The Subclass 482 visa in Australia is also known as the Temporary Skill Shortage Visa. The objective of this visa is to overcome the skill shortages in Australia. This visa enables employers to invite skilled professionals into Australia. The employees sponsored Temporary Skilled Shortage visa, the TSS visa subclass 482, has now been replaced TWS subclass 457 visa. Both visas are quite similar to each other. The process, rules, and regulations for a 482 visa are more complicated than getting a 457 visa. Three different streams have been introduced, and constant changes are being made to the occupation list by the immigration department. This has made the Australian migration process more challenging.
 

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  • Work in Australia for an approved sponsor in a nominated skilled position.
  • Available in Short-term, Medium-term, and Labour Agreement streams.
  • Pathway to permanent residency (especially via the Medium-term stream).
  • Allows dependents (family members) to live, work, and study in Australia.
  • Opportunity to travel in and out of Australia freely during the visa period.
  • Work for up to 2 years (Short-term) or up to 4 years (Medium-term).
  • Helps fill critical skill shortages across various Australian industries.
  • No age limit to apply, unlike many permanent visa options.
  • Can be renewed onshore depending on the stream.
  • Sponsors must be approved employers, ensuring a formal job offer and compliance protections

If you want to migrate to Australia, it is always advisable to consult an expert and seek advice from trusted sources in the immigration industry. With three different visa streams and constant changes that keep happening to the occupation list, the Australian migration process has become more challenging. This is particularly due to increased requirements for the TSS 482 visa. The rules concerning the submission of the GTE genuine temporary entrant certificate and SAF levy have made the process slightly complex. Apart from this, you will also fulfil the non-discriminatory workforce test and several other requirements along with it. Therefore, the visa process can become quite a daunting task. We, at immigration Buddy, have a team of qualified professionals to handle highly complex cases. We have successfully helped several clients across the country and overseas.
 

To be eligible for the Temporary Skill Shortage Visa (Subclass 482), applicants must meet the following criteria:

There are three streams in 482 visas:

Some details of these streams are as follows:

There is no major difference between short-term and medium-term streams in the 482 Visa Australia. The occupation must be listed on either the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills list (MLTSSL) occupation list or the regional occupation list (ROL). . Some other important points are:

The third stream is the labour agreement stream. Employers who hold a labour agreement can nominate visa applicants under the stream. A visa application can work and live in Australia for up to 4 years, depending on the terms of the agreement. There are various similarities between the medium-term stream and the labour agreement stream.

One major difference between the two is that there is no specific occupation in labour agreement stream it depends upon the employer which occupation he/she will nominate. Labour agreements are of four types:

Different occupation titles have different specializations if you look carefully. Before choosing the desired occupation, make sure that you have relevant experience in that role. Therefore, before choosing the occupation you have to meet the specific education and the work requirements required for the role. The Australian skilled occupation list summarizes occupations which Australia needs to fill the skill shortage. In order to qualify for a 482 visa in Australia, your occupation must be on this list. The department has now bifurcated the occupations in two three different lists. One of them is short term skilled occupation list (STSOL). The second list is the medium and long term strategic skill list (MLTSSL). And then there is the regional occupation list (ROL). Medium and Long Term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL) for subclass 482 Visa 1 construction project manager 2 engineering manager 3 child care centre manager 4 nursing clinical director 5 primary health organization manager 6 welfare centre manager 13 accountant (general) 14 management accountant 15 taxation accountant 16 external auditor 20 economist 21 land economist 24 architect 31 civil engineer 37 electronics engineer 38 industrial engineer 39 mechanical engineer 45 biomedical engineer 46 engineering technologist 47 environmental engineer 53 chemist 72 meteorologist 73 physicist 74 natural and physical science professionals 75 early childhood (pre primary school) teacher 76 secondary school teacher 80 special education teachers 81 university lecturer 88 chiropractor 89 osteopath 90 occupational therapist 91 physiotherapist 100 endocrinologist 104 paediatrician 109 psychiatrist

Sponsorship: You must be nominated by an Australian employer who is an approved sponsor. The sponsor must demonstrate a genuine need for the skilled position.

Occupation: The job must be on the relevant skilled occupation list (Short-term or Medium-term list), depending on the stream.

Skills and Experience: You must have at least 2 years of relevant work experience in the nominated occupation (not necessarily continuous).

Qualifications: While formal qualifications may be required depending on the occupation, relevant work experience is heavily considered.

English Language Proficiency: Meet the minimum English requirements (e.g., IELTS score of at least 5.0 overall with a minimum of 4.5 in each band for the short-term stream; higher for the medium-term).

Health and Character: Must meet Australian health and character requirements, including medical exams and police clearance certificates.

