Skip to content
WIDEN Migration ExpertsQualify. Plan. Lodge once.Keshab Chapagain · MARN 1576536

Ready to talk it through? 30 minutes with a registered migration agent — $330 inc. GST, credited if you engage. No form needed. Pick a time →

Guides

Visa Guides

Detailed guides on Australian visa pathways. Each guide is updated to reflect current Department of Home Affairs requirements and migration law. The information here is general — for advice on your specific situation, please contact us.

Keshab Chapagain, registered migration agent MARN 1576536 Keshab Chapagain · MARN 1576536 · Registered since 2015

Not sure which applies?

Book 30 minutes with Keshab and find out which pathway is realistic for you. A$330 inc. GST, credited if you go ahead.

Book a consultation — A$330 inc. GST, credited or in writing, no call — A$550

Visa guides

Start here → How to Migrate to Australia (2026) New to this? The plain-English overview of every pathway — skilled, employer-sponsored, family, student and business — and how to work out which one is realistically yours. Read → Australian Visa Fees 2026 (by subclass) Base application charges from 1 July 2026 for skilled, employer-sponsored, partner, student and business visas — plus the extra costs most applicants forget to budget for. Read → How Much Does a Migration Agent Cost in Australia? (2026) Consultation, professional fees by visa, government charges on top, what moves the price, what the Code requires in writing, and WIDEN’s own fees on the page. Read → Your Visa Was Handled by an Unregistered Agent Who may give immigration assistance, why you remain responsible for what was lodged, getting the file from the Department, revoking and correcting before decision, reporting, and recovering fees. Read → Is This Email From Immigration Genuine? The three checks that settle it, the fake grant letter, the refusal reversed for a fee, the deportation call, the guaranteed visa, the job with a visa fee, the fake agent and the register, what to do if you have paid, and where to report. Read → Changing Your Migration Agent Mid-Application Forms 956 and 956A, who the Department writes to, ending the old appointment, your file and your ImmiAccount, the request you never saw, and representing yourself. Read → Migration Agent or Immigration Lawyer What both can do, what only a lawyer can do, when a lawyer is the right call, when an agent is the better value, and how WIDEN handles the line. Read → Australian Visa Conditions Explained The condition numbers on a grant notice, grouped by work, study, health, stay, reporting and regional, with what each requires and what a breach leads to. Read → The Initial Entry Date on a Permanent Visa Why it cannot be extended, what really happens if you miss it, condition 8504 and the discretionary cancellation, family members, the validation trip, and the travel facility that runs from the grant. Read → Condition 8501 and a Lapse in Health Insurance What adequate cover means, the policy that expired, the employer that stopped paying, what the Department does about a gap, restoring cover, and the applications that ask. Read → Updating Your Details After a Change New passport, address, relationship, child, employer or course: ImmiAccount, Form 1022, the 14-day rule under 8578, what sponsors report, and why an unreported change becomes a false-information problem. Read → Visa Application Taking Too Long — What You Can Do What the processing times mean, what to check on your own file, requests that move a file, the complaint and the Ombudsman, your MP, and mandamus. Read → ImmiAccount Application Status: What Each One Means Received, Initial assessment, Further assessment and Finalised, what is happening in each, the health status lines, the status that moves backwards, Finalised with no email, what to do at each stage and what does nothing. Read → Asking the Department to Process a Visa Faster What counts as compassionate and compelling, how a priority request is made and evidenced, the requests refused every time, and the visas with no priority to ask for. Read → Skilled Visa Processing Priorities — Directions 121 and 122 From 19 September 2026: the priority sectors first, the 482 Specialist Skills tier, onshore before offshore, the regional tier removed, and reading your own place in the queue. Read → Travelling While Your Application Is Pending Bridging Visa B, the visas that must be granted onshore or offshore, immigration clearance, and planning the trip. Read → Debt to the Commonwealth — PIC 4004 Which debts count (detention, removal, charges, Centrelink, child support, tax), how the Department finds out, what an arrangement is, and clearing it before lodging. Read → Medicare for Temporary Visa Holders The general rule, the eleven reciprocal countries, the interim card for permanent applicants, condition 8501, and the levy exemption. Read → Pregnant on a Temporary Visa Who pays for the birth, the chest x-ray on a pending application, including the baby, unpaid parental leave and the 482, study deferral, payments, and the baby’s status. Read → 485 Visa Deadline Calculator Last day to lodge a Temporary Graduate application from course completion, English test date and age. Read → Condition 8558 Calculator (visitor stay) How long you can stay under the 12-months-in-any-18-month rule, counted across your trips. Read → Citizenship Residence Calculator Earliest citizenship application date from arrival, PR date and time abroad. Read → Australian Citizenship by Descent (child born overseas) Not automatic: who qualifies, the parent who must have been a citizen at the birth, the two-year rule, evidence, and the child-visa route when descent is not available. Read → Children and the Citizenship Application The child born here who is already a citizen, the child under 16 included free on a responsible parent’s form without the residence requirement, the other parent’s consent, the child who applies alone, the 16- and 17-year-old’s own application, the ceremony and the certificate, and citizenship by descent. Read → Dual Citizenship and Becoming Australian Australia allows it, your other country may not: the countries that strip citizenship on the pledge, those that require renunciation, those that allow both, the overseas citizen cards, children, property, and timing the pledge. Read → The Australian Citizenship Test The pass mark and the five values questions, the interview, failing and resitting, the exemptions, and preparing from the booklet. Read → The Citizenship Appointment: What to Bring and What Happens The original photo ID without which it is rebooked, the identity interview and what the officer asks, the test and the values questions, the interview-only appointment for exempt applicants, interpreters, companions, children, failing, and what is not decided on the day. Read → Citizenship Application Documents The identity documents, who may sign the identity declaration, when you must prove residence yourself, the overseas police certificate, name changes, children, and the uploads that delay an application for months. Read → Citizenship for the Spouse of a Citizen Who Lived Overseas The residence discretion: the four conditions for each period abroad, close and continuing association and its evidence, what it can and cannot rescue, why it is never guaranteed, and the other discretions. Read → Australian Citizenship With a Criminal Record The good character requirement on the whole record, traffic offences, pending charges, the section 24 bars, how the Department weighs it, and when to apply. Read → The Citizenship Ceremony After Approval How long the wait is and why it differs by council, the twelve months, the urgent ceremony request, what can still go wrong, travel, children, and the day itself. Read → Citizenship Refused on the Residence Requirement The four limbs counted to the day, the twelve-month and 90-day absence limits, the narrow discretions, review, and reapplying on the right date. Read → A Child Born in Australia to Temporary Visa Holders Not a citizen at birth; the deemed visa; adding the child to a pending application; the