482 · Promotion and change of duties
Promotion or change of duties on a 482: notification, new nomination, or new visa
Good employers promote their sponsored workers, and the promotion is where a compliant sponsorship quietly becomes a breach. Condition 8607 ties the worker to the nominated occupation, and the occupation is the ANZSCO code behind the title, not the title itself. A promotion that keeps the duties within the same occupation is a notification to the Department. A promotion that moves the duties into a different occupation is a new nomination and a new visa, approved and granted before the new role begins. The difference also decides whether the worker's two years toward permanent residence continue or restart. This guide sets out how to tell which case applies, what the sponsor must notify, the order of events, and the effect on the 186.
By Keshab Chapagain, registered migration agent (MARN 1576536) since 2015 · WIDEN, Sydney · Reviewed October 2026
Keshab Chapagain · MARN 1576536 · Registered since 2015 - Condition
- 8607: work in the nominated occupation
- Test
- ANZSCO code of the duties, not the title
- Same occupation
- Sponsor notifies the change
- Different occupation
- New nomination and new visa first
- Salary
- Never below the nominated amount or CSIT
- 186 clock
- Continues in the same occupation; restarts in a new one
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What 8607 ties you to
Condition 8607 requires the holder to work only in the occupation nominated in the most recent approved nomination, and only for the sponsor that nominated them or an associated entity, apart from the 180-day periods after employment ceases. The occupation is the one identified by ANZSCO code in the nomination; the position title, the department and the reporting line are context, not the condition. A worker nominated as a Chef who becomes Head Chef is still a Chef. A worker nominated as a Chef who becomes Restaurant Manager is not. The visa does not change with the job; the job has to stay inside the visa.
The ANZSCO test
ANZSCO describes each occupation by its tasks, and a role is classified by the tasks that make up most of the work. The question for a changed role is whether most of the new duties are still the tasks of the nominated occupation, or have become the tasks of another. Seniority within an occupation, more responsibility, supervising others doing the same work, a higher salary, do not change the occupation. A move from doing the work to managing the function, from technical to commercial, from one professional discipline to another, usually does. The position description for the new role, written honestly, is compared against the two ANZSCO descriptions, and the answer is usually clear once it is written down. Where it is not, the Department can be asked, and the safe course is the new nomination.
Same occupation, more seniority
A promotion within the nominated occupation needs no new nomination and no new visa. The sponsor notifies the Department of the change in duties, title and salary, as its obligations require, and the worker continues under the existing nomination. The notification should include the new position description and the new salary, so that the file shows the role remains in the occupation and the pay remains above the nominated amount. Many sponsors do not notify these changes, and they surface at a monitoring visit as an apparent discrepancy between the nomination and the job; a notification made at the time is the evidence that nothing was hidden.
A different occupation
A promotion or transfer into a role whose duties fall under a different ANZSCO occupation requires a new nomination for that occupation, approved, and a new 482 visa granted on it, before the worker starts the new role. The new nomination is a full nomination: the occupation must be on the list or the salary at the Specialist Skills threshold, the salary must meet the threshold and the market rate, labour market testing applies unless exempt, the Skilling Australians Fund levy is paid again, and the worker must meet the skill and experience requirements for the new occupation, including a skills assessment where one is required. The new visa is applied for from inside Australia and carries a new period. The worker's existing visa continues until the new one is granted, and the worker continues in the old role meanwhile.
Salary and hours
The sponsor's obligation is to pay no less than the salary in the approved nomination, which must itself be at least the Core Skills Income Threshold and the annual market salary rate, for full-time work. A pay rise is notified and is otherwise welcome. A pay cut below the nominated amount, a move to part-time hours, an unpaid period, or a change from salary to commission that could fall below the threshold is a breach of the sponsor's obligations and a change to the basis of the visa, and the Department treats it as both. Where a business needs to reduce hours, the options are a new nomination at a lawful salary, the 180-day arrangement, or a different visa, and none of them is doing it quietly. The salary threshold guide sets out the figures.
Branch, location and reporting line
A move to another branch or site of the same sponsor, or to an associated entity in the group, in the same occupation, is a notification. A move that changes the location from a regional to a metropolitan area matters for a 494, whose condition requires regional work, and for a 482 nominated under a regional labour agreement or a DAMA whose concessions were tied to the location. A change of reporting line is immaterial unless it signals a change of duties. A secondment to a client's premises is examined for whether it is in substance on-hire, which the sponsorship does not permit.
