuine and continuing to the exclusion of all others. You need to meet the definition of De facto or the definition of a Spouse.
What is special about your relationship that the Department should grant the visa without delay?
All relationships are different and unique; there is no doubt that your relationship is genuine and continuing. If you have a hard time demonstrating good evidence from early on, chat to us – we can give you the advice you need to overcome the ambiguity of demonstrating a genuine relationship.
You will be required to provide police checks from the country you came from and any other country you have spent 12 months or more in the past 10 years.
You may be thinking that that minor traffic offense does not need to be declared. It does. All applicants are rigorously tested against the Australian Government’s character test. By not declaring any minor infringements with the law you may be providing false and misleading information to the Department that could result in the Partner Visa refusal and a 3-year ban on applying for any further visas in Australia.
If you or your sponsor have convictions, you will need to explain to some degree why you are a person of good character. If you have concerns about your background and whether you need to declare any previous convictions or the impact of your convictions then contact us immediately for a confidential discussion.
The long processing times illustrate that many Partner Visas are being lodged; this means that your partner application must stand out from the crowd and effectively, make it easy for the case officer to make an assessment. By meeting the minimum criteria in a Partner visa you are ensuring that you have made an application for a valid visa but go one step further and strengthen your application with overwhelming evidence that your relationship is genuine and continuing to the exclusion of all others
You are more than your relationship. You have hopes and dreams to build your future not only with your partner but to do so in Australia. What will your contribution be? Perhaps you are a teacher? A nurse or have skills that the Australian economy values. Have you built ties to Australia through community and friendships? Your contribution to Australia can be more than being the life partner of an Australian Citizen or Permanent Resident sponsor.
It is never too late to get advice, especially before you lodge the Partner Visa application. Planning for the application is the best way to get your Partner Visa lodged correctly and meeting the criteria for it to be a successful application.
Your circumstances are different from anyone you know, it is not advisable to rely on their experience, particularly if you have a complicated matter. Our Registered Migration Agents supply tailored advice to your circumstances – we have expertise in this area and understand that this highly stressful and daunting situation can cloud your judgment.
At Work Visa Lawyers we are experienced in assisting applicants in all matters relating to Australian visa applications. Our areas of expertise include Partner Visas, Skilled Migration visas, Business Skills Migration visas, Employer Sponsored Work Visas and other Family Migration visas as well as the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) Review, Judicial Review and Ministerial Intervention.
Contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or +61 8 8351 9956
FAQs - Effects of Coronavirus on Australian Partner Visas
How to Put Together a Good Quality Partner Visa Application
Australia Partner visa processing times update March 2017
Australian Visa Refusal Notification Options For The Appeal & Review Process (Tribunal & Ministerial Review)
http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/legis/cth/consol_act/ma1958118/s5cb.htm
http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/legis/cth/consol_act/ma1958118/s5f.html
https://www.workvisalawyers.com.au/services/partner-visas.html
https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/prospective-marriage-300#howto
https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/partner-onshore/permanent-801
https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/partner-offshore
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