From 18 March 2018, the 457 visa was abolished and replaced with the TSS visa (Subclass 482). The TSS 482 visa is comprised of a Short-Term stream,  Medium-Term stream and Labour agreement stream.

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A business can sponsor someone for this visa if they cannot find an Australian citizen or permanent resident to do the skilled work. The business must be a Standard Business Sponsor(SBS) or an Overseas Business Sponsor (OBS) to sponsor you under the TSS visa. You can be in or outside Australia​ when you lodge your application (or hold a BVA, BVB, BVC).

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What does this visa allow you to do?

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The TSS visa is a temporary visa which permits the holder to live in Australia, while working full-time for the sponsoring employer, in the nominated position. Applicants for a TSS visa may include dependent family members in their application.

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Who can apply?

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The TSS visa has a short-term stream and a medium-term stream.  Applicants with occupations on the Short-Term Skilled Occupations List (STSOL) are eligible for visas of up to two years (renewable once, for a further two years), whilst those on the Medium and Long-Term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL) can apply for up to four years, with eligibility for permanent residency after three years.

 

Application Requirement

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  1. Medium and Long Term TSS Visa (482)

• Occupation on MLTSSL

• Renewable onshore and unlimited times

• Pathway to permanent residency (after 3 years)

• IELTS 5 (no skill below 5) or equivalent, unless exempt

• 2 years of relevant work experience required and meet ANZSCO requirements

• No age limit

• Meet health and character requirements

• Employer tests the Australian labour market before an application to sponsor (LMT)

• Employer must pay the Australian Market Salary Rate (AMSR)

 

  2. Short-Term TSS Visa (482)

• Occupation on STSOL

• Renewable once onshore (2+2 max in total onshore) + more offshore

• IELTS overall 5 (no skill below 4.5) or equivalent, unless exempt

• NO permanent residency pathway unless regional

• Show intention of temporary stay (GTE requirement)

• 2 years of relevant work experience required and meet ANZSCO requirements

• No age limit

• Meet health and character requirements

• Employer tests the Australian labour market before an application to sponsor (LMT)

• Employer must pay the Australian Market Salary Rate (AMSR)

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  3. TSS Visa -Regional (ROL)

• Occupation on the Regional Occupations list (ROL)

• Employer must be in a designated regional area

• Renewable onshore and unlimited times

• Pathway to permanent residency (after 3 years)

• IELTS 5 (no skill below 5) or equivalent, unless exempt

• 2 years of relevant work experience required and meet ANZSCO requirements

• No age limit

• Meet health and character requirements

• Employer tests the Australian labour market before an application to sponsor (LMT)

• Employer must pay the Australian Market Salary Rate (AMSR)

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Application Process

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• Step 1: a sponsorship application by the employer (the employer needs to be a lawfull, active, operating business and meet local labour and employment practices).

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• Step 2: The second part of the application process is the nomination application. This is regarding the position to be filled, salary details, efforts to hire Australian workers and the ‘genuineness’ of the position. The business must also be viable to sponsor from overseas.

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• Step 3: a visa application by the nominated employee. The visa applicant must demonstrate that they meet the skills required for their occupation as well as health and character requirements.

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Labour Market Testing (LMT) for TSS

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Employers must advertise the role on 2 national reaching mediums before offering the position to the overseas applicant (unless an international trade obligation applies). This is to ensure that employers try to find a suitably qualified Australians before they can seek to employ an overseas skilled worker on a TSS 482 visa.

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Salary level for TSS

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Sponsors seeking to employ an overseas worker will need to demonstrate that they are going to pay the market salary rate to ensure that overseas workers are protected and the local labour market is not undercut. In any case it must be above the Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT). This threshold is set by the Department of Home Affairs each year and is currently $53,900 plus super.

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Caveats

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Some occupations are subject to caveats that set a minimum remuneration level that is above TSMIT.  For example the occupation of “Marketing Specialist” or “Conference and Event Managers” excludes positions which have nominated annual earnings of less than AUD65,000 or for example the occupation of “Corporate Services Manager” will require the business to have turned over at least AUD 1 Million in the 12 months prior to the nomination application.

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