The 457 visa program

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The 457 visa program Information session for the
tourism hospitality industries
Information as at 15 December 2011
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What is the 457 visa program?

• The 457 program allows employers to address
  labour shortages by employing overseas workers
  where they cannot find an appropriately skilled
  Australian.
• The 457 visa is a temporary skilled visa.
• This means that 457 visa holders can only work in
  eligible skilled occupations, and they do not
  have the right to stay in Australia permanently.

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• 457 visa holders can
• work in Australia for a period of between one day
  and four years
• change employers, providing the new employer is
  an approved sponsor
• bring any eligible family members, who can work
  and study, with them to Australia
• travel in and out of Australia as often as they
  like.

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How do I use the program?

• There are three steps to sponsoring, or
  employing, an overseas worker on a 457 visa.

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Sponsorship

• To nominate skilled overseas workers for a 457
  visa, you must first become an approved standard
  business sponsor.
• This is the term the Department uses for approved
  sponsors under the 457 program.

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Key requirements

• demonstrating you are a lawfully operating
  business
• attesting that you have a strong record of
  employing local labour and non-discriminatory
  employment practices
• demonstrating you have a strong record of
  training Australians.

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How do I use eVisa?
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How do I start?
www.immi.gov.au/e_visa/employer-sponsored.htm
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How do I start?
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Sponsorship
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Sponsorship
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Sponsorship
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Accredited status characteristics

• be a government agency, a publicly-listed company
  or a private company with a minimum of 4 million
  turnover per year for the last three years and
• have been an active Subclass 457 visa sponsor for
  at least three years (with no more than a six
  month break in the past 36 months), with no
  adverse information based on the Departments and
  the Department of Education, Employment and
  Workplace Relations (DEEWR) monitoring,
  including formal warnings and sanctions and
• have sponsored at least 30 primary Subclass 457
  visa holders in the 12 months prior to the
  application for accreditation and
• have lodged an agreed level of decision-ready
  applications over the previous two years and
• have a non-approval rate of less than 3 per cent
  for the previous three years and
• have Australian workers comprising at least 75
  per cent of their workforce in Australia.

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Business details
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Contact details
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Communication
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Direct employer
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Are you operating?
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Training of Australians
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Training of Australians
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Training Benchmarks
Benchmark A Recent expenditure to the equivalent
of at least 2 of business payroll in payments to
an industry training fund, and a commitment to
maintain this level of expenditure for the term
of approval as a sponsor. Benchmark B Recent
expenditure to the equivalent of at least 1 of
business payroll on training for your employees,
and a commitment to maintain this level of
expenditure for the term of approval as a sponsor.
www.immi.gov.au/skilled/skilled-workers/legislativ
e-instruments/
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Training of Australians
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Benchmark B

• Paying for a relevant course of study
• Apprentices and trainees
• Training provided by a third party
• On the job training

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Training of Australians
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Obligations / Attestation
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Lodge and pay
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Sponsorship
Once approved, your sponsorship agreement lasts
for three years (or six if you receive Accredited
Status). There is no limit to the number of
overseas workers you can sponsor under this
agreement.
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Nomination
The second step in using the 457 program is
nominating a worker to fill a position in your
business. The point of this step is to ensure
that the occupation is eligible under the 457
program, and that the overseas worker is being
paid the appropriate salary for the position in
Australia. You will need to have at least lodged
a sponsorship application before you can nominate
a position for an overseas worker.
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Nomination
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Nomination
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Related sponsorship details
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Business details
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Business contact details
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Position details
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ANZCSO
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ANZCSO
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ANZCSO
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ANZCSO
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Terms conditions
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Salary details
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Market salary rates
If you have an equivalent Australian worker to
the overseas worker, (for example you have an
Australian cook with 3 years experience and you
wish to employ an overseas cook with 3 years
experience) then you need to tell the Department
how much the Australian is paid and show that the
overseas worker will be paid at least as well.
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Market salary rates

• Examples of evidence that can be submitted to
  demonstrate the market salary rate include
• payslips (showing ordinary hourly rate number
  of hours worked)
• contract of employment
• reference to a Collective / Enterprise Agreement
  (if one applies)

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Market salary rates
What if I dont have an equivalent worker? If
you dont employ an equivalent worker, then you
need to demonstrate why the amount you are paying
is in line with what an Australian would be paid
to do the same job.
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TSMIT
The Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold
(TSMIT) is a threshold which ensures that
overseas workers will earn enough money to be
self reliant while in Australia. You must
demonstrate that the market salary rate for the
person you are seeking to sponsor is greater than
the TSMIT. If the market salary rate for the
position you wish to sponsor does not exceed the
TSMIT, you will not be able to access the
subclass 457 visa program. The TSMIT is
currently set at 49 330.
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What do we mean by?