ten-year rule and how it is proved; when a parent becomes permanent. Read → Skilled Migration Points Calculator (189 / 190 / 491) Interactive points test — age, English, qualifications, work experience, partner, NAATI, regional study. Indicative result in seconds. Read → Visa Head-to-Heads One hundred and thirty-three side-by-side comparisons with a verdict and a table: 482 vs 494, citizenship before vs after travel, RRV before leaving vs from overseas, EOI one state vs any, partner points, NAATI vs superior English, professional year vs regional study, nominate 2 years vs 4, ACS RPL vs qualification, VETASSESS advice vs full, TRA pathway 1 vs 2, newborn added vs separate, experience before vs after the qualification, OSHC vs OVHC, reciprocal Medicare vs OVHC, DASP vs leaving super, dual citizenship vs renouncing, name change before vs after, passport renewal before vs after, Tribunal hearing vs on the papers, aged care agreement vs 482, PIC 4020 vs s109, include vs non-migrating family, contractor vs employee, sponsor offshore vs hire a 485 holder, health before vs after lodgement, Form 1023 vs 1022, Form 956 vs 956A, your ImmiAccount vs the agent’s, nomination and visa together vs sequential, lodge now vs lodge complete, refusal vs cancellation, PIC 4013 vs 4014, 8503 vs 8534, 8104 vs 8105, packaged vs single course, competent vs proficient English, married vs de facto, Bridging Visa A vs E, CDR vs accredited degree, ANMAC vs AHPRA, EOI first vs skills assessment first, s116 vs s501, 485 streams compared, further study vs 485, RPL vs studying, One Skill Retake vs a full test, visitor study vs a student visa, carer 836 vs 870, 482 first vs 186 direct entry, provisional vs full skills assessment, 101 vs 802, 482 dependant vs own visa, 190 onshore vs offshore, Bridging Visa B vs a visitor visa, 462 vs 482, 407 vs 408, 407 vs 485, student visa onshore vs offshore, registered relationship vs 12 months, health 4005 vs 4007, second 485 vs 491, DAMA vs 491, withdraw vs refusal, extend a visitor visa onshore vs reapply offshore, 461 vs partner visa, student dependant vs own visa, 417 vs 482, core skills vs specialist skills, labour agreement vs core skills, accredited vs standard sponsor, 804 vs 864, visitor-then-820 vs 309, 190 vs 186, 858 vs 189, 482 onshore vs offshore, 8503 waiver vs applying offshore, ministerial intervention vs judicial review, business visitor vs 400, 491 vs 482, 186 vs 494, 190 vs 491, 300 vs 309, NZ 444 vs citizenship, DAMA vs company agreement, Tribunal vs judicial review, 190 vs 494, 189 vs 491, 485 vs 491, 491 state vs family, 103 vs 143, 417 vs 500, eVisitor vs 600, 189 vs 186, 482 vs 189, 186 transition vs direct entry, 400 vs 408, 804 vs 870, tourist vs sponsored family 600, IELTS vs TOEFL, 500 vs 482, second 485 vs 482, self-sponsorship vs employer sponsorship, 820 vs 309, 820 vs 300, partner vs skilled, 870 vs 143, 143 vs 804, 143 vs 173, 864 vs 143, 600 vs 870, 417 vs 462, 482 vs 400, DAMA vs 494, ETA vs eVisitor, ETA vs 600, Bridging Visa A vs C, 155 vs 157, review vs reapply, permanent residency vs citizenship, descent vs conferral, IELTS vs PTE, IELTS Academic vs General, OET vs IELTS, PTE vs OET and more. Read → 189 Subclass 189 Skilled Independent Visa Points-tested permanent residence with no sponsor — eligibility, the points test, skills assessment and the SkillSelect invitation process. Read → The Hong Kong Streams of the 189 and 191 Permanent residence for HKSAR and BNO passport holders on a 482, 485 or 457: four years of residence for the 189 stream, three years in a regional area for the 191 stream with no income threshold, no points test, occupation list or skills assessment, absences, family members and the order. Read → SkillSelect Expression of Interest (EOI) — How to Lodge It What to have first, what it asks, claiming points you can prove, invitation rounds and state nomination, the 60-day window, and the mistakes that cost the visa. Read → Invited to Apply: The 60 Days and Every Document What must be true at invitation, what to lodge, what can follow, family members, the charges, the mistakes that waste an invitation, and what happens if the 60 days are missed. Read → Skills Assessment Expired Before the Invitation The three-year rule, why the invitation date is the one that counts, the assessment that expires during the sixty days, renewing in time, and the 186 and 482 where lodgement is the date. Read → No Invitation After Months in SkillSelect Why expressions sit, the two-year life and the expiring evidence, ceilings, the points that move the needle, changing occupation, the state and 491 route, and when to stop waiting. Read → Skilled Visa Refused — Points Not Proven Employment before the deemed-skilled date, unverified references, English by component, a lapsed assessment, partner points, age at invitation; what it costs, review, and rebuilding the EOI. Read → My Occupation Was Removed From the Skilled List What it does to an assessment, an EOI and an invitation; which list governs which visa; and the routes that remain. Read → 190 Subclass 190 Skilled Nominated Visa Points-tested permanent residence with state or territory nomination (+5 points) — how nomination works and choosing the right state. Read → 491 Subclass 491 Skilled Work Regional Visa +15 points, five years in regional Australia, and the pathway to permanent residence via the Subclass 191. Read → Moving to Australia with Your Family — 189, 190 or Employer Sponsorship First? For UK, US and Canadian professionals with a partner and children: time, what each person gets, the English-points trap, the Specialist Skills route, and the order that keeps doors open. Read → 476 476 Visa — Closed: Status & Alternatives The Skilled — Recognised Graduate visa is capped, ceased and repealed. What holders should do before expiry, and the real 2026 routes. Read → Skills Assessment Authority Guide (ACS, ANMAC, EA, VETASSESS, TRA, AMC, AITSL) Which assessing authority handles your occupation, what to expect on fees and timelines, and how the assessment fits into the migration pathway. Read → The Employment Reference: Duties Over Titles What the letter must contain, mapping real duties to the ANZSCO occupation without copying it, mismatched titles, employers who will not write one, consistency, and verification. Read → Your Job Is Not Your Nominated Occupation Skilled employment points for closely related work, the unit group test and its limits, the deemed skilled date, the role that changed, and claiming only the years that are certain. Read → Negative Skills Assessment — Review, Appeal or Reapply Why assessments fail, review versus reassessment versus appeal at ACS, VETASSESS, Engineers Australia and the trades bodies, the deadlines, a different occupation, and the effect on a pending visa. Read → Overseas Nurse to Australia — AHPRA, ANMAC and the Visas The streamlined pathway and the Outcome-Based Assessment, the English standard, the ANMAC assessment, the 482 with healthcare as a priority sector, the 186, 189, 190 and 491, in the right order. Read → State & Territory Nomination Guide (NSW, VIC, QLD, WA, SA, TAS, ACT, NT) All 8 state and territory nomination programs for the 190 and 491, side-by-side with streams, criteria, and indicative fees. Read → Moving Interstate on a 190 or 491 The 190 commitment is a promise to the state, not a visa condition; the 491 must stay in a designated regional area under 8579; the 494 and its employer; telling the state; the 191; citizenship unaffected. Read → 192 Pacific Engagement Visa (192) The ballot, who can register, the participating countries, the job offer that must follow selection, the application window, family, and what the visa gives. Read → State Nomination Refused or Not Selected Why states decline, why there is no Tribunal review, the internal reviews some states offer, reapplying, other states, and what it does not do to your visa or EOI. Read → ART Review for Migration Decisions (replaced the AAT) Administrative Review Tribunal merits review — process, 28-day deadline, scope, fees. Plus refusal-specific guides for student visa, partner visa, and 482 