On 7 December 2024, the Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) visa was replaced by the Subclass 482 (Skills in Demand) visa, which is Australia's primary employer-sponsored work visa.
Alongside the new streams came a revised salary threshold, the Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT), which employers must meet or exceed when sponsoring a worker, in addition to the going market rate for the role.
Whether you're an employee with a job offer or an employer needing to fill a genuine skill shortage. These changes are meaningful in that getting your stream & salary threshold right the first time matters. Since an incorrect nomination can delay approval or result in refusal.
I'm Sangeeta Mahajan, MARN 2518841, and I assist both sides of the 482 visa process, both workers and standard business sponsors, from stream selection and nomination through to visa lodgement.
About the Skills in Demand Visa Program
The 482 allows an approved Australian employer to sponsor an overseas worker when they can't fill a position locally. It replaced the long-running 457 visa in 2018 as the TSS visa and was then restructured again in December 2024 into the current three-stream.
Skills in Demand framework:
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Core Skills
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Specialist Skills
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Labour Agreement
The reform reduced the minimum work experience from two years to one, increased the grace period for changing employers from 60 to 180 days, and shortened the typical pathway to permanent residency from three years to two. For workers, it's a direct route to Australian work experience; for employers, it's a standard tool for addressing genuine skill shortages.
Qualifying Under the New SID Rules: For Workers and Employers
For the worker:
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A valid job offer from an approved Standard Business Sponsor
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Occupation listed on the Core Skills Occupation List (CSOL), or salary above the Specialist Skills threshold
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At least 1 year of relevant work experience within the past 5 years
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Competent in English (IELTS 5.0 or equivalent, minimum)
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Health and character clearance
For the employer:
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Approved Standard Business Sponsor status (or willingness to apply)
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Demonstrated genuine skills shortage
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Salary meeting or exceeding the relevant threshold and market rate
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Compliance with sponsorship obligations, including training benchmarks
A frequently misunderstood point: meeting the Core Skills salary threshold doesn't automatically mean you're in the Core Skills stream, the occupation also needs to sit on the CSOL. Conversely, sufficiently high earners can access the Specialist Skills stream even in occupations not listed on any occupation list at all, since salary alone qualifies them.
Standard Business Sponsorship | What Employers Must Prove
Before any worker can be nominated, the sponsoring business must become an approved Standard Business Sponsor (SBS). A separate application assessed on its own merits. The department looks at whether the business is lawfully and actively operating and has no adverse compliance history. It meets the training benchmark requirement (generally demonstrating investment in training Australian staff, such as 2% of payroll).
Many employers underestimate this stage, assuming sponsorship approval is a formality once they've found a worker; but in practice, an incomplete or poorly evidenced SBS application can delay the entire hiring timeline by months. We assist employers through this stage specifically because it's where avoidable delays most often occur.
Step-by-Step 482 Visa Process
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The employer applies for (or confirms) Standard Business Sponsor approval
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The employer lodges a nomination for the specific role, evidencing salary and skills shortage
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Workers lodge their visa application with skills, English, health, and character evidence
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Department assesses all three components
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Visa-granted workers begin employment under sponsored conditions
Pathway to Permanent Residency (482 → 186)
Most 482 holders become eligible for permanent residency through the Subclass 186 Temporary Residence Transition stream after two years of full-time employment with their sponsor.
A meaningful improvement from the previous three-year requirement, and one that doesn't require a separate skills assessment.
The 3 Streams of the 482 Visa
1
Core Skills Stream
For occupations on the Core Skills Occupation List
(CSOL).
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Minimum salary of $76,515 (TSMIT-aligned)
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Most common stream for Sponsored Workers
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Leads to 186 TRT after 2 years
2
Specialist Skills Stream
For high-earning specialists, regardless of occupation
listed.
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Minimum Salary: of $141,210
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No occupation list restrictions
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Faster Process for eligible roles
3
Labour Agreement Stream
For employers with a bespoke labour agreement
with the Department.
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Terms set by a specific agreement
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Common in aged care, agriculture
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Requirements vary by employer
Changing Employers on a 482 Visa
If your employment ends, you now have up to 180 days (increased from 60) to find a new approved sponsor. During this period, you can work for any employer while searching. The significant improvement in worker flexibility under the SID reform.
One Migration Agent, Two Sides of the Same Sponsorship
We assist both sides of the sponsorship relationship for your 482 visa application. Workers navigating eligibility and employers navigating standard business sponsorship under one roof.