• Base rate of pay
• Earnings

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Salary packaging
Is salary packaging permitted in the 457
program?
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Duties of the position
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Skills required
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Position details
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Nominee details
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Visa application
The visa application is the third stage of
sponsoring an overseas skilled worker under the
subclass 457 visa program. The overseas skilled
worker and any dependants must apply for and be
granted a visa to travel to or remain in
Australia. You will need to have at least
lodged a sponsorship application, and a relevant
nomination for the overseas worker to lodge a
visa application. The point of the visa
application stage is to assess whether the
overseas worker has the skills to perform the
job, meets the required level of English
proficiency and whether they meet the health and
character requirements to enter Australia.
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Genuine intention
Visa applicants are required to demonstrate that
they have a genuine intention to perform the
nominated occupation, and are required to
demonstrate that they have the skills and
experience necessary to perform the occupation.
Evidence such as employment references,
educational certificates or formal skill
assessment reports can be provided to demonstrate
this requirement.
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Skills assessments
If the nominated occupation is a trade occupation
a visa applicant may be required to undertake a
skills assessment. To determine if your
nominee will be required to do so, please refer
to the Trades Recognition Australia website.
www.deewr.gov.au/Skills/Programs/SkillsAssess/TR
A/457Assessment/Pages/home.aspx
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English language skills
It is important that 457 visa holders can speak,
write and understand a sufficient level of
English while they are in Australia. The
department uses the International English
Language Testing System (IELTS) to determine an
applicants level of English language proficiency.
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Health insurance
All 457 visa applicants must provide evidence
that they have made adequate arrangements for
health insurance during the period of their
intended stay in Australia, before grant of the
visa. Health insurance from either Australian
or overseas insurance providers is acceptable and
will be considered adequate as long as the policy
provides at least the minimum cover required by
the department.
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Decision ready applications
Lodging decision-ready applications can help
reduce processing times as these applications
take less time than those that need following up.
It is important that applications are
submitted with relevant information and
supporting documentation. www.immi.gov.au/skill
ed/skilled-workers/_pdf/457-sponsor-checklist.pdf
www.immi.gov.au/skilled/skilled-workers/_pdf/457-n
omination-checklist.pdf www.immi.gov.au/skilled/sk
illed-workers/_pdf/457-application-checklist.pdf
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Working Holiday Makers
Working Holiday visas are available for people
aged 18 to 30 years of age who are interested in
a working holiday of up to 12 months in
Australia. Visa holders can work in any
occupation however they can only work for a
maximum of six months with each employer and the
work must be secondary to their main purpose of
their visit. www.immi.gov.au/visitors/working-hol
iday/417/eligibility-second.htm www.immi.gov.au/v
isitors/working-holiday/417/obligations.htm
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Student Visas
There are no occupation limitations on student
visa holders, and you may employ student visa
holders. Student visa holders cannot work more
than 20 hours per week when their course is in
session. www.immi.gov.au/media/fact-sheets/50stud
ents.htm
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VEVO
Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO) VEVO
is a free, online facility that allows an
organisation to check the visa entitlements of a
visa holder. The most common users of the
system are employers and labour supply companies
to confirm a visa holder's entitlement to work in
Australia. For additional information and to
register to access the VEVO facility www.immi.gov
.au/managing-australias-borders/compliance/info-em
ployers/evo-orgs.htm
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Did you know?
There are currently over 18 000 businesses who
are standard business sponsors and the majority
of these are small and medium business
operators. There are over 81 000 primary 457
visa holders in Australia at the moment. If this
process seems too complicated, there are
registered Migration Agents that can assist you.
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Further information
Booklet 9 on the departments website
www.immi.gov.au/allforms/booklets/books9.pdf
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Questions?