The ‘Temporary Skills Shortage’ (TSS) visa, also known as the Subclass 482 visa, was introduced in March 2018 to replace the previous Subclass 457 visa.
The TSS visa is a temporary employer-sponsored visa which allows a potential employer to sponsor a skilled person in a position which meets their business needs where a labour market shortage might otherwise exist. They also allow potential employees to to rely on their skills, work experience and qualifications as an opportunity to migrate to Australia.
There are two main ‘streams’ of this visa, depending on which occupation list the relevant occupation falls under:
The ‘short term stream’ provides for a period of up to 2 years. Upon the expiry of this visa, a further 2 year visa can be applied for. There is no pathway to permanent residency.
The ‘medium term stream’ allows a stay of up to 4 years, with an option to transition to a permanent visa (Subclass 186 or Subclass 187) after 3 years.
(1) Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS)
The sponsoring employer must first be approved as a Standard Business Sponsor. This application is looking at whether there is adequate evidence that the business is legally established and currently operating in Australia. There must be no ‘adverse information’ about the business. It is also important to demonstrate that the business is financially viable and that they have a good record of employing local labour.
We can assess whether we believe a business will meet the requirements of becoming an approved Sponsor and as to the precise evidence required to support a strong SBS application.
A number of obligations are imposed on sponsors.
By law, the sponsor must pay all costs associated with the sponsorship and nomination applications, including the application fees and migration agent costs.
(2) Nomination
An employer must nominate a position within their business. This is about showing that there is a genuine need for the position, providing details of the position including the tasks and responsibilities, ensuring appropriate employment conditions are being offered and that there are no suitably qualified Australian citizens or permanent residents from the local labour market who can fill the position.
The nomination application is assessed according to strict criteria. We can assist with all aspects of this important application.
(3) Visa application
The last step is to apply for a visa for the primary applicant and any dependent family members.
Some of the requirements are as follows:
Qualifications
Usually, a relevant Certificate IV, Diploma or Bachelor degree is required. If the qualifications are from overseas, they should be very similar to an equivalent qualification from Australia.
In some cases, a formal qualification is not required and work experience can be relied upon to meet the skills requirement.
In other cases, a formal skills assessment is required.
Work experience
The visa applicant must have at least 2 years of full time (or equivalent) work experience working in a position that is the same, or very similar to the occupation which they are being sponsored in. If the applicant has a relevant qualification, this work experience must be ‘post-qualification’ which means it must have been completed after the relevant qualification was completed.
English
Visa applicants applying under the short-term stream must meet the following results in these English language tests:
IELTS – Overall score of 5 with at least 4.5 in each component
PTE – Overall of at least 36 with at least 30 in each component
TOEFL – Total score of at least 35 with a score of at least 3 in listening and reading and a score of at least 12 in speaking and writing.
Please note, if you are applying under the short-term stream, you are automatically considered to have sufficient English, if one of the following apply:
you hold a passport from Canada, New Zealand, Republic of Ireland, UK or the US; or
you have completed at least 5 years full-time study in at least a secondary level institution and most classes were in English; or
you annual earnings are to be at least $96,400.
Visa applicants applying under the medium-term stream must have the following results in an English language test:
IELTS – Overall score of 5 with at least 5 in each component
PTE – Overall of at least 36 with at least 36 in each component
TOEFL – Total score of at least 35 with a score of at least 4 in listening and reading and a score of at least 14 in speaking and writing.
Dependent family members are not required to meet any English requirement.
Age limit?
There is no age limit for visa applicants nor dependent family members.
There is however an age limit of 45 imposed on the Subclass 186 visa though, so if you are applying under the ‘medium-term stream’ and you intend to ‘transition’ to one of these permanent visas after working for 3 years, you should take note.
eligibility criteria:
Be nominated by an approved ‘standard business sponsor’
Hold a relevant qualification and/or have obtained a positive skills assessment where required
Have at least 2 years full time relevant work experience
Meet the relevant English language requirements
Meet health and character requirements and have adequate health insurance
BENEFITS:
No age limit
Lower English level requirement
2 years, instead of 3 years work experience required
Processed quickly