nomination. Read → Your ART Hearing: What Happens and How to Prepare The notice and response form, the Member who asks the questions, the statement and submission lodged before the day, witnesses, the interpreter, the questions by matter type, adverse information, and the mistakes that lose a winnable hearing. Read → Bridging Visa B — Travel While Your Visa Is Processing The only bridging visa that lets you leave and return: cost, the defined travel period, and the two traps that strand people offshore. Read → Partner Visa Australia 2026: Complete Guide Comprehensive guide to subclass 820/801 and 309/100 partner visas, including evidence requirements and processing times. Read → The Second Stage of the Partner Visa (801 and 100) When it is assessed, the evidence asked for again, the couple who separated and the three exceptions, reconciliation, the sponsor who will not sign, and ignoring the invitation. Read → Marrying on a Prospective Marriage Visa Condition 8515 and the wedding before first entry that breaches it, marrying before the grant, the nine to fifteen months and the wedding date, the visa expiring before the wedding, and when the partner visa is the right application. Read → 461 461 Visa — NZ Citizen Family Relationship Five years with full work rights for the non-NZ partner and family of New Zealand citizens — cost, processing time, and the 461 vs partner visa question. Read → Parent Visa Australia 2026: Subclasses 103, 143, 173, 864, 884, 870 Contributory vs non-contributory, costs, Balance of Family test, AoS, processing waits, and which subclass suits which family. Read → The Aged Parent Visa 804 Lodged Onshore: A Life on the Bridging Visa Who can apply, the decades-long queue, why parents lodge it, the visitor visa with 8503 that blocks it, work rights, no Medicare in the ordinary case, travel only on a Bridging Visa B, the 864 and 870 alternatives, and the honest account. Read → Carer Visa (836 and 116) Caring for a relative with a long-term medical condition: who can sponsor and apply, the Bupa assessment, the availability test, the capped queue and the alternatives. Read → Orphan Relative Visa (117 and 837) Who counts as an orphan relative, the parents who are dead, incapacitated or cannot be found, the relative who sponsors, consent and the child’s country, and why poverty is not enough. Read → Adoption Visa (102) The three kinds of adoption Australia recognises, the expatriate adoption after twelve months abroad, the relative and customary adoptions that fail, citizenship by adoption instead of a visa, and the alternatives. Read → Remaining Relative and Aged Dependent Relative Visas What each requires, the queue measured in decades, the 2013 release date, the bridging visa that is the real reason to lodge onshore, and the honest advice. Read → Bringing a Brother or Sister to Australia No sibling visa exists: the Remaining Relative visa and its decades-long queue, the family-sponsored 491, the skilled and employer routes, and the honest order to try them in. Read → A Visa for Grandparents to Help With the Grandchildren No childcare visa exists: the long-validity visitor visa and its 12-in-18 limit, the Sponsored Parent 870, the permanent parent queue, whether unpaid care is work, and which fits. Read → Assurance of Support for a Parent Visa Who can give it, the bond, how long it lasts, when to arrange it. Read → Urgent Visitor Visa to See a Sick or Dying Relative The fastest route for your passport, requesting urgent processing, the three kinds of evidence, the mistakes that cost days, refusals, and staying on. Read → 602 Medical Treatment Visa (602) Treatment or consultations in Australia, the support person, organ donors, paying for treatment, applying onshore when treatment outlasts your visa, and why it cannot be extended. Read → Retiring to Australia — What Remains The retirement visas are closed. With a child here: 870, 143, 103, 804. With a partner: the partner visa. With neither: long visits only. Read → Member of the Family Unit — Who Can Be Included, and 18 and 23 Partner, child or step-child under 18, dependent child 18 to 22, incapacity after 23; what dependent means, the test at decision, who was removed in 2016, and the alternatives. Read → Non-Migrating Family Members Who you must declare whether they come or not, why they still do the health examinations on a permanent visa, the unreasonable exception, the child from a previous relationship, and the family member left off who cannot be added later. Read → Including a Child From a Previous Relationship The other parent’s consent, Form 1229 and the declaration, court orders, the parent who refuses or cannot be found, dependency over 18, and the child’s own criteria. Read → Form 1229: Consent for a Child Under 18 Who signs, sole custody, and what to do when a parent will not. Read → 407 407 Training Visa Service page covering training plans, sponsorship, nomination, and visa applications for the Subclass 407. Read → 407 407 Training Plan Template & Requirements 2026 Detailed guide to the structure, content, and 2026 sequential lodgement requirements for 407 training plans. Read → Business Migration Australia 2026 Your options after the BIIP closure — National Innovation Visa, 132 Business Talent, 482 self-sponsorship, and regional pathways. Read → How to Become an Approved Sponsor Step-by-step guide for businesses seeking Standard Business Sponsorship approval. Read → The Work Location in a 482 Nomination Branches, group companies, multi-site roles, relocations, remote positions, and the regional visas where the address is a condition. Read → The Employment Contract for a 482 Nomination What the written contract has to show and match, and the no-less-favourable test. Read → Can a New Business Sponsor a 482 Worker? Start-ups trading under twelve months: the evidence that replaces financial history, the shorter approval, funding the salary without profit, the founder as nominee, and the sequence. Read → Standard Business Sponsorship Refused The five grounds, lawful and active operation, adverse information, capacity, a bar, an unanswered request; what the refusal does to the nomination and the worker; which charges come back; review at the Tribunal against a fresh application. Read → Can an Employer Sponsor a Contractor or Subcontractor? The 482 requires direct employment under a written contract, so an ABN arrangement fails; converting a contractor to an employee, sole traders and trusts as sponsors, labour hire, and the trades. Read → Labour Market Testing Exemptions The trade-obligation exemption by nationality, intra-corporate transfers, the other exemptions and alternative evidence, claiming one in the nomination, and the cost of claiming wrongly. Read → Accredited Sponsor Status The six categories, the benefits Home Affairs states, how to apply, and what takes it away. Read → Licensed Trades — The State Licence After the Skills Assessment Why a TRA assessment and a visa do not let an electrician or plumber work; the Offshore Technical Skills Record, provisional licences, gap training, and what to do meanwhile. Read → 186 186 Visa — Employer Nomination Scheme (Permanent Residency) Three streams, costs, eligibility, processing times, and the 482→186 transition pathway to permanent residence. Read → How to Find Employer Sponsorship in Australia Guide for skilled workers seeking sponsored work visas, including how to identify legitimate sponsors. Read → Regional Migration in Australia Overview of the regional migration pathway, including subclass 491, 494, and 191 visas. Read → 500 Student Visa (Subclass 500) — Complete Guide The full requirements — Genuine Student, financial capacity, OSHC, work rights — where applications fail, and the pathway from study to PR. Read → 500 Student Visa Australia Cost 2026 Complete breakdown of Subclass 500 fees, tuition, OSHC, living costs, and total first-year budget. Read → 500 Student Visa Work Hours — Condition 8105 48 hours a fortnight in session, unlimited in breaks, how the fortnight is counted, ABN work, placements, the dependant rule, how breaches are found, and what a breach