Salary Requirements: The employer must pay a salary that meets the Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT) and adheres to Australian market rates.

Labour Market Testing (LMT): In most cases, the employer must prove they have advertised the job locally before offering it to a foreign worker.

Genuine Temporary Entrant: For the short-term stream, applicants must demonstrate the intention to stay temporarily.

First is the short stream number

Then comes the medium stream

Third is the labour agreement stream.

Under the short term scheme the employer can nominate the employee for 2 years or 4 years if an international trade application applies. These occupations are listed on the STSOL list.

There is no age limit with this visa.

You will need to have a relevant work experience of 2 years in your designated occupation.

Your education should align with your occupation.

In this visa a skill assessment is mandatory. Your skill assessment should be positive for the occupations that you choose.

One more important thing there is that you have to write a GTE statement. GTE refers to a genuine temporary entrance statement it is similar to a statement of purpose (SOP). The way students write a statement of purpose for their student visa, in a similar manner, you will have to write a genuine temporary entrance statement.

There are English language requirements to be fulfilled and you will need 5 bands in IELTS and a PTE score of overall 36 points and no less than 30 points.

Most importantly, you are going to need sponsorship. Sponsorship means that an employer will nominate you for that particular job.

This visa costs around AUD 1,445.

You get this visa for 4 years.

The English requirement for this visa is that for IELTS, you will need at least five bands overall no band less than 5.

The cost of a medium visa is AUD$3,035.

The validity period for both the visa streams is 4 years.

The visa fee for this visa is also Australian dollars 3,035.

Designated area migration agreement

Company specific agreement

Industries specific agreement

Project agreement

We can classified work visas as per duration and stay time - temporary work visas and permanent work visas

Temporary Work Visas

Temporary working visas in Australia allow you to live there for a certain period. For an individual, this offers an opportunity to live for a short-term duration. If you want to get an experience for work and more want to in Australia, go ahead. From the below information, you will learn examples of work visas.

If you get the temporary skill shortage visa (subclass 482), you can live for up to 2 years. It is specially designed for skilled workers in Australia. The time duration can be up to 2 to 4 years, as you feel suitable to work there. Generally, this visa fulfills a shortage of employers in Australian companies.

This visa allows young people to come and work in Australia for up to 2 years. If you are amongst them, you can have this chance. Working holiday visa (subclass 417 & 462) is designed to encourage tourism and trade. So, if you get a chance to work in Australia, you can have it.

Temporary graduate visa (subclass 485) allows students who have recently completed their studies. If scholars have finished their graduation from an Australian institution, they can work here. This rule applies to all international scholars, they can live and work for up to 4 years after their studies.

From the above details, you have an idea for overall temporary work visas Australia. Now, we will discuss some of the permanent visas you can obtain.

Permanent Work Visas

When you want to live for a long in another country, you require a visa accordingly. Especially, when we talk about Australia, so many options are available here. So, if you want to choose a pathway of permanent residence in this country, move ahead. Also, learn how you can work and live your life independently in Australia.

You must know that a skilled independent visa (subclass 189) allows you to live for a long. To become eligible for this, you must have specific skills to work where you want. This is a points-based visa in Australia, that allows you to stay permanently. For this, you have to be skilled in work, language, and education.

A skilled nominated visa (subclass 190) allows individuals to stay for a long. To obtain this visa, you must be nominated by the state or territory govt. Also, to become eligible your age must be under 45, and aware of the English language is needed. An individual should have skills for the work of an occupation.

When people want to move to Australia, they get sponsored by their employers. This visa allows you to work and live for as long as you want. Generally, for working employees with job offers, it is suitable in Australia.

The process of filling a medium term visa application is slightly faster than the short term visa stream application. It takes about 21 to 60 days for a short term stream application and a medium term stream takes about a maximum of 50 days to process.
Employer’s Role in 482 Visa Australia (Employer Sponsored Visa)
The company must be operating lawfully in Australia. However, there is no specific time period for how long the company should have been operating.
A few common requirements to be able to nominate and employee are:

  • The employer has to prove that there is a genuine need for the role.
  • They have to prove that they are not able to find a suitable Australian for the job.
  • The company will need a little bit of a financial history to be able to sponsor an employee for this visa. Company should be able to meet its financial requirements.
  • You will need to do some labour market testing for the same and will have to advertise for the job.
  • The employer will need to pay Australian market salary to the employee.
  • The occupation needs to be on the STSOL or MLTSSL list. It could create a problem later on if the occupation that you are nominating is not on the list.

