By applying for a Sponsorship arrangement with the Department of Home Affairs a company could be granted the ability to engage overseas workers to work in Australia to help meet their labour needs. Legally established and operating businesses can generally apply to become a visa sponsor provided they meet several eligibility requirements, including but not limited to the following:

• A business is active and lawful
• A business has a genuine need for the position
• A business agrees to pay the applicant market salary rates

There are three parts to the employer-sponsored visa application process – Sponsorship, Nomination and a Visa.

A sponsorship application is a request by a business to become an approved visa sponsor. There are two main forms of visa sponsorship in Australia – Standard Business Sponsorship and Accredited Sponsorship. Standard Business Sponsorship provides a five-year period to sponsor workers. Eligible businesses can upgrade their status to Accredited Sponsorship, which provides access to Government priority visa processing. Other forms of sponsorship include Labour Agreements and Designated Area Migration Agreements (DAMA’s).

Once a business becomes an approved visa sponsor, it can proceed with the nomination and visa application stages of the process. A nomination application involves an assessment of the position and terms of employment, whereas a visa application is an assessment of a person’s skills and experience.