does to the next visa. Read → 500 A Student Visa Cancellation Notice for Attendance or Progress What 8202 requires, what the provider had to do first, the four responses that work, the Department’s discretion, and what follows a cancellation. Read → 500 Deferring or Taking a Semester Off on a Student Visa What 8202 requires, the compassionate or compelling grounds a provider can approve, what the visa does during the break, leaving Australia, the gap between courses, and the student who wants a year off. Read → Starting a Business on a Temporary Visa What each visa allows: 485 unrestricted, students inside the limit, 482 and 494 confined by 8607, dependants free; the director rule, tax, and whether the business leads to a visa. Read → Volunteering on a Visa When unpaid work is still work: genuine not-for-profit volunteering against unpaid shifts, internships and farm stays, for visitors, students and 482 holders. Read → Turning 45 and the Skilled Visa Age Limit Age measured at invitation for the 189, 190 and 491 and at application for the 186 and 494; the points that fall away; the exemptions; and the visas with no age limit. Read → Gaps in Your Employment History A gap costs the months and nothing more; the ten-year window; the assessing authorities; Form 80 with no gaps; why inconsistent dates are the real problem; explaining a gap once. Read → Buying Property on a Temporary Visa A temporary resident is a foreign person: approval before any purchase, the ban on established homes from April 2025, what remains open, the surcharges, and what permanent residence changes. Read → Remote Work and Australian Visas Working in Australia for an overseas employer, hiring someone who stays overseas, the visitor visa line, the visas that allow it, sponsoring a remote role, and why there is no digital nomad visa. Read → 500 Changing Course or Provider on a Student Visa Same level or higher is a notification; a lower level needs a new visa, usually from outside Australia since October 2026; the provider release, package courses, condition 8202, and the cancellation after an unapproved change. Read → 500 Student Visa Dependants After 2 October 2026 Who can still include a partner or children, condition 8104 work rights, study, schooling and fees, health cover and funds, and the routes for a partner who cannot be included. Read → 590 The Student Guardian Visa 590 The parent, custodian or relative aged 21 or over who can guard a student under 18, the nomination, funds for both, health cover, no work and limited study, the other children who cannot come, the end at 18, the October 2026 onshore closure, and the parent who wants to stay. Read → Genuine Student Requirement (replaces GTE) — 2026 Guide How Department officers assess GS for the Subclass 500 visa — four assessment areas, common refusal reasons, free self-assessment form. Read → 500 Financial Capacity and the Source of Funds Genuine access, money from parents and relatives, gifts, inheritances and loans, the large recent deposit that gets applications refused, the income route, and consistency with the genuine student statement. Read → Study Pathway Finder Tool Free tool: match Australian CRICOS courses to your English level, budget, state, and migration goal. Read → Character Refusal & Cancellation (s501) — Specialist Work Section 501 character test, NJL responses, AAT review under s500, ministerial intervention. WIDEN takes matters on referral from other migration agents. Read → Character Reference Letters (s501) What a reference must acknowledge, who should write it, and what makes it count. Read → Sponsor a Worker (482 / 186) — Full Service for Businesses SBS approval, nomination, and visa application — fixed-fee per step under written service agreement. Read → 482 482 Sponsorship Step-by-Step The three stages in order: Standard Business Sponsorship, the nomination, and the worker’s visa, with the evidence, the charges and the timing at each. Read → Sponsorship Cost Calculator SAF levy, visa application charge, nomination fee, and indicative professional fees for the 482 and 186 visas. Read → How to Find the Right Worker to Sponsor Sourcing channels including SponsorTalent, what to look for in a candidate, red flags, and the sponsor obligations that affect candidate-finding. Read → Sponsor Aged Care Workers Personal care worker, nursing support, RN aged care. Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement (ACILA) pathway, ANMAC/AHPRA for RNs. Read → Sponsor Healthcare Workers Nurses, doctors, dentists, physiotherapists, allied health. AHPRA, skills assessment authorities, OET / IELTS 7.0, DPA for GPs, DAMA pathways. Read → Sponsor Hospitality Workers Chef, cook, restaurant manager, hotel manager. Chef vs Cook distinction, Fair Work modern award compliance, common refusal patterns. Read → 482 482 Skills in Demand Visa The Skills in Demand visa — Core Skills, Specialist Skills and Essential Skills streams, eligibility, and the pathway to permanent residency. Read → 482 Studying on a 482 or 494 No study condition: part-time study alongside the sponsored job, international fees and no HELP, the partner who can study full-time, and why switching to a student visa now means leaving. Read → 482 A Second Job on a 482 or 494 Why condition 8607 forbids it, the exempt occupations, what counts as work, the 180 days that are not a loophole, the partner’s rights, and the lawful ways to earn more. Read → 482 From a 482 to a Partner Visa When to apply, the de facto twelve months and registration, what happens to the job and the 186, the bridging visa in the background, and keeping both doors open. Read → 482 Extended Leave and Long Trips Home on a 482 or 494 Leave against ceasing employment, what the sponsor must and must not do, the effect on the 186 and 191, health cover abroad, and the written agreement before the flight. Read → 482 Arriving in Australia on a 482 or 494: The First Weeks The 90 days to start work, the tax file number, the bank account, health cover and Medicare, the address condition, driving, and the records the permanent visa is assessed on. Read → School for the Children of Temporary Visa Holders Who pays fees at public schools, which visas are charged and which exempt, the state differences, the waivers, enrolment, and when the fees stop. Read → 482 Changing Employers Before the 186 Since December 2024 the two years can be with different sponsors: what counts, the gaps that do not, the same-occupation rule, the current sponsor who must nominate, and leaving after the grant. Read → 482 Your Sponsor Has Gone Into Liquidation or Administration The visa continues, when the 180 days start, the pending nomination that cannot be approved, wages through the Fair Entitlements Guarantee, the new sponsor, and the 186 time you keep. Read → 485 485 Temporary Graduate Visa Post-study work rights for international graduates — Post-Vocational Education and Post-Higher Education streams, eligibility and timing. Read → 485 485 Visa Refused — Reasons and What Next English at lodgement, the study requirement, the stream, age, the AFP check; which grounds the Tribunal can fix, withdrawing and relodging, the bridging visa, and the s48 bar. Read → 858 National Innovation Visa (Subclass 858) Permanent residency for individuals with an internationally recognised record of exceptional and outstanding achievement. Read → Labour Agreements Company-specific and industry labour agreements when a standard visa doesn't fit — concessions, requirements and the negotiation process. Read → A Company-Specific Labour Agreement When an employer needs one, what can and cannot be negotiated, the evidence of need and the stakeholder consultation, the months it takes, and the honest advice. Read → Designated Area Migration Agreements (DAMA) Regional workforce agreements with concessions on skills, English and salary — which regions, which occupations, and how to access one. Read → Visa or Nomination Refused? Your Options What to do after a refusal or cancellation — ART review, fresh application, or ministerial intervention. Partner, student, 482 and character refusals. Read →