Qualification requirements are education, qualification and work experience. Immigration department will need to see the paperwork that supports all these.
You need to have at least 2 years of relevant work experience in your role.
Step-by-Step Application Process
Most popular visa to work and stay in Australia is a 482 visa. 482 visa is a temporary visa with assist employers in Australia to fill job vacancies with eligible overseas workers currently in Australia on other temporary visas. They can also hire workers directly from overseas where suitably skilled Australian workers cannot be found within the country.
There are three steps in the process for a 482 visa is:

  • Sponsorship
  • Nomination
  • Visa application

Sponsorship

The business has to meet certain obligations imposed by the department on the grant of sponsorship. Some of these are:

  • To sponsor an employee the business has to be a legal and a lawful business.
  • Business can be in or outside Australia.
  • There should be no wrongful information against the business.
  • Business should not have any history of a non compliance of Australian laws.
  • The TSS 482 visa program should only be used to meet the genuine skill shortages in the country.
  • Cooperate with the inspectors from the department.
  • Ensure that equal conditions of employment are provided to overseas workers.
  • Pay the reasonable or necessary travel expense of the employees and their families upon the departure from Australia and do not recover any cost from the visa applicants for sponsoring or recruiting them.
  • If a TSS visa holder changes his employment then the department has to be informed within 60 days of seizing employment.

The department monitors sponsored businesses to ensure that they do not exploit the overseas workers. After being granted the 482 visa sponsorship, the company can then start employing overseas skilled workers. Visa lasts for 5 years. The businesses can again renew their sponsorship 2 months before their previous sponsorship ends. If approved, then the new sponsorship will commence from the date of grant of the newly applied sponsorship.


Nomination

Nomination application is the most difficult step in the whole process that requires the nominating employers to be an approved business sponsor. The following are the points to note here:

  • Nominate the employee for a relevant occupation.
  • Find in Australian worker pay according to the current salary rate in the market.
  • Should be able to show that a genuine position is available.
  • Form a written employment contract with the nominee.
  • Make sure that you do not create any discrimination in the work practices.
  • Employment conditions must be equal for both an Australian worker and an overseas worker.
  • The nomination application has to be launched before filing for a visa.
  • The applicant should have the nomination already approved at the time of the visa application.

The nominee must start employment within 90 days after receiving the visa. An important thing to note here is that the businesses have the rights to a merits review process in case the sponsorship is refused.
 

Temporary Skill Shortage Visa (Subclass 482) Application Process

This is the final step of the process. The applicants will file the visa application after the nomination is complete. To be able to receive a 482 visa, the applicant needs:

  • Registration and licensing to work in Australia.
  • Has to get a nomination in a relevant occupation. Therefore, occupations such as lawyers, doctors, plumbers, electricians, etc. require a license to work in Australia.
  • The main applicant to have acquired the relevant registration or license before the visa can be granted.
  • have the required skills to perform the occupation.
  • The experience to perform the occupation. Please note that you need to have a minimum of 2 years of full-time work experience in the occupation.
  • The required English language proficiency is a must.
  • Satisfy the health requirements.
  • Applicants need to get their health insurance done mandatorily during their stay in Australia. If you are in Australia, then you have to comply with the previous visas. This will also be considered for the grant of this visa.
  • To meet the character requirements, and must have no debts to the Australian government.

Pathway to Permanent Residency:

482 visa acts as a means to get permanent residency in Australia. If your job is on the medium to long-term list, MTSSL, then you can potentially get permanent residency in the country. If your job is on the STSOL, then it is going to be difficult to get permanent residency.
Previously, in the 457 visa, after working for 2 years in your occupation, you could probably get a permanent residency through a temporary resident transition stream. But, this is not possible with the Employer-Sponsored Visa 482.
Some other options that can lead to PR are skilled nomination visa subclass 190, skilled regional visa subclass 489, and the regional sponsored migration visa subclass 187.
 

  • Lodging the Appeal

    Lodge your application with the AAT within the time limit (usually 21 days). Applications are made through the Migration Review online portal. You must pay the application fee at lodgement unless you qualify for a fee waiver.

Frequently Asked Questions

It’s a temporary work visa that allows skilled workers to live and work in Australia if nominated by an approved employer to fill a position on the skilled occupation list.

There are three streams:
Short-Term (up to 2 years)


Medium-Term (up to 4 years, with PR pathway)


Labour Agreement Stream (under special agreements with the government)

Yes, if you are on the Medium-Term stream or eligible through the Labour Agreement, you may apply for permanent residency (typically after 2–3 years of employment).

Yes, unless exempt. Most applicants must meet minimum English language requirements (e.g., IELTS or equivalent).

Yes. You can include dependent family members (partner, children) in your application. They can work and study in Australia.

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