Australia has many opportunities for international organisations to expand. Recently, Australia has signed numerous trade agreements that bolster its position as a hub of international business, including the Australia-United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement (A-UKFTA) signed in 2023 and talent mobility clauses implemented in 2024.
If you need to deploy staff from another country in order to launch or work for your business in Australia, they will require a suitable employment visa to be able to undertake work activities on behalf of your company.
There are some challenges when selecting a visa to start up operations in Australia, which, in our experience, can be easily surmounted with the right advice and immigration strategy. To employ foreign nationals to work in Australia, you have three options when it comes to working visas:
1. Option 1 – Incorporate a new business entity in Australia.
Once you have established an entity and it is actively operating, your company can apply to become a ‘standard business sponsor’ to sponsor foreign national employees on a subclass 482 Temporary Skills Shortage visa (TSS visa).
There are some misconceptions about standard business sponsorship; for example some people mistakenly believe you need to have traded in Australia for 12 months or have a minimum turnover, but this is not the case. Your entity can sponsor employees on visas from day one with the right approach to a standard business sponsorship application.
The Migration Agency has helped international and local startups who are pre-revenue to sponsor employee work visas. However, there are some things to note. For example, the company must be lawfully established and actively operating, meaning it must have more substance than simply incorporating an entity and applying for an Australian business number (ABN).
The downside many startups face with this pathway is the time lost in building up evidence of active operations after setting up an incorporated company or simply not requiring an entity to employ people when there are other options.
Your international organisation does not necessarily have to establish an entity in Australia in order to sponsor overseas workers. An accredited migration firm can step in and take the responsibility of sponsoring workers for you.
2. Option 2 – Sponsor work visas under the overseas or parent company
An overseas company without an entity in Australia can obtain sponsorship status from Home Affairs – then sponsor employees to come to Australia for work.
There are limited circumstances in which a company can use an overseas business sponsorship status to support work visas for Australia. One example where you can use this pathway is when you are looking to hire a business development representative to explore the market and conduct business development in Australia. Another is where you have a client in Australia and need to secure work visas for individuals who will service those clients.
This pathway is not suitable if you plan to incorporate an entity in Australia, because once the business is incorporated in Australia you will need to apply for standard business sponsorship for the Australian entity. Overseas business sponsors cannot utilise the employer nominated permanent residency pathways.
As shared by the Department of Home Affairs, to become a standard business sponsor, your organisation must be legally established and currently operating, either inside or outside Australia. A migration expert can provide advice to help your company understand if this is a viable approach.
3. Engage an approved on-hire sponsor to handle the visa and sponsorship requirements
The third option if your organisation needs to bring people to Australia but you are yet to establish an ‘on the ground’ entity is to leverage the services of an Australian-based company with On-Hire Sponsorship approval to sponsor 482 visas on behalf of their clients. Under this arrangement, the on-hire company acts as the employer and sponsor, taking responsibility for the employment contract, payroll and visa sponsorship obligations.
This strategy can make sense for overseas companies because it minimises the risk of running into employment and visa-related issues, and the operators can focus on business as usual other than dealing with visas, payroll, employee taxes, etc. The immigration applications and approval process will be managed by migration experts who can arrange for individuals to be sponsored for up to four years, handle the time-consuming back-and-forth required to apply for visas and ensure compliance with current regulations.
This third strategy, while a little-known solution, can make the most sense. It provides freedom for overseas organisations seeking to launch in Australia, can help expedite the process and saves them from rushing into establishing an entity simply to facilitate the move.
The Migration Agency has special approval to sponsor 482 visas on behalf of clients under our On-Hire Labour Agreement with the Department of Home Affairs. Contact us to find out more.