Visitor & Working Holiday visas

Working Holiday Visa Ending — How to Stay in Australia Second and third year and the ballot, employer sponsorship, state nomination on points, partner, the student route now closed onshore, and the UK FTA differences. Read → Leaving Australia at the End of a Temporary Visa The superannuation payment and its tax, the final tax return, health cover, debts, asking the Department to cancel a visa, leaving on time, and the record for anyone who wants to come back. Read → Keeping a Working Holiday Maker Beyond Six Months Condition 8547, the exemptions that need no permission, the permission request for critical work or a pending visa, the two-week rule, why an ABN does not escape it, and the 482 after. Read → In Australia on a Visitor Visa and Want to Stay Partner, sponsorship, another visitor visa or leaving to apply, and what conditions 8503 and 8558 do to each. Read → A Visitor Visa for Parents to Attend a Graduation or Wedding The invitation letter, the genuine visitor test for a retired parent, funds and who pays, applying early enough, the sponsored family stream and the bond, and the parent who wants to stay on. Read → 462 Work and Holiday Visa (Subclass 462) Eligibility by passport country, work and study limits, and the requirements to apply for a first, second or third Work and Holiday visa. Read → 601 Electronic Travel Authority (Subclass 601) The ETA for eligible passport holders — who qualifies, how long you can stay, and how it differs from an eVisitor or visitor visa. Read → ETA or eVisitor Refused — The Visitor Visa (600) as the Route Through Why the automated visas refuse, the conviction that fails them, why the app says no again, what to disclose on a 600, and the timing for travel. Read → 651 eVisitor (Subclass 651) Free short-stay visa for eligible European passport holders — eligibility, stay periods and conditions. Read → How to Extend a Visitor Visa in Australia There is no extension: a new 600 lodged onshore before expiry, what 8503 and 8558 do, the A$630 charge, the bridging visa, and why second visitor visas are refused. Read → 771 Transit Visa (Subclass 771) For travellers transiting Australia for up to 72 hours or joining a crew — who needs one and how to apply. Read →

