Visa transfers

More than a year after effectively closing Australia off from the rest of the world, state and federal governments, industry groups and employers are all now recognising that Australia has critical skill gaps in many areas. There is great concern that failure to address skills shortages will have a detrimental impact on the future growth of the economy coming out of Covid. In a recent session hosted by the Committee for Economic Development of Australia CEDA), an independent think tank, the Immigration Minister, Alex Hawke, acknowledged that migration will be critical for Australia’s future economic recovery.

In what has become an increasingly scarce labour market many persons who were in Australia on 457 or 482 visas at the time the borders were closed who were able to weather the initial economic downturn and remain in Australia, are now discovering that they are being rewarded for their perseverance as employers compete with each other for their services.  As a result, an increasing number of employees are seeking advice on how to transfer their visas across to new employers.

While it is possible to do this, it is most important to ensure that all of the necessary steps are complied with, as failure to do so might result in a visa breach or worse still, not having proper legal status.
One benefit of the process is that it involves the transfer of the sponsorship for the unexpired term of the individuals’ visa, and therefore, a new visa application is not required. Obviously however, if the employee only has a short period of time left on the visa,  a fresh application would make sense.

For those persons thinking about the possibility of a transfer, the following points should first be thought about:

• make sure that the proposed new employer either has a sponsorship in place or should be eligible for one if an application was lodged,
• remember that the employee’s existing visa is linked to a nominated occupation with a set of job duties and tasks which were submitted to the Department at the time the nomination was lodged. It is most important to be satisfied that the job description relating to the proposed new position is the same as, or closely related to those duties as the employee’s visa was approved for at the time of the earlier nomination,
• even though the nominee already holds a visa, it will still be necessary to provide evidence that labour market has been done for at least 28 days prior to lodging the nomination and no more than four months prior to the lodging date,
• having regard to all of the above it is generally not a good idea to resign from current employment until confident that the new nomination has been approved. If someone resigns first and then goes looking for a new employer, they have 60 days or 90 days to find one depending upon when the existing visa was granted – this can put the individual under unnecessary pressure. If possible, it is far better to have the nomination approved and then give the existing employer whatever notice is required under the employment contract.
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NF Workforce Mobility has substantial experience in all types of work visa applications, including transfers of sponsorships, and is always ready and available to assist employers or employees.