Temporary Skill Shortage Visa (Subclass 482)

The TSS visa is issued to offset the labour shortages in Australia; hence the first thing you should do is investigating if your occupation is on the skilled occupation list published by the Department of Home Affairs.  

If your occupation is on this list, you must check if you satisfy all other requirements for a visa application. These requirements vary depending on visa streams, but generally they include English proficiency, working experience, health and character checks.  

It is compulsory to have an sponsored employer in order to apply for this visa type. As the application will involve multiple processes and fees covered by the employer, you must find a suitable sponsor who really appreciates the value of your capacity and is keen on sponsoring you. 

Your employer must apply for the sponsorship by creating an account on the ImmiAccount website and submitting all required documents. In the application, your employer has to show that he/she is not able to find a worker in the Australian workforce market to fill his/her organisation’s vacancy. The occupation that your employer wants to nominate you also must be on the list of eligible skilled occupations. The fee for sponsorship application is AUD 420.  

There is only one case where your employer does not need to apply for sponsorship, which is when you apply for the labour agreement stream under a 482 visa. However, in this case, your employer must submit a request to be a part of the labour agreements. 

After the sponsorship is approved, your employer can nominate you for a position in his/her organisation and lodge a nomination application for you. The nomination application needs to include the position description details, salary information, and previous efforts to look for an Australian worker.

• Your employer can demonstrate that this position contributes to the continuous operation and development of the business. It had previously been filled by another worker, but he/she cannot find a local employee for this position at this stage.  
• There is a significant increase in demand for the business’ services; therefore hiring more staff is undeniable.  
• Your employer can also give convincing evidence that his/her business is being expanded with new products or services, leading to the need for a new position. A very detailed business plan should be submitted in this case to persuade the case officer.  

If you are in Australia, you must start working for your sponsoring employer within 90 days from when your visa is granted. If you are in other countries, you are required to commence your job within 90 days of your first arrival in Australia.  

The Department of Home Affair has not issued a specific requirement about the time when 482 visa holders must arrive to Australia. Nevertheless, if your arrival is significantly delayed, you and your sponsor should be counselled for the reasons why you commence work late and whether your position in the business is genuine.  

The temporary shortage visa can be granted for 2 years for Short Term Stream visa, and 4 years for Medium Stream and Labour Agreement Stream visa. Hong Kong or British National Overseas passport holders are exceptional in this regard as they can stay up to 5 years with a TSS visa.  

You can extend your Short-Term Stream visa for a further 2 years. Medium Term Stream visa holders can either renew for another 4 years or transition to permanent residency (visa subclass 186) after three years of employment.  

Your spouses of temporary skilled shortage visa holders have unrestricted work rights in Australia if they are under visa 482 together with you.  

While working for your sponsor, you are allowed for part-time studies to improve your skills. However, you will not receive any government subsidy to assist you with your study.  

Given that Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) is one of employer sponsored visas, TSS visa holders are allowed to work for the sponsoring employer only. Undertaking a second job is considered as breaking the 482-visa condition. However, there are certain occupations exempt from this rule, which are CEOs, General Managers and General Medical Practitioners. 

TSS visa holders are supposed to work full-time for their employer. However, in some exceptional cases, part-time work is considered reasonable to disregard the full time requirement. TSS visa holders are approved to temporarily reduce their hours to part time basic if they return from:  

1. Sick leave or work based injury  
2. Maternity leave  
3. Special personal leave where TSS visa holders are not able to work full time 

When arranging a part time work on visas 482, sponsoring employers are required to ensure that their sponsorship obligations still can be met. It is a tricky situation because a reduction in working hours can result in a drop of employees’ salary. It means that what the employees earn can be less than the salary rates stated in the nomination application. In this case, employers and employees must prove that:  

1. The duties and responsibilities of sponsored employees remain consistent with the duties and responsibilities clarified at the nomination stage.  
2. The pro-rata rate paid for sponsored employees remains at least the same as the hourly rate of nominated salary. 
3. The new arrangement must be agreed upon by both sponsoring and sponsored parties.  

The part-time arrangement may be applied with Short Term and Medium Term Visas only. The nominees under a Labour Agreement Visa are restricted to full-time arrangements. 

If you cease employment with your current sponsor, he/she has an obligation to notify the Department of Home Affairs of your resignation. If you are not sponsored by another employer or if you do not apply for another visa within 60 days, then you would be in breach of a 482-visa condition and will be at risk of visa cancellation.  

If TSS visa holders wish to change their working companies, they must go through the similar process of applying for a new TSS visa. It means that they must find another Australian business to sponsor and lodge a “nomination transfer” with the Department of Home Affairs to transfer the nomination to their business. The TSS visa holders can start working for the new company once the new sponsorship and nomination are approved. It is noted that the new job duties must be the same as what the visa holders registered when they applied for a 482 visa.  

When 482 visa holders change their working places, they can work for the new employers for the remaining time left on their visas. Once their current visas are expiry, they can renew the 482 visa or apply for permanent residency if eligible. 

If your employer no longer sponsors you, don’t panic! There are two visa options for you in this case. You can find a new employer who is willing to sponsor you within 60 days of your employment termination. Bear in mind that the new nomination must be submitted within 60 days from the date your employment is ceased, otherwise you will be in breach of your 482 visa conditions. 

The second option is to apply for another visa type to stay in Australia. If you are holding a medium-term stream or labour agreement visa, and you accumulate enough 3 years of working experience, you are eligible for a permanent residence (PR) visa if you can find an eligible sponsor for the 186 Direct Entry stream. In case you are not able to apply for PR, you can look at other options such as student and partner visas. With urgent cases where you do not have enough time to prepare for student or partner visa applications, you can apply for a visitor visa as the process and documents required for this visa are relatively simple.  

Your sponsors have a right to terminate the employment with you, but they do not have the authority to cancel your visas. What your sponsors can do is to inform the Department of Home Affairs once they stop hiring and sponsoring you. 

Apart from 186 ENS visa, 482 Visa holders might be eligible to apply for 189 Skilled Independent Visa, 190 Skilled Nominated Visa or 820/801 Partner Visa depending on your own situation. 

Yes, usually 186 ENS Visa applicants must be less than 45 years old except for those who are nominated as an academic in the Australian University or nominated as a scientist, researcher or technical specialist by an Australian scientific government agency or you are holding 444 or 461 New Zealand related visas for at least 2 years.