Status & refusals

The Section 48 Bar — What You Can Still Lodge in Australia After a Refusal When the bar applies, the exceptions (partner, protection, 190, 491, 494), the bridging-visa travel trap, s48A for protection claims, and the three routes out. Read → A Second Visa Application While the First Is Pending Allowed before a refusal; the bridging visa the second produces and which one is in effect; what happens when the first is refused or granted; the later grant that switches off the visa you hold; charges, blocking conditions, withdrawing, and when two applications are the plan. Read → Partner Visa Family Violence Provisions Keeping the permanent partner visa after the relationship ends because of the sponsor’s violence: who is covered, what must be shown, judicial and non-judicial evidence, the independent expert, and help now. Read → Family Violence on a Temporary Visa That Is Not a Partner Visa What the provisions do not cover, what happens to a dependant’s visa, leaving safely, the evidence to gather, the visas in your own right, protection, and the support that exists. Read → When the Sponsor or the Applicant Dies During the Application The partner death-of-sponsor provision and the ties to Australia, the 300 with no equivalent, parent visas where the primary applicant dies, dependants left in an application, and the first weeks. Read → Partner Points on the Skilled Visa Ten for single or an Australian partner, ten for a skilled partner, five for competent English; what each requires at invitation, the de facto definition, expiring tests, and which of you should apply. Read → Partner Visa When You Are Not Living Together Long-distance couples: married couples apart, the de facto twelve months and its three routes, what separately and apart means, and the evidence at a distance. Read → Partner Visa Without a Joint Bank Account What the financial aspect actually requires, why separate finances draw questions, the evidence that substitutes, explaining the arrangement, and the joint account opened for the application. Read → Same-Sex Partner Visa Identical criteria, recognised marriages, and the evidence when your country did not let you be open: what replaces the missing documents, witnesses, safety, the interview. Read → Relationship Breakdown on a Temporary Visa The dependant on a 482, student or 485 visa, the partner visa at the temporary stage, the permanent partner visa; notification, cancellation, the exceptions, and the routes in your own right. Read → Partner Visa Sponsor Requirements and Limitations Who can sponsor, the two-partner and five-year limits and their waiver, police checks, the significant criminal record rule, the child offence bar, the undertakings, and withdrawal. Read → Sponsorship Limitations and the Compelling Circumstances Waiver The two-sponsorship limit, the five years after sponsoring or being sponsored, what the Department recognises as compelling, the evidence, and waiting out the years. Read → Partner Visas With an Age Gap or an Arranged Marriage Neither is a criterion; both prompt a closer read. The arranged marriage from the wedding onward, when to lodge, the age-gap questions, the online-first relationship, the statements, and the interview. Read → Sponsoring a Partner Visa on a Low Income or Centrelink No income test, the two-year undertaking, the Assurance of Support that is almost never asked for, the applicant’s payments and Medicare, and where income does matter. Read → Partner Visa When the Australian Sponsor Lives Overseas Citizens abroad with no residence requirement but an intention to settle to prove; permanent residents who must be usually resident; the 309 with both partners overseas; the sponsor’s own travel facility. Read → Exclusion Periods — PIC 4013 and PIC 4014 The three-year bars after a cancellation or a late departure, the 28-day exception, which visas they touch, and the waiver. Read → Withdrawing a Visa Application — Fee, Bridging Visa, and When It Is Right How to withdraw, why the charge is not refunded, when the bridging visa ends, and why a withdrawal is not a refusal for section 48 and PIC 4020. Read → Your Visa Application Is Invalid What makes an application invalid rather than refused, why there is no review and no fix, the bridging visa that ends in thirty-five days, the refund, and lodging again correctly. Read → Refunds of the Visa Application Charge When the Department must refund and when it does not: refused and withdrawn applications, the nomination that fails, invalid applications and overpayments, the levy, and Form 1424. Read → Condition 8503 No Further Stay — What It Blocks and How a Waiver Request Works Who carries it, the compelling-and-compassionate test, what does not qualify, the timing trap, and the review position. Read → Condition 8534 on a Student Visa What the no further stay condition blocks, the exceptions written into it, the application in breach that is invalid, the waiver test on Form 1447, the timing against expiry, and applying from outside. Read → 485 Visa Ending — The Routes That Remain Employer sponsorship from the current job, state nomination on points, the second regional 485, partner, and the order to run them in. Read → The Second 485 for Regional Graduates Who qualifies, category 2 and 3, the two-year regional rule and its evidence, the timing before the first visa ends, and what the second visa does for the 491. Read → Student Visa Ending — The Options That Remain After 2 October 2026 The 485 within six months, employer sponsorship, state nomination, partner, further study by exemption, leaving in time, and the dates that decide each. Read → 482 Visa and Your Job Has Ended — The 180-Day Rule What a 482 holder can do after employment ceases: work elsewhere, a new sponsor in the same or a different occupation, other visas, and the three dates. Read → Promotion or Change of Duties on a 482 The ANZSCO test, notification versus new nomination versus new visa, salary and hours, the order of events, and the effect on the 186 two years. Read → Bridging Visas — BVA, BVB, BVC & BVE Explained What keeps you lawful between visas — the difference between each bridging visa, when each applies, and your work, travel and review rights. Read → Bridging Visa E — Who Gets It, Work Rights, and the 28-Day Line The visa that makes an unlawful person lawful again: how to apply, the no-work condition and the hardship request, why leaving ends it, and why applying within 28 days decides the exclusion period. Read → Your Bridging Visa Has Ceased While Your Application Is Pending The departure that ends a BVA, the return on a visitor visa, cancellation, the review that finished; the replacement BVA or BVC online, the BVE when unlawful, work rights, and the 28 days. Read → Work Rights on a Bridging Visa Who has them automatically, who must apply, the compelling need to work and the financial hardship evidence, the bridging visa E position, and why working before the grant ends the bridging visa. Read →

