Businesses located in Australia are able to sponsor skilled employees for temporary and permanent visas, particularly where the business enters into a labour agreement with the Department of Home Affairs to sponsor a foreigner to work in Australia. The visas the employers can sponsor their employees under by this method include Temporary Skill Shortage (Subclass 482) visa, Employer Nomination Scheme (Subclass 186) visa and Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) (Subclass 494) visa. The number of employees the employer will be able to nominate will depend on what is specified in the labour agreement, but the sponsoring employer is able to apply for a variation of the nomination ceiling where the business can demonstrate a need for more foreign employees.
For these visas, there are specific requirements to be met and this visa pathway involving industry labour agreement is only open to businesses operating in certain industries. Here is a list of industries and occupations which can incorporate a labour agreement:

1. Food industry

• Dairy Industry – cattle farm workers.
• Fishing Industry – various positions on-board the fishing vessel.
• Meat Industry – skilled meat workers.
• Pork Industry – stockpersons.
• Restaurant (fine dining) Industry – chefs and trade waiters.
• Aged Care Industry – carer.

1. Horticulture Industry – various positions in the care and transport of plants.
2. Religion – minister and religious assistant.
3. Advertising Industry – advertising specialist, graphic designer, copywriter, multimedia designer and web developer.
4. On-hire Industry- occupations listed for the subclass 482 visa where the employee is assigned to work for third parties.
   Sponsoring employees via labour agreements requires substantial planning and document preparation to be successful. To speak to an experienced immigration lawyer, book a consultation by calling Chua Tan Associates today.