Becoming an Accredited Sponsor and receiving Accredited Sponsorship status will significantly speed up your sponsorship processing times. Read the full details and find out if you tick all the boxes…
What are the benefits of becoming an Accredited Sponsor?
Streamlined & Priority Processing times
An Accredited Sponsor receives priority when we process Temporary Skill Shortage visa (subclass 482) (TSS) nominations and visa applications. We process most applications in less than 5 days.
If you were granted accredited status after 1 July 2016, certain low risk TSS nomination applications will receive streamlined processing.
What’s more, as an Accredited Sponsor, you are exempt from providing police clearance certificates for every country in which the applicant has resided, providing that the business can confirm their good character.
As an Accredited Sponsor, you will be able to…
- Sponsor a skilled worker to travel to Australia to fill a position if you can’t find a suitably skilled Australian to do
- Employ skilled visa holders, who are currently in Australia, if they have permission to work.
How long will the sponsorship last?
- 5 years from the date we approve the accreditation.
What are the government costs involved?
- Sponsorship fee $420
Who can apply for accreditation?
Category 1: Commonwealth, state and territory government agencies
Required characteristics:
- Australian workers make up at least 75% of your workforce in Australia
Category 2: Australian Trusted Traders
Required characteristics:
- Australian workers make up at least 75% of your workforce in Australia
- you have a written contract of employment for all TSS and/or 457 visa holders that meets the National Employment Standards (unless their occupation is exempt from this requirement)*
- you have paid all Australian employees in accordance with an Enterprise Agreement or an internal salary table that reflects the current market salary rates for all occupations in your business*
*Additional evidentiary documentation must be provided against these characteristics
Category 3: Low volume usage and high percentage of Australian workers (at least 85%)
Required characteristics:
- Australian workers make up at least 85% of your workforce in Australia
- we have approved at least one nomination for a TSS or subclass 457 visa holder in the last year***
- we have approved more than 97% of your nomination applications in the last year
- you are not a sole trader or a partnership**
- you have an annual turnover of at least AUD4M for the last two years***
- you have been a standard business sponsor for at least one year***
- you have complied with all of your sponsor obligations
- you have paid all Australian employees in accordance with an Enterprise Agreement or an internal salary table that reflects the current market salary rate*
- you have a written contract of employment for all TSS and/or subclass 457 visa holders that meets the National Employment Standards (unless their occupation is exempt from this requirement)*
*Additional evidentiary documentation must be provided against these characteristics
**The Department may approve accreditation for large partnerships in industries where this is a common business structure, and where the employer meets other criteria (for example, legal and medical practices). These will be assessed on a case-by-case basis where accreditation is requested by partnership and a submission is provided requesting special consideration.
***The Department may approve accreditation for start-up businesses who wish to apply for accreditation but do not meet these requirements where special circumstances apply (e.g. part of a government entrepreneurship program/award winner). These will be assessed on a case-by-case basis where accreditation is requested by a start-up business and a submission is provided requesting special consideration.
Category 4: High volume usage and medium percentage of Australian workers (at least 75%)
Required characteristics:
- Australian workers make up at least 75% of your workforce in Australia
- we have approved nominations for at least 10 TSS and/or subclass 457 visa holders in the last two years
- we have approved more than 97% of your nomination applications in the last two years
- you are not a sole trader or a partnership**
- you have an annual turnover of at least AUD4M for the last two years
- you have been a standard business sponsor for at least two years
- you have complied with all of your sponsor obligations
- you have paid all Australian employees in accordance with an Enterprise Agreement or an internal salary table that reflects the current market salary rate*
- you have a written contract of employment for all TSS and/or subclass 457 visa holders that meets the National Employment Standards (unless their occupation is exempt from this requirement)*
*Additional evidentiary documentation must be provided against these characteristics
**The Department may approve accreditation for large partnerships in industries where this is a common business structure, and where the employer meets other criteria (for example, legal and medical practices). These will be assessed on a case-by-case basis where accreditation is requested by partnership and a submission is provided requesting special consideration.
Category 5: Major investment in Australia
- have made a major investment in Australia (of at least AUD50M) which has directly generated Australian employment***
- are not a sole trader or a partnership**
- have been a standard business sponsor for at least one year***
- have nominations approved for at least one primary Temporary Skill Shortage or subclass 457 visa holder in the last year***
- we have approved more than 97% of your nomination applications in the last year
- have no adverse monitoring outcomes
- have all Australian employees paid in accordance with an Enterprise Agreement or an internal salary table that reflects the current market salary rates*
- engage all Temporary Skill Shortage and/or subclass 457 visa holders as employees under a written contract that meets National Employment Standards where they apply*
- Options for measuring a major investment may include:
- a lasting contribution to Australia, including: the value of the investment, the company’s pattern of investment, jobs created, export outcomes generated, tax contribution
- innovative business practices or technologies, including: introducing new skills and capabilities, setting up research activities in Australia or collaborating with Australian research institutions, commercial partnerships (MoUs or JVs)
- supporting exports and the expansion of Australian industry within global supply chains, particularly in high value-add areas.
*Additional evidentiary documentation must be provided against these characteristics
**The Department may approve accreditation for large partnerships in industries where this is a common business structure, and where the employer meets other criteria (for example, legal and medical practices). These will be assessed on a case-by-case basis where accreditation is requested by partnership and a submission is provided requesting special consideration.
***The Department may approve accreditation for start-up businesses who wish to apply for accreditation but do not meet these requirements where special circumstances apply (e.g. part of a government entrepreneurship program/award winner). These will be assessed on a case-by-case basis where accreditation is requested by a start-up business and a submission is provided requesting special consideration.