Complex matters — requests, character, health, cancellation

Section 56 Request for More Information — How to Respond What the letter is testing, the response period, what to send and what not to, and when to have the response reviewed. Read → Natural Justice Letter (s57) — What It Means and How to Respond Adverse information put to you before a decision; PIC 4020 and the three-year bar; building the response. Read → Second Opinion on a Lodged Visa Application Independent review of a pending file lodged yourself or with another agent — strengths, exposures, what to add now. Read → Criminal Record and Australian Visas What must be disclosed (including spent convictions), the s501 character test, the 12-month rule, Direction 123 and how old convictions are assessed. Read → Charged With an Offence While Holding a Visa What a charge does, what a conviction does, section 501 mandatory and discretionary cancellation, Direction 123 from 31 October 2026, and why the plea is a visa decision. Read → Drink Driving and Your Visa Where the character test actually bites, penalty notices against court matters, declaring it, the licence loss and the sponsored job, New Zealanders on the 444, and citizenship. Read → An AVO or Domestic Violence Order and Your Visa Not a conviction but conduct the Department weighs: disclosure after consent without admission, a breach as a charge, the character conduct limb, cancellation on safety grounds, sponsoring a partner, and Direction 123. Read → Police Certificates, Form 80 and Character Evidence Which countries, AFP, FBI, ACRO and RCMP checks, validity periods, Form 80 and how a record is disclosed. Read → A Police Certificate You Cannot Get The countries whose certificates are unavailable or in-person only, the evidence of genuine attempts the Department accepts instead, the statement or statutory declaration, Form 80 as the fallback, and the applicant who fled. Read → Form 80 and Form 1221: Which One, and How to Complete It Who is asked for which, what each asks, the questions applicants get wrong, consistency with the application and each other, gaps, family members, and the request you must answer by its date. Read → Translating Documents for a Visa NAATI in Australia, identified translators overseas, full versus extract, scans and originals, the usual documents, and what gets rejected. Read → Health Waiver — PIC 4005 vs 4007 Which visas allow a waiver and which do not, the significant cost threshold, one-fails-all, and what a waiver submission contains. Read → A Child With Autism or a Disability and the Health Requirement How the cost is assessed against the AUD86,000 threshold, one-fails-all, the exemption for children born in Australia since October 2024, which visas carry a waiver, and the evidence that wins it. Read → Diabetes, Hypertension, Hepatitis, HIV and the Health Requirement How an adult’s chronic condition is costed over the temporary or permanent period, which conditions usually pass and which need a waiver, why a 482 passes and a 186 fails, the specialist report, and disclosure. Read → Depression, Anxiety and the Health Requirement What the form asks and why you answer it, how the Medical Officer costs a mental health history, the conditions that pass and the ones that are costed, admissions, the undertaking and the waiver. Read → The Visa Medical Examination — What Is Checked and What Happens If Something Is Found HAP ID, Bupa and panel physicians, tests by visa and age, validity, the Medical Officer referral, TB undertakings, one-fails-all. Read → Abnormal Chest X-Ray, Tuberculosis and the Health Undertaking The further tests and the delay, active TB (no grant until treated) against past infection (an undertaking), what Form 815 requires after arrival, and who else signs one. Read → New Passport and Your Visa Updating the Department, lost or stolen passports overseas, a visa granted on a cancelled passport, name changes, travelling before the update, and the four reasons VEVO shows no visa found. Read → Lost or Stolen Passport With an Australian Visa You keep the visa: report it, link the new passport, check VEVO before you fly. Read → The Numbers on Your Visa Documents TRN, Visa Grant Number, Visa Evidence Number, HAP ID, Client ID and Application ID: what each is, which one VEVO, an employer, Medicare or a university needs, the passport the visa is linked to, and the numbers that are not a visa. Read → PIC 4020 — False or Misleading Information and Bogus Documents What the criterion catches and what it does not, the three-year and ten-year bars, the natural justice letter, the waiver, and the order to do things in. Read → Declaring Refusals, Overstays and Deportations From Other Countries What the forms ask, what Australia already knows through data-sharing, how each kind of foreign history is weighed, finding your own record, and writing the explanation. Read → Getting Your Own Visa File and Travel History The free FOI request for your own documents, what is in the file and when it decides the next application, redactions, timing, requesting through an agent, and the separate international movement records request. Read → Biometrics for an Australian Visa Who has to give them, the request and its deadline, the collection centres, children and exemptions, reuse, and the refusal for not complying. Read → Military, Police and Intelligence Service: Form 1399 Who completes it, compulsory service declared and not adverse, what the Department is actually looking for, avoided conscription, the documents, and why omission is the only real risk. Read → Name Discrepancies Across Your Documents Spellings, single-name passports, name order, patronymics, married and changed names, the police certificate, the declaration that reconciles them, and a grant in the wrong name. Read → Made a Mistake in Your Application — Form 1023, s107 and s109 The duty to correct, Form 1023 versus Form 1022, the section 107 notice, how cancellation for incorrect information is weighed, and the line between a mistake and PIC 4020. Read → The Department Calls — Interviews, Employer Verification and Site Visits Partner interviews and their questions, verification calls to employers, site visits, referees, genuine call or scam, and handling an unexpected call. Read → Visa Cancellation Under s116 — The Notice and the Response NOICC, condition breaches (8202, 8501, 8503), the 7-working-day Tribunal deadline and the bars that follow. Read → Visa Cancelled While You Were Overseas Cancellation without notice under s128, the revocation request and its deadline, the review position, PIC 4013, and the routes back. Read → Refused Entry at the Airport — Visa Cancelled in Immigration Clearance The interview, the grounds, cancellation under s116, detention and removal, why review is limited, PIC 4013, what to say, and the routes back. Read → Unlawful in Australia — What Now Bridging Visa E, the s48 bar and its exceptions, the 3-year exclusion, regularise or depart. Read → Immigration Detention After a Visa Cancellation Why detention follows cancellation, the bridging visa E from detention, the review and its short deadline, the Minister’s section 195A power, the bridging visa cancelled on a charge, removal, and what the family does. Read → Ministerial Intervention After an ART Decision s351 and s417: when a request is possible, the Minister’s guidelines, status while it is considered, why most fail. Read → Visitor Visa (600) Refused — Appeal Rights and Reapplying The genuine temporary stay test, why offshore tourist refusals cannot be appealed, the sponsored family stream, and what changes the outcome. Read → Invitation Letter for a Visitor Visa (600) Not required, but a clear one helps: who writes it, what it says, the mistakes that hurt. Read → Resident Return Visa (155 / 157) Expired travel facility, the 5-year and 1-year 155, substantial ties, long absences, former residents and pre-1994 New Zealanders. Read → Permanent Residence Granted: What Changes on Day One Medicare, any employer, domestic fees without a HELP loan, the Centrelink waiting period of up to four years, the five-year travel facility, no vote or passport, children born after the grant, sponsoring family, buying a home, cancellation on character, and the clock to citizenship. Read → Adding a Partner or Child — Subsequent Entrant (482, 485, 500) How family is added after grant, the October 2026 student visa change, evidence, cost and timing. Read →

Temporary work and employer compliance

482 Holder: Permanent Residence Without Your Employer The 189, 190 and 491 on points while holding the 482, Direct Entry with a different employer, Transition with a new sponsor, the 494, and partner. Read → 408 Subclass 408 Temporary Activity Visa Research, sport, religious work, entertainment and special programs; support vs sponsorship; cost $535; current timing. Read → 400 Subclass 400 Short Stay Specialist Visa Specialist, non-ongoing work of up to 3 months; no sponsorship; what the business provides; when it is the wrong visa. Read → Sponsorship Obligations, Monitoring and Renewal What a Standard Business Sponsor must do, the 28-day notifications, site visits, sanctions and renewing before the 5-year expiry. Read → Sponsor Sanctions: Bar, Cancellation, Infringement Notice, Civil Penalty What the Department can do to a sponsor that breaches an obligation, the notice and the response that decides it, what each sanction does to the sponsored workers, the published register, the prohibited employer declaration and the 2024 offences, Tribunal review, and coming back. Read → 482 Your Sponsored Worker Has Resigned or Been Dismissed The 28-day notification, the costs you cannot recover, the levy refund, the pending nomination that lapses, the airfare, and the obligations that continue. Read → 482 Your Sponsored Worker Has Been Injured Workers compensation covers visa holders and the sponsorship obligations continue: the salary during incapacity, what is notified, the visa that expires during recovery, the 186 clock and the dismissal protections. Read → 482 Can the Worker Start Before the Visa Is Granted? The bridging visa and its conditions, the visitor who cannot work, remote work from overseas, what pre-grant work does not count for, the 400 for a short task, and what actually shortens the wait. Read → 482 Renewing Standard Business Sponsorship Before It Expires The five-year term, where the date is, the renewal window, nominations caught mid-stream, what a lapse costs the business and its workers’ 186 clock. Read → 482 The Skilling Australians Fund Levy: What You Pay and When It Comes Back The amount by turnover and visa, paid at nomination, the ban on recovering it from the worker, the narrow refund cases and the refusals that get nothing back. Read → 482 Nomination Approved, Visa Refused: What the Employer Does Next Why the two are decided separately, the grounds a visa is refused on, tribunal review and who lodges it, a fresh application, the bridging visa, and appeal versus re-apply versus another candidate. Read → 482 Withdrawing a 482 Nomination Before It Is Decided What comes back and what does not, what it does to the worker’s visa and bridging visa, withdrawing to avoid a refusal against answering the request, and when not to withdraw. Read → 482 Your Sponsored Worker Has Been Granted the Visa: The First 90 Days The start date, the VEVO check, the contract and payroll matching the nomination, the records, the notifications, and the first-months mistakes. Read → Sponsoring a Worker Who Has a Criminal Record The nomination is unaffected and the visa is where it is decided; which records fail, the certificates, the time, and whether to proceed. Read → Selling, Buying or Restructuring a Business With Sponsored Workers What a share sale carries and an asset sale does not, the buyer who must sponsor and nominate again, due diligence, the 186 time that carries across, and the sequence that keeps every worker lawful. Read → Can My Sponsor Deduct Visa Costs From My Pay? What a sponsor cannot recover, what the worker pays, repayment clauses, accommodation deductions, the offence of paying for sponsorship, and reporting without losing the visa. Read → Paid Less Than Your Nominated Salary What the sponsor promised, what counts as pay, the lawful differences, why the shortfall threatens the 186 and 191, the evidence, and raising it without losing the visa. Read → The Threshold Is Indexed: Does the Sponsored Salary Have to Rise? The nominated earnings do not rise with the CSIT, but pay must move with equivalent Australian colleagues, every new nomination including the 186 is read at the new figure, and a superannuation rise inside a package can cut guaranteed earnings below the nomination. The annual review. Read → Regional Certifying Body Advice for a 494 Nomination What the RCB certifies, which body covers your postcode, the evidence, timing and validity, declined advice, and how the step fits with Direction 122. Read → Checking a Worker’s Right to Work — VEVO for Employers The check and the consent, reading conditions, bridging visas, re-checks and records, labour hire, penalties since 2024, and workers who report exploitation. Read →

