Work Visa

Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme visa (RSMC/ subclass 187)

Features:

This visa is a permanent residence visa for skilled workers who want to work in regional Australia. It allows you to work in Australia under one of three streams:

The Temporary Residence Transition stream:
The Direct Entry stream:
The Agreement stream:

Visa allows you to:

This visa allows you and your family to live in Australia and work permanently in regional Australia.

This is a permanent residence visa. It allows you and any family members who have also been granted this visa to:

stay in Australia indefinitely
work and study in Australia
enrol in Medicare, Australia's scheme for health-related care and expenses
apply for Australian citizenship (if you are eligible)
sponsor eligible relatives for permanent residence
travel to and from Australia for five years from the date the visa is granted (after that time, you will need a resident return visa or another visa to return to Australia).

Eligibility:

You might be able to get this visa if you:

have been nominated by an approved Australian employer in regional Australia within six months before you apply
are under the age of 50, if you are applying under the Temporary Residence stream, or are under the age of 45, if you are applying under the Direct Entry stream
at time of application lodgement, have the required skills and qualifications for the position you have been nominated for – you must hold any mandatory registration, license or professional membership, or you must already be fully assessed as suitable by the relevant body
at time of application lodgement, have appropriate English language skills for Temporary Residence Transition (TRT) stream and Direct Entry (DE) stream.
meet health and character requirements
meet the requirements of the stream in which you apply.

Process times:

Temporary Residence Transition stream:

75 per cent of applications processed in 7 months.
90 per cent of applications processed in 10 months.

Direct Entry stream:

75 per cent of applications processed in 16 months.
90 per cent of applications processed in 18 months.

Agreement stream:

Processing times vary

Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme visa (subclass 187)

Features:

This visa is a permanent residence visa for skilled workers who want to work in regional Australia. It allows you to work in Australia under one of three streams:

The Temporary Residence Transition stream:
The Direct Entry stream:
The Agreement stream:

Visa allows you to:

It lets you and any member of your family unit who has also been granted this visa:

stay in Australia indefinitely
work and study in Australia
enrol in Medicare, Australia's scheme for health-related care and expenses
apply for Australian citizenship (if you are eligible)
sponsor eligible relatives for permanent residence
travel to and from Australia for five years from the date the visa is granted (after that time, you will need a resident return visa or another visa to return to Australia).

Eligibility:

You might be able to get this visa if you:

have been nominated by an approved Australian employer within the six months before you apply
are under the age of 50 at the time of application, if you are applying under the Temporary Residence stream, or are under the age of 45 if you are applying under the Direct Entry stream
have the required skills and qualifications for the position (at time of application lodgement you must have the required skills and qualifications for the position you have been nominated for – you must hold any mandatory registration, license or professional membership, or you must already be fully assessed as suitable by the relevant body)
have appropriate English language skills (at the time of application lodgement)
meet health and character requirements
meet the requirements of the stream in which you apply.

Process times:

Temporary Residence Transition stream:

75 per cent of applications processed in 7 months.
90 per cent of applications processed in 10 months.

Direct Entry stream:

75 per cent of applications processed in 8 months.
90 per cent of applications processed in 15 months.

Agreement stream:

Processing times vary

Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186)

Features:

This visa is a permanent residence visa for skilled workers who want to work in regional Australia. It allows you to work in Australia under one of three streams:

The Temporary Residence Transition stream:
The Direct Entry stream:
The Agreement stream:

Visa allows you to:

It lets you and any member of your family unit who has also been granted this visa:

stay in Australia indefinitely
work and study in Australia
enrol in Medicare, Australia's scheme for health-related care and expenses
apply for Australian citizenship (if you are eligible)
sponsor eligible relatives for permanent residence
travel to and from Australia for five years from the date the visa is granted (after that time, you will need a resident return visa or another visa to return to Australia).

Eligibility:

You might be able to get this visa if you:

have been nominated by an approved Australian employer within the six months before you apply
are under the age of 50 at the time of application, if you are applying under the Temporary Residence stream, or are under the age of 45 if you are applying under the Direct Entry stream
have the required skills and qualifications for the position (at time of application lodgement you must have the required skills and qualifications for the position you have been nominated for – you must hold any mandatory registration, license or professional membership, or you must already be fully assessed as suitable by the relevant body)
have appropriate English language skills (at the time of application lodgement)
meet health and character requirements
meet the requirements of the stream in which you apply.

Process times:

Temporary Residence Transition stream:

75 per cent of applications processed in 7 months.
90 per cent of applications processed in 10 months.

Direct Entry stream:

75 per cent of applications processed in 8 months.
90 per cent of applications processed in 15 months.

Agreement stream:

Processing times vary

Temporary Work (Short Stay Specialist) visa (subclass 400)

Features:

This visa is for people who want to travel to Australia to:

do short-term, highly specialised, non-ongoing work
in limited circumstances, participate in an activity or work relating to Australia’s interests.

Generally the stay period allowed is up to three months but up to six months may be considered in limited circumstances if supported by a strong business case.

Visa allows you to:

This visa lets you:

stay in Australia while your visa is valid (generally up to three months, but up to six months may be allowed in limited circumstances)
do short-term, highly specialised, non-ongoing work for which you were granted the visa
in limited circumstances, participate in an activity or work relating to Australia’s interests
bring members of your family with you to Australia, if they meet the requirements for including family members in your application. Your family members will not be allowed to work in Australia.

We will tell you how many times you can enter Australia on this visa.

Combining a holiday with your intended work or activity may be allowed if the holiday is of short term duration and secondary to the main purpose of your visit.