What the sponsor notifies
A sponsor must notify the Department in writing, within 28 days, of a change in the sponsored worker's duties, a change in salary, the worker ceasing employment, and other events listed in the Regulations, including changes to the sponsor's own business. Notification is made through ImmiAccount against the sponsorship, with the new position description and contract. The worker separately holds condition 8578 on most 482 grants, requiring notification of a change of employer within 14 days, which a promotion does not trigger but a transfer to an associated entity does. The obligations guide lists the events.
The order of events
- Write the position description for the new role, honestly, before anything is announced.
- Compare it against the nominated occupation's ANZSCO tasks. Decide: same occupation, or different.
- Same occupation: implement the change, and notify the Department within 28 days with the description and the salary.
- Different occupation: lodge the new nomination with labour market testing; wait for approval; the worker applies for the new 482; wait for grant; then the worker starts the new role.
- In either case, check the effect on the 186 before the worker accepts.
The effect on the 186
The Temporary Residence Transition stream of the 186 requires the worker to have worked full-time for the nominating employer, in the occupation nominated for the 482, for at least two years in the three years before the 186 nomination. A promotion within the same occupation keeps the clock running; the two years are in that occupation whatever the title. A new nomination in a different occupation starts a new count from the grant of the new visa, because the two years must be in the occupation that the 186 nomination names. For a worker eighteen months into the two years, accepting a promotion into a different occupation costs a year and a half of progress toward permanent residence. The alternative is to defer the change until the 186 is lodged, or to look at the Direct Entry stream if the worker has three years' experience and a skills assessment in the new occupation. The 482 to 186 guide sets out both streams.
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General information only, current at October 2026; not advice on your own case. Condition 8607, Schedule 8, and the sponsor obligations in Division 2.19 of the Migration Regulations 1994, and the subclass 186 Temporary Residence Transition criteria, as in force at the date above; thresholds from 1 July 2026. Outcomes depend on the Department’s assessment of each application; no registered migration agent can guarantee a result (Code of Conduct, Migration Agents Regulations). Keshab Chapagain, MARN 1576536.
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I have been promoted. Do I need a new visa?
It depends on whether the new role is the same occupation. Condition 8607 ties you to the nominated occupation, identified by its ANZSCO code, not to the job title or the seniority. A promotion from chef to head chef, or from accountant to senior accountant, where the duties remain those of the same occupation, needs the employer to notify the Department of the change in duties and salary but not a new nomination. A promotion from accountant to finance manager is a different occupation, and needs a new nomination approved and a new visa granted before you take it up.
How do I know if it is a different occupation?
By comparing the new duties, not the title, against the ANZSCO description of the nominated occupation and of the occupation the new role resembles. Where most of the new duties fall under a different unit group, it is a different occupation. The employer's position description for the new role is the document that decides it, and it is written before the change, not after.
Can I start the new role while the new nomination is processed?
No. Working in an occupation other than the nominated one is a breach of 8607, whatever the employer's intentions. The order is: new nomination lodged and approved, new visa applied for and granted, then the new role begins. Until then you remain in the old role on paper and in fact.
What does a change of occupation do to my permanent residence?
The 186 Temporary Residence Transition stream requires two years of full-time work with the nominating employer in the occupation nominated for the 482. A new nomination in a different occupation starts a new two years from the new visa. A promotion within the same occupation does not. For a worker close to the two years, that difference is a year or more of residence, and it is the thing to settle before accepting the promotion.
My salary is being reduced, or my hours cut. Is that allowed?
The salary must stay at or above the amount nominated, and at least the Core Skills Income Threshold and the market rate, for full-time work. A reduction below the nominated amount, or a move to part-time, is a breach by the sponsor of its obligations and a change in the basis of your visa, and both must be notified. A pay rise is notified and welcome.
What does the consultation cost?
A$330 inc. GST for 30 minutes by video with Keshab Chapagain (MARN 1576536), credited in full if you engage WIDEN. The session reads the old and new position descriptions against the ANZSCO codes and tells both employer and worker which of the three outcomes applies.
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