How to Become an Approved Sponsor in Australia — 2026 Guide

Australia's skilled migration program allows businesses to sponsor overseas workers to address skill shortages. If your business cannot find qualified local employees, becoming an approved sponsor gives you legal access to recruit from overseas.

This guide covers the eligibility requirements, application process, sponsorship types, obligations, and common reasons for refusal.

What is an approved sponsor?

An approved sponsor is an Australian business or organisation that has received formal approval from the Department of Home Affairs to sponsor skilled workers under specific visa programs. Approval allows the business to nominate overseas workers for relevant visa subclasses.

Want it in writing before you commit? The sponsorship readiness check gives you a registered agent's written answer on the business, the role, the salary and the refusal risks in five business days, for A$550, credited if you go ahead.

Sponsorship types and associated visas

Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS) — the ImmiAccount form is "Standard Business Sponsorship (482, 494)", for sponsoring workers under:

• Subclass 482 Skills in Demand visa
• Subclass 494 Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional visa

A 186 is nominated by the employer without a standard business sponsorship.

Temporary Activities Sponsorship — for sponsoring workers under:

• Subclass 407 Training Visa
• Subclass 408 Temporary Activity Visa

Labour Agreement Sponsorship — for employers entering formal labour agreements with the Australian Government when standard sponsorship doesn't meet specific needs (including DAMA agreements for regional areas).

Eligibility criteria

Home Affairs (standard business sponsor page, checked 4 November 2026) says:

• The business must be legally established and currently operating. It can be in or outside Australia.
• There must be no adverse information about the business or people associated with it, or it must be reasonable to approve despite it.
• An Australian business attests to a strong record of, or a demonstrated commitment to, employing local labour, and to non-discriminatory employment practices.

The application process

Step 1: Assess business needs

Determine which visa subclass suits your hiring needs. Short-term gaps may suit Subclass 482; occupational training suits Subclass 407; long-term recruitment suits Subclass 186.

Step 2: Set up ImmiAccount

Create an ImmiAccount on the Department of Home Affairs website. This is the platform for lodging sponsorship applications.

Step 3: Prepare documents

Use the SBS document checklist below.

Step 4: Lodge the application

Apply through ImmiAccount under the relevant sponsorship category. The Standard Business Sponsorship charge is A$420 (Home Affairs cost of sponsoring, checked 4 November 2026).

Step 5: Await approval

Home Affairs' published processing time for sponsorship applications is 50% within 15 days, 90% within 4 months (global processing times stamped 2 November 2026). A complete application avoids requests for more information.

Standard Business Sponsorship — what the Department asks a business to show

Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS) is the first of three separate approvals — sponsorship, then nomination, then the visa itself. It attaches to your business, not to any particular worker, and it is what most employers mean when they ask how to "become a sponsor". In broad terms the Department is satisfying itself of four things.

• The business is lawfully operating. A real trading entity, properly registered, actually doing what it says it does — in Australia, or overseas where the sponsorship relates to an Australian operation.
• The business is viable. Trading history and financial position matter, because sponsorship is a multi-year commitment and the Department is assessing whether you can meet it. Newer businesses are not excluded, but they carry a heavier evidentiary load.
• There is no adverse information. Past non-compliance — workplace law, immigration, or otherwise — is considered, and can extend to people associated with the business.
• The obligations are understood. Sponsorship carries continuing duties on pay, record-keeping and notification, set out below, which apply for as long as you sponsor anyone.

The specific criteria and thresholds sit in the Migration Regulations and are updated from time to time — confirm current requirements at immi.homeaffairs.gov.au before you build an application around them.

Standard business sponsorship document checklist

The documents Home Affairs lists under "Gather your documents" on its standard business sponsor page (checked 4 November 2026). Which ones apply depends on the business's structure, size and age.

There is no downloadable checklist from Home Affairs; this table follows its list. Gaps in these documents are what usually turn into a request for more information after lodgement.

If you already have a worker in mind, the nomination that follows has its own separate document set — including the position description, salary evidence and, in most cases, labour market testing. Sponsorship approval alone does not permit anyone to work for you.

Standard business sponsorship fee and term

• Application charge: A$420, paid on lodgement (Home Affairs cost of sponsoring).
• Term: 5 years from the date the sponsorship is approved; Home Affairs suggests applying to renew about two months before it ends (renewing your sponsorship).
• Then each worker: a nomination (A$330 for a 482; no charge for a 494) and the levy; every employer-side charge is on the cost to sponsor a worker page.

Sponsorship obligations

Once approved, a sponsor must meet the obligations Home Affairs lists (sponsor obligations, checked 4 November 2026):

• Tell the Department within 28 days when certain events occur, such as the sponsored worker's employment ending
• Ensure the worker works only in the nominated occupation
• Ensure equivalent terms and conditions of employment
• Not engage in discriminatory recruitment practices
• Keep records, and provide records and information when asked
• Cooperate with inspectors
• Pay travel costs when asked, and costs to locate and remove an unlawful non-citizen
• Not recover certain costs from the worker: the sponsor bears them

Accredited sponsor status

Accreditation is requested with the sponsorship or renewal application, at no extra fee, by a business that fits one of six categories Home Affairs lists: government agencies, Australian Trusted Traders, low volume sponsors (at least 85% Australian workers and A$4 million turnover), high volume sponsors (at least 75% Australian workers and at least 10 nominations in two years), major investment (at least A$50 million) and STEM start-ups with ESVCLP funding. The benefits Home Affairs states include a written sponsor reference in place of overseas police certificates for the worker, and the sponsor's own website counting as a labour market testing advertisement (accredited sponsor, checked 4 November 2026). More on accredited sponsor status.

Common reasons for refusal

• Incomplete documentation or inaccurate information
• Non-compliance with previous sponsorship obligations
• Insufficient evidence of genuine business activity
• Lack of financial capacity to support workers

After approval: nomination and visa application

Once sponsorship is approved, the business can nominate specific overseas workers. Each nomination and visa application is a separate step with additional documentation and fees. For Subclass 407 nominations, a Training Plan is required.

For registered migration agents advising sponsors: WIDEN also delivers OMARA-approved CPD for registered migration agents on sponsorship and nomination practice — live Category A workshops and self-paced modules.

Related

• Sponsor a worker — full service (SBS, nomination, visa application)
• Sponsorship cost calculator
• How to find the right worker to sponsor
• 482 Skills in Demand — what you can do once sponsorship is approved
• Business migration in Australia 2026 — how sponsorship fits within business owner pathways such as 482 self-sponsorship
• For Migration Agents — sponsorship and nomination-only services for B2B referrals
• 186 Visa Guide — the PR step after 482 sponsorship

If you'd like to discuss your sponsorship situation, please contact us or call 02 8188 1887. MARN 1576536.

Sources

• Home Affairs: standard business sponsor — checked 4 November 2026
• Home Affairs cost of sponsoring — checked 4 November 2026
• Home Affairs: sponsor obligations — checked 4 November 2026
• Home Affairs: accredited sponsor — checked 4 November 2026
• Home Affairs global visa processing times — stamped 2 November 2026

Already approved? Find candidates on SponsorTalent. Search sponsorship-ready candidates by occupation →