For employers — sponsoring by sector, small business, transfers

How to Get Sponsored to Work in Australia (for candidates) The three applications, what makes you sponsorable, what makes the role sponsorable, where approved sponsors are, how to approach one, and what never to pay. Read → 482 Self-Sponsorship — Can Your Own Business Sponsor You? A company can, a sole trader cannot. What is tested, the extra scrutiny when the nominee controls the sponsor, where it fails, and the alternatives. Read → 482 Sponsoring a Relative Through Your Business Why a related-party nomination is lawful and examined harder, the genuine position test for family, the disclosure, and the cases that succeed. Read → On-Hire Labour Agreements and the 482 Why a labour hire business cannot sponsor under Standard Business Sponsorship, what the agreement requires and allows, and when the client should sponsor instead. Read → Hiring a 482 Visa Holder from Another Employer Nomination only if the occupation stays the same; LMT, SAF levy, start date, what to ask the candidate. Read → Can a Small Business Sponsor a Worker? No minimum size; what the Department tests, the salary floor, genuine position and cost. Read → 482 The Occupation Is Not on the Core Skills List: the Employer’s Options Read the list against the duties not the title, the closest occupation that gets refused, the specialist stream, the 494 list, labour agreements, DAMAs, state nomination, and the roles with no route. Read → OSCA Has Replaced ANZSCO: What It Means for Your Occupation Why the Department still decides visas on ANZSCO codes, what is still written in ANZSCO, the occupations OSCA has that ANZSCO never did, what a transition would involve, and what to watch for. Read → Sponsoring From a Company With No Australian Entity The overseas business sponsor: the two purposes, what it must show, the 482 it can nominate and the permanent visas it cannot, the 400 and a local subsidiary. Read → Intra-Company Transfers on the 482 The Australian entity sponsors, the associated entity rule, the labour market testing exemption for executives, senior managers and specialists under trade obligations and the transferees it does not cover, the 400 for short assignments, who employs and pays, the Australian salary, the family, and the 186. Read → 482 Sponsoring Several Workers at Once One round of labour market testing for multiple nominations, the four-month window, the charges per worker, and showing you need the number. Read → Can a Sole Trader, a Partnership or a Trust Sponsor? Which structures can be a sponsor, who signs, the ABN the approval attaches to, what a change of structure does, and whether to incorporate first. Read → Can a Not-for-Profit, School, Council or Government Body Sponsor? Lawfully operating a business needs no profit: associations, charities, religious bodies, schools, universities, councils, agencies and hospitals as sponsors, the evidence each provides, the obligations and the levy without exception, and the Minister of Religion agreement. Read → Sponsoring Trades Workers Electricians, plumbers, carpenters, welders, fabricators: TRA, licensing, salary. Read → Sponsoring IT and Software Workers Matching job titles to occupations, the Specialist Skills stream, ACS. Read → Sponsoring Engineers Civil, structural, mechanical, electrical; Engineers Australia and the CDR. Read → Sponsoring Teachers and Early Childhood Educators AITSL, ACECQA, registration; Child Care Worker on the Core Skills list. Read → Sponsoring Mechanics and Automotive Workers Motor, diesel and small engine mechanics, auto electricians, panelbeaters, painters. Read → Sponsoring Disability and NDIS Support Workers — The Honest Answer Why the standard route is closed, and what NDIS providers can do instead. Read →

Common situations

My Visa Is Expiring Soon — What Can I Do? What has to happen before the date, what blocks onshore applications, the 2026 changes. Read → My Job Isn’t on the Skilled Occupation List Truck drivers, carers, labourers: DAMAs, labour agreements, a listed occupation, other visas. Read → Fake Sponsorship Job Offers — How to Tell If an Offer Is Real Warning signs, ten-minute checks, and where to report a scam. Read → From a Working Holiday Visa to Employer Sponsorship The six-month limit, sponsorable occupations, one year of experience, timing. Read → 482 Sponsoring an Employee You Already Have on a Student or Graduate Visa The employer’s three checks on occupation, salary and skills assessment, labour market testing for a filled job, the timeline against the worker’s expiry, and the mistakes that lose the worker. Read → An Employee Has Asked You to Sponsor Them The five questions that decide it, what saying yes commits you to, the conditions you can and cannot set, and how to say no. Read → 482 Can You Sponsor a Part-Time Worker? The full-time requirement, the narrow exceptions, the casual who cannot be nominated, and restructuring the role so it qualifies. Read → A Downturn and the Sponsored Worker A pay cut is a breach and reduced hours nearly one; agreed unpaid leave, the stand-down and its limits, a new nomination at a lower salary, redundancy with the 28-day notification, the worker’s 180 days and return travel, the order to try things in, and what is said to the worker. Read → Hiring From Overseas or Sponsoring Someone Already Here The same nomination, the different timelines, what the employer pays in each case, and which to choose for a role with a date. Read → Sponsoring a Worker Who Is on a Bridging Visa Which bridging visas allow an onshore 482, the section 48 bar, what the worker may do before the grant, and the employer’s checks. Read → Visiting Australia with a Criminal Record Why eVisitor and ETA applications stall, what to declare and attach. Read → Skills Assessment When You Are Self-Employed The evidence that replaces payslips and employer references; when RPL comes first. Read → My Visa Application Is Taking Too Long Status enquiries, processing priorities, the Ombudsman, and what actually helps. Read → Registering Your Relationship for a Partner Visa Which states have registers, what registration replaces and what it does not. Read →

Ten years of files.
One agent on yours.

Book a consultation — A$330 inc. GST, creditedIn writing, no call — A$550
In writing — A$550Book — A$330 →
Pick a time — A$330, credited