186 Visa Employer Nomination Scheme (Subclass 186)

What is 186 visa Stream 1 – Direct Entry Stream?

• The Direct Entry stream is for persons who are untested in the Australian labour market and are applying for an EN-186 visa from outside Australia or are applying from within Australia but are ineligible for the Temporary Residence Transition stream.

What is 186 visa Stream 2 – Temporary Residence Transition (TRT) Stream?

• The Temporary Residence Transition stream is for Subclass 457 or Subclass 482 (TSS) visa holders who have worked for their Australian employer for at least the last 3 years and the employer wants to offer them a permanent position in that same occupation (unless transitional arrangement applies, in which the TSS visa holder must have worked for their employer for at least the last 2 years).

What is 186 visa Stream 3 – Labour Agreement Stream?

• The Labour Agreement stream is for persons who are being sponsored by an employer who is a party to a labour agreement that is in effect.

What is the Application Process for Subclass 186 Visa?

What are the common criteria shared among streams?

• Salary is equivalent to what is or would be paid to an Australian employee: that the visa applicant’s proposed salary is consistent with the ‘salary market rate’ for the nominated role in the same location.

• Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT): the proposed salary is at least equal to TSMIT (which is currently set at AUD $53,900 per annum).
• Commitment to work in nominated role: Visa applicant needs to make the commitment to work in the nominated role for a period of at least 2 years from the date that the visa is granted. The employer will also need to make the commitment to ensure that the nominated role is available for a period of at least 2 years.
• Compliance with migration and Australian law: The business has a history of compliance with Australian immigration and workplace relations laws.
• No adverse information: There is no adverse information known about the sponsoring business or any person associated with the sponsoring business, unless it is reasonable to disregard this information.
• No Debt: any debt due by the nominator as mentioned in section 140ZO of the Act (recovery of nomination training contribution charge and late payment penalty) has been paid in full.
• Genuine business need for the nominated role: This is a discretionary requirement where the Department will assess various aspects of the sponsor such as the its financial position, financial history, current operations and clients, current staff and payroll expenses, etc.

Are there additional criteria for the Direct Entry Stream?

• Work experience: Three years of full-time work experience that relates to the nominated occupation. Part-time or casual work experience can be counted on a pro-rata basis.
• Eligible occupations: The occupation must be listed under the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL)
• Caveat requirements if applicable: Some eligible occupations have some caveats or additional criteria that must be met[ https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2018L00298]

Are there additional criteria for the Temporary Residence Transition Stream?

• Three years of work as a 457 and/or 482 TSS visa holder: The primary applicant needs to have at least three years of full-time work as a 457 and/or 482 TSS visa holder for the sponsoring company in the last four years before the application is lodged.
• Eligible occupations: The occupation must be listed under the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL)
• Caveat requirements if applicable: Some eligible occupations have some caveats or additional criteria that must be met [ https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2018L00298].

The following transitional arrangements only apply if you held a subclass 457 visa, or was applying for a subclass 457 visa (and was subsequently granted), on 18 April 2017:

• Two years of work as a 457 (and 482 TSS if applicable) visa holder: The primary applicant needs to have at least two years of full-time work as a 457 and/or 482 TSS visa holder for the sponsoring company in the last three years before the application is lodged.
• No Occupation List Requirements: The nominator can nominate the same occupation and ANZSCO occupation code as the subclass 457 visa, even if this occupation is no longer on the occupation lists.

1. What is Common Criteria?

The following requirements apply to nomination applications in ALL streams:

• Age: Primary visa applicant must be under 45 years of age at the time that the visa application is lodged. There are only a few allowed exemptions to this age requirement.[ https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2018L00301]
• English: Competent English language ability is required for both the TRT and DE streams. Primary applicants under the Labour Agreement stream must also demonstrate Competent English ability, unless the Labour Agreement provides a lower English requirement. The English test result must be obtained within the last 3 years immediately before the date of lodgement of the visa application.
• Holds (or is eligible for) any mandatory registration, licence or professional membership: If any mandatory registration, licence or professional membership is required, this mist be hold at time of application.
• Health and character: Primary visa applicant and all members of his or her family unit must satisfy the health and character requirements. If any member of the family unit fails to satisfy the health and/or character requirements, then the visa applications may be refused for the primary applicant and all family members (also known as ‘one-fails, all-fail rule’, even though the family member is not included in the visa application).

2. What is Additional Criteria for Direct Entry Stream?

• Skill assessment for nominated occupation: Positive skill assessment is required from the relevant skill assessment body for the nominated occupation. A skill assessment is only valid until the expiry date specified on the assessment, if stated. Otherwise, it is valid for a period of three years from the date of issue. Your skill assessment must be valid at the time of visa application.

You are exempt from this skill assessment requirement, if:

• your sponsoring employer is any of the following:
  • an academic by a university in Australia or
  • a scientist, researcher, or technical specialist by an Australian government (including State and Territory) scientific agency
• you are a Subclass 444 (New Zealand citizens) or Subclass 461 visa holder (relative of a New Zealand citizen) and you have worked in an eligible occupation for the same employer for at least 2 out of the last 3 years (excluding periods of unpaid leave)

What We Like about the 186 visa?