Accessing skilled overseas talent
Standard Business Sponsorship allows employers to sponsor skilled overseas workers for work in Australia, provided they meet specific eligibility and compliance requirements.
Becoming a standard business sponsor requires employers to meet ongoing obligations such as:
- Reporting changes to Home Affairs
- Monitoring employment conditions
- Maintaining accurate records
Applying for sponsorship:
Standard Business Sponsorship requirements
Australian and overseas businesses may be eligible to apply for Standard Business Sponsorship.
Australian businesses must:
- Be legally established and actively operating in Australia
- Have no adverse information about the business or its principals unless it is deemed reasonable to disregard it
- Demonstrate a genuine need for visa sponsorship
- Have a strong record hiring locally before seeking overseas talent
- Demonstrate a commitment to training Australian citizens or permanent residents
Overseas businesses must:
- Be legally established and actively operating outside Australia
- Intend to establish a business operation or fulfill a contractual obligation in Australia
The 482 Skills in Demand Visa and 494 Regional Visa. Both visa programs provide pathways to Permanent Residence.
- Compliance: Sponsors must comply with immigration laws and maintain proper records
- Fair Work: Must ensure sponsored workers receive equivalent pay and conditions as Australian workers
- Monitoring: Subject to audits and checks by Home Affairs
- Access to a broad talent pool to address skill shortages
- A five-year period to sponsor visa holders, helping maintain operational stability and workforce continuity
- Clear pathways to Permanent Residence for sponsored workers
- Potential eligibility for accredited sponsor status, which offers faster processing and streamlined procedures
Becoming a standard business sponsor
1. Apply for Sponsorship
A Standard Business Sponsorship application allows Home Affairs to assess your business’ suitability to sponsor overseas workers.
2. Nominations and Visas
Once approved, you can make Nomination applications to sponsor workers under the 482 Skills in Demand (SID) Visa and 494 Regional Visa programs.
3. Maintain Compliance
Sponsorship obligations begin once a business becomes an approved sponsor.
Managing Standard Business Sponsorship obligations
Employers must continue to meet a range of ongoing obligations to remain compliant with immigration regulations and maintain sponsorship privileges.
This is crucial and includes notifying Home Affairs of changes to business or employment circumstances, such as insolvency, company restructuring and if a sponsored employee ceases employment.
Sponsors must ensure visa holders work only in their nominated occupation and receive employment conditions equivalent to Australian workers, including salary benchmarks and written contracts. Discriminatory recruitment practices based on visa status is prohibited.
This is essential and requires employers to retain records of employment conditions, visa costs, and sponsorship compliance activities to provide upon request from the Department. Sponsors are required to cover costs related to sponsorship, recruitment, and return travel.
Non-compliance can lead to suspension or cancellation of sponsorship, fines or being barred from sponsoring future visa holders. Home Affairs monitors obligations, including through site visits and monitoring audits from time to time.
Navigating sponsorship with clarity and confidence
Reliable migration advice protects business growth and limits disruption. With the right plans in place, employers can leverage global talent while staying compliant, avoiding unnecessary risk, and keeping projects and staffing plans moving forward.
Interstaff assists businesses with sponsorship eligibility, application guidance, and staying compliant.
ELIGIBILITY
Assess and strategise:
Eligibility
We assess if your business meets the legal and operational criteria to become a Standard Business Sponsor.
Talk to our Registered Migration Agents for an eligibility assessment.
SPONSORSHIP ADVICE
Apply and comply:
Standard Business Sponsorship
We guide you through each step of the Sponsorship application process. This involves:
Documentation Guidance:
The evidence you should provide depends on:
- The nature and structure of your business
- The percentage of Australian workers engaged by your business
- Whether your business has committed major investments in Australia
Application Management:
We assist businesses with each requirement—lodging on your behalf, keeping you informed and reducing delays and errors.
Sponsorship Advice:
We advise on sponsorship obligations and how to stay compliant, as well as visa pathways based on your workforce needs.
NOMINATE & APPLY
Apply and comply:
Nomination and visa applications
Once a Sponsorship arrangement is in place, we assist you to secure global talent while meeting sponsorship obligations – clearly, consistently, and without unnecessary delays. We support you by:
- Advising on key requirements such as local job advertising requirements, salary benchmarks, and training levies
- Managing all aspects of sponsorship, nomination, and visa applications and lodgements, including complex cases
- Keeping you and your employees informed at every stage of the process
RETENTION & COMPLIANCE
Retain and Grow:
Staying compliant and future-ready
We help businesses align skilled migration with workforce strategy to boost stability, retain global talent, and support long-term growth. Our support includes:
- Compliance advice during business or employment changes
- Visa expiry alerts to plan future workforce needs
- Permanent Residence pathway mapping for temporary visa holders
- Advising you how to develop Audit-ready systems for immigration inspections
- Ongoing training on immigration policy impacts
Talk to us to understand how we assist with sponsorship.
What visa applicants should know
If a business is willing to sponsor you, it is essential to understand the visa sponsorship pathways that may be available to you and the sponsoring business.
Interstaff provides eligibility assessments to both individuals and employers. We also advise on skills assessments, visa conditions, health and character issues, and Permanent Residence pathways.
Talk to us to understand your eligibility for visa sponsorship pathways.
Experience and insights
Standard Business Sponsorship
Explore more about how we work, our industry experience, and insights.
Skills in Demand Visa
Subclass 482
Employer Sponsored Regional Visa
Subclass 494
Project Needs
Permanent Residence Planning
Industries
Trusted insights from experienced experts
Stay informed with clear, evidence-based updates on migration and policy. Interstaff’s experts translate complex changes into practical insights for employers, individuals, and industry stakeholders.
Interstaff made a complex process feel structured and manageable. Every step was clearly explained, and their guidance helped us stay confident from start to finish.
HR Manager, Mineral Resources | Visa Sponsorship