Employer Nomination Scheme

Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS) permits Australian employers to recruit overseas employees to work permanently in Australia or for temporary residents currently living in Australia.

This visa allows you and any dependent family members included in your visa application to live as permanent residents in Australia and to:

• live and work in Australia on a permanent basis,
• study in Australia at school or university,
• receive subsidised healthcare through Medicare and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS),
• access certain social security payments (subject to waiting periods),
• be eligible for Australian citizenship (subject to the residency eligibility criteria),
• sponsor people for permanent residence.

See if your occupation is on the latest Employer Nomination Scheme list.

Duration

This visa would entitle you and your immigrating dependent for a permanent Australian visa.

Eligibility Criteria

Age

The applicant must be less than 45 years of age at the time of an application being lodged.

English

The visa applicant should score vocational level of English in International English Language Testing System (IELTS). A band score of at least five (5) is required in all four components of the test, speaking, reading, listening and writing.

Employer

The employer must:

• evidence a genuine employer/employee relationship with their nominee;
• be actively and lawfully operating in Australia;
• have a need for a paid employee;
• have a satisfactory record of training Australians (or, in the case of a new
• business, must have satisfactory plans in place for future training); and
• be an employer of good standing (ie. must have a history of compliance with immigration laws and with relevant workplace relations laws).

The position must:

• correspond to a highly skilled occupation that appears on a list of occupations gazetted for the purposes of the ENS;
• be full-time and available on a permanent basis;
• be paid at least a specified minimum salary, also gazetted for the purposes of ENS; and
• comply with all relevant Australian standards and workplace legislation for wages and working conditions.

In brief, an employer wanting to recruit via the Employer Nomination Scheme must be able to demonstrate that:

• They have a need for a paid employee, that the business is located in Australia and that it is operated by the employer, and that the employer is of good standing;
• The nominated position is for an occupation listed on the ENS Skilled Occupation List, with the skills, experience and qualifications corresponding to the requirements of the occupation description (ASCO Code);
• If applicable, the highly-skilled person is eligible for any mandatory licensing, registration or professional body membership where required;
• The salary of the nominated position is at least AUD$ 43,440 for most occupations and AUD$ 59,477 for IT professionals plus compulsory superannuation of 9%;
• The ENS position is a full time, fixed-term appointment of at least three years, which does not exclude the possibility of renewal;
• The employer has a commitment to training existing employees;
• The terms and conditions of employment must be in accordance with the standards for working conditions provided under Australian industrial laws.

Applicant

The department will also assess the visa application against the following:

• that the nominee is able to satisfy any mandatory licensing, registration or professional membership requirements;
• that the employment, as outlined in the approved nomination, is still available (evidence of a formal letter of appointment OR a contract signed by both the employer and the nominee is to be included);
• that the nominee is less than 45 years;
• that the nominee has vocational English language ability; and
• that the nominee and all family unit members meet mandatory health and character requirements.

In general terms, the applicant must:

• Have the skills relevant to the nominated position;
• Satisfy one of the following skills requirements:
  Provide a positive skills assessment from the relevant assessing authority and have 3 years experience in the occupation for which they have been nominated; or;
  Be nominated for a highly paid position (the minimum salary in this regard is currently AUD$ 165,000 plus compulsory superannuation of 9%; or
  Have worked in Australia for at least the last 2 years on an eligible temporary visa in the occupation for which they have been nominated, including at least the last year for the nominating employer.
  Be able to satisfy any mandatory licensing, registration or professional membership requirements;
  Have vocational English language ability.

Health & Character

Australia has strict health and character requirements for any Australian visa application that must be met before any Australian visa will be granted. People attempting to migrate to Australia on the Employer Nomination Visa Scheme will be required to:

Undergo a medical examination and chest x-ray performed by an Australian panel doctor outside Australia or Health Services Australia in Australia, and;

Obtain police certificates for all countries in which they have lived for more than 12 months in the 10 years leading up to the application.

Processing Time

The current processing time for migration to Australia under the employer nomination scheme is 4 - 6 months from the time the application is lodged.