Eligibility:

You must:

be invited, or supported, by the organisation you will be working for
have specialist skills, knowledge or experience that is needed but cannot be found in Australia

To apply, you must be able to show that:

the work or activity you want to do is short term and non-ongoing
you need to be in Australia to do the work or activity
you have personal attributes or an employment background relevant to the work or activity
you have enough money to support yourself and your accompanying family members while you are in Australia
where applicable, you have the support of the organisation for which you will be working or which invited you to Australia
you meet health and character requirements.

Process times:

75 per cent of applications processed in 13 days
90 per cent of applications processed in 21 days

Temporary Work (International Relations) visa (subclass 403)

Features:

This visa allows you to come to Australia on a temporary basis:

in relation to a bilateral agreement (Government Agreement stream)
to represent a foreign government or to teach a foreign language in an Australian school (Foreign Government Agency stream)
to do domestic work for a diplomat (Domestic Worker stream)
as a person with statutory privileges and immunities (Privileges and Immunities stream)
to participate in the program of seasonal work (Seasonal Worker Program stream).

Visa allows you to:

This visa allows you to:

enter Australia temporarily
do the work or activity specified in your visa application
enter and leave Australia while your visa is valid.
work for your sponsor (Seasonal Worker Program stream only)
anywhere in Australia if you work in horticulture
in limited locations in tourism (accommodation), sugar cane farming, cotton farming or aquaculture.

Eligibility:

You might be able to get this visa if you:

have a genuine intention to stay temporarily in Australia
have adequate financial support for you and your family while you are in Australia
have adequate arrangements for health insurance for you and your family while you are in Australia
meet health and character requirements
meet the requirements of the stream under which you are applying for the visa
if you are in Australia when you apply for the visa, you must hold a qualifying visa.

This visa is not for representatives of foreign governments or foreign government agencies who are accredited by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), such as diplomats, United Nations agency executives and consular officials.

Process times:

Seasonal Worker Program:

75 per cent of applications processed in 2 days.
90 per cent of applications processed in 10 days.

Government Agreement:

75 per cent of applications processed in 23 days.
90 per cent of applications processed in 29 days.

Foreign Government Agency:

75 per cent of applications processed in 19 days.
90 per cent of applications processed in 30 days.

Domestic Worker (Diplomatic or Consular):

Processing times vary

Privileges and Immunities:

Processing times vary

Temporary Work (International Relations) visa (subclass 403)

Features:

This visa allows you to come to Australia on a temporary basis to:

work in the entertainment industry
participate in activities at the invitation of an Australian organisation
participate or observe in an Australian research project
work in a skilled position under a staff exchange arrangement
participate in high-level sports competitions or sports training programs
participate in a special programme approved by the department that provides opportunities for youth exchange, cultural enrichment or community benefits
do full-time religious work
be employed as a superyacht crew member
do full-time domestic work in the household of certain senior foreign executives
participate in a government endorsed event.

Visa allows you to:

The Temporary Activity visa (subclass 408) is for people who want to come to Australia on a temporary basis to undertake one of the following activities:

Entertainer: to work in the entertainment industry in film, television or live productions in either a performance or behind-the-scenes role, such as directing, producing and other production roles.

Invited participant: for people who are invited for stays up to 3 months by an organisation operating in Australia to participate in a specific cultural or social event or events. For example, conferences, sporting, religious and other community events.

Researcher:
- to participate or observe in an Australian research project after being invited to do so.
- to undertake a research activity at an Australian tertiary or research institution related to your field of study.

Religious worker: to be a full-time religious worker, serving the religious objectives of a religious institution in Australia.

Special program: to participate in an approved special program that provides opportunities for youth exchange, cultural enrichment or community benefits.

Sport:
- play, coach or instruct or adjudicate under contract to an Australian sporting club or organisation
- participate in a high-level sports training program

Exchange: to work in a skilled position under a reciprocal staff exchange arrangement to:
- give participants an opportunity to experience another culture
- enhance international relations
- broaden participants’ experience and knowledge.

Superyacht crew: to be employed as a superyacht crew member on board a superyacht in Australia.

Domestic worker (executive): to work full time in the household of certain senior foreign executives.

Australian Government endorsed event: to participate in a government endorsed major event.

This visa requires sponsorship if:

your stay in Australia is for more than three months
you apply in Australia.

There is no nomination required for this visa. This is a temporary visa. You can be in or outside Australian when you apply for this visa and when the visa is granted.

Eligibility:

You might be able to get this visa if you:

intend to stay in Australia for three months or less and apply from outside Australia, and you have the support of an organisation or individual in Australia who has responsibility for the events or activities being undertaken who passes the support test
intend to stay in Australia for more than three months and you are sponsored by an approved sponsor for this visa who passes the sponsorship test
meet the requirements of the activity type in which you are applying for this visa
have adequate financial support for you and your family while you are in Australia
have adequate arrangements for health insurance while you are in Australia
meet health and character requirements
genuinely intend to remain temporarily in Australia to do the work or activity specified in your application.

Process times:

Special Programmes:

75 per cent of applications processed in 26 days.
90 per cent of applications processed in 31 days.

Religious Work:

75 per cent of applications processed in 63 days.
90 per cent of applications processed in 87 days.

Research Activities:

75 per cent of applications processed in 46 days.
90 per cent of applications processed in 68 days.

Invited for Other Social and Cultural Activity:

75 per cent of applications processed in 10 days.
90 per cent of applications processed in 20 days.

Sporting Activities:

75 per cent of applications processed in 29 days.
90 per cent of applications processed in 51 days.

Entertainment Activities:

75 per cent of applications processed in 14 days.
90 per cent of applications processed in 19 days.

Australian Government Endorsed Events:

75 per cent of applications processed in 1 day.
90 per cent of applications processed in 3 days.

Superyacht Crew:

Processing times vary

Exchange Arrangements:

Processing times vary

Domestic Work for Executives:

Processing times vary