Visas and sponsorship
*On 7 December 2024 the Skills in Demand (SID) visa (subclass 482) replaced the Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) visa.
Sponsor sanctions
A sponsor who fails to meet their sponsorship obligations may face a range of possible sanctions including:
- cancellation of their approval as a sponsor
- being banned from sponsoring other workers
- being banned from making future applications for approval as a sponsor
- being served with an infringement notice imposing a specified financial penalty (for example, $79,200 for a body corporate or $15,840 for an individual for each failure)
- civil penalties imposed by the courts (for example, up to $396,000 for a body corporate and $79,200 for an individual for each failure)
- being issued a compliance notice to address alleged sponsorship obligation breaches
- an Enforceable Undertaking. This is a legally binding written agreement between the sponsor and the Department of Home Affairs / Australian Border Force.
The Department may impose more than one sanction.
To pay an infringement notice you can use the Westpac online payment facility or BPAY. For more information, see
Paying an employer or sponsor infringement notice.
Employer Prohibition
The department may prevent employers who seriously, deliberately or repeatedly break the law from employing more migrant workers for a period of time. This measure is called a prohibition declaration, for more information see
Employer Prohibition.
Publishing sanctioned sponsors
Under section 140K of the
Migration Act 1958, the Minister must publish the details of sanctioned sponsors.
Section 140K states in part:
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(4) The Minister must, subject to subsection (7), publish the information (including personal information) prescribed by the regulations if an action is taken under this section in relation to an approved sponsor or former approved sponsor who fails to satisfy an applicable sponsorship obligation.
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(5) The Minister is not required to observe any requirements of the natural justice hearing rule in publishing information under subsection (4).
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(6) No civil liability arises from action taken by the Minister in good faith in publishing information under subsection (4).
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(7) The regulations may prescribe circumstances in which the Minister is not required to publish information under subsection (4).
Paying for visa sponsorship
It is against the law for a sponsor or any other person to ask for or receive a benefit in exchange for visa sponsorship. It is also against the law for you, or any other person to offer or provide a benefit in exchange for visa sponsorship. Sponsors or visa holders can face civil and criminal penalties.
Learn more about
visa sponsorship scams.
Recovering costs
Sponsors cannot ask visa holders to cover costs associated with recruiting a sponsored person and gaining a sponsorship or nomination. This includes migration agent costs, or the Skilling Australians Fund levy.
Cancelling visas
Sponsors cannot cancel visas. Only the Department of Home Affairs and the Australian Border Force can cancel visas.
See our
Disclaimer.
