482 Nomination Australia: Salary, the SAF Levy and Processing Times

Nomination Streams Compared

3 Steps to a Compliant 482 Nomination

1. Classify the Occupation Correctly: Match the role to the correct ANZSCO code and confirm it sits on the relevant occupation list.
2. Benchmark the Salary: Check the offered salary against both the income threshold and the Annual Market Salary Rate (AMSR) for the role and location.
3. Pay the SAF Levy and Lodge: Calculate the Skilling Australians Fund levy based on business size and visa length, then lodge the nomination with complete supporting evidence.

Overview

Once a business holds an approved Standard Business Sponsorship, the next step is the nomination – the point at which a specific overseas worker is matched to a specific role. The nomination carries its own salary rules, its own costs, and its own scrutiny, and it is where we see most employer sponsorship applications run into avoidable difficulty. This guide explains how 482 nominations work in practice.

What is a 482 nomination in Australia?

A 482 nomination is the second step in the employer-sponsored visa process, following approval of the Standard Business Sponsorship. It is the point at which an approved sponsor formally nominates an overseas worker for a specific skilled position, providing the Department of Home Affairs with the details of the role, the salary, the location, and the justification for why an overseas worker is needed.

The nomination is assessed on its own merits, separately from the worker’s individual visa application – though in most cases the nomination and visa are prepared and lodged concurrently. The worker cannot apply for the 482 visa until at least the nomination application has been submitted.

In our experience, the nomination is where many employer sponsorship applications run into difficulty. The occupational classification, salary benchmarking, and labour market justification all require careful preparation. Getting the ANZSCO classification right from the outset matters enormously – not just for the nomination, but because it flows through to the worker’s employment record, their future PR eligibility, and compliance monitoring under the ATO and Home Affairs data-matching programme.

The nomination is also the stage at which the Skilling Australians Fund levy is paid, which is often the single largest upfront cost for employers in the sponsorship process.

For a full overview of the nomination process, see https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/employing-and-sponsoring-someone/sponsoring-workers/nominate-a-worker

What are the salary requirements for a 482 nomination?

Salary is one of the most closely scrutinised aspects of any 482 nomination, and getting it right requires understanding two separate but related requirements.

The first is the income threshold – the Core Skills Income Threshold (CSIT) for the 2025-26 financial year is AUD $76,515 per year. From 1 July 2026, this increases to AUD $79,499. For the Specialist Skills stream, the threshold is AUD $141,210, rising to AUD $146,717 from mid-2026. These figures generally exclude superannuation.

The second – and equally important – requirement is the Annual Market Salary Rate (AMSR). The salary offered must be comparable to what an Australian worker in the same role, location, and industry would earn. This requirement exists to prevent employers from using visa sponsorship to underpay overseas workers relative to the local market.

In practice, we see the AMSR requirement catch employers who offer exactly the CSIT figure and assume that satisfies the requirement. If the market rate for the occupation in that location is materially higher than the CSIT, the nomination can be questioned even if the threshold is technically met.

We assist our clients in conducting proper salary benchmarking before lodging nominations, using industry salary surveys, comparable job advertisements, and enterprise agreements where relevant. The investment in getting this right at nomination stage avoids compliance issues that can arise during the worker’s employment period.

See current threshold figures at https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/working-in-australia/temporary-skill-shortage-visa/core-skills-income-threshold

What occupation lists apply to a 482 nomination?

The occupation list that applies to your 482 nomination depends on which stream the role falls under.

For the Core Skills stream – by far the most commonly used – the nominated occupation must appear on the 482 Occupations List, which was developed by Jobs and Skills Australia and currently covers 456 occupations across a broad range of industries including healthcare, engineering, IT, construction, education, and professional services. The list is available at https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2024L01620/latest/text.

For the Specialist Skills stream, the position must fall within certain ANZSCO Major Groups and must attract a salary at or above the Specialist Skills Income Threshold. This stream is designed for genuinely high-skilled, high-earning roles and does not rely on the 482 occupations list.

A Labour Agreement stream is also available for occupations covered under an approved Labour Agreement between the employer and the Australian Government – these are negotiated arrangements typically used in industries or regions with specific workforce needs not met by the standard occupation lists.

One of the most common issues we see at nomination stage is an occupation that is close to, but not exactly, what is listed on the list. How the role is classified under the ANZSCO framework, and how its duties are described in the nomination, matters significantly. A well-drafted nomination that clearly demonstrates how the role aligns with the listed occupation gives the application the best possible chance of a straightforward approval.

How long does 482 nomination processing take?

Processing times for 482 nominations vary depending on the stream and the complexity of the application, and they have shifted notably since the introduction of the Skills in Demand visa framework.

For the Specialist Skills stream, straightforward high-salary applications can be decided in as few as 7 days. This is one of the genuine advantages of the Specialist Skills stream for eligible roles – speed and certainty for businesses that need to move quickly on a critical hire.

For Core Skills nominations, most applications in 2026 are taking between 30 and 70 days. Labour Agreement stream nominations are the most variable and can take up to six months in complex cases, though this reflects the detailed nature of the assessment rather than administrative delay.

A point worth understanding is that these are averages, not guarantees. Applications that are incomplete, that raise questions about occupation classification or salary benchmarking, or that involve requests for further information will take considerably longer than the median timeframe.

In our experience, the nominations that move through the system most efficiently are the ones that have been comprehensively prepared from the outset – clear occupation description, well-documented salary justification, and complete supporting evidence lodged at the time of application rather than in response to a request for further information.

For current indicative processing times, see https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-processing-times/global-visa-processing-times

What is the Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) levy and who pays it?

The Skilling Australians Fund levy – commonly referred to as the SAF levy – is a training contribution paid by employers at the time they lodge a 482 nomination. It is often the single largest upfront cost in the employer sponsorship process and one that employers frequently underestimate when they first come to us for advice.

The levy is calculated based on the size of the business and the length of the visa being nominated. For small businesses with an annual turnover of less than AUD $10 million, the rate is AUD $1,200 per year of visa granted. For larger businesses, the rate is AUD $1,800 per year. So for a four-year 482 visa nomination from a large employer, the SAF levy alone is AUD $7,200.

The levy is payable by the employer and cannot, under any circumstances, be recovered from the sponsored worker – directly or indirectly. This is a legal prohibition, not a guideline, and breaches can result in civil penalties for the business.

The SAF levy is non-refundable once the nomination is granted, even if the worker’s circumstances change and the visa is cancelled or the worker departs Australia early. This is another reason why getting the nomination right from the outset is important – a nomination that is refused and then re-lodged means the levy is paid twice.

For the current levy rates and payment process, see https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/employing-and-sponsoring-someone/sponsoring-workers/nominate-a-worker/skilling-australians-fund

Lodging the SBS and Nomination Together

The Standard Business Sponsorship application and the 482 nomination application can be lodged sequentially and they will be approved sequentially. Similarly, the 482 visa application itself cannot be lodged until both the sponsorship and the nomination have been submitted. This concurrent lodgement option is important for employers who need to move efficiently through the process. Rather than waiting for SBS approval before starting the nomination preparation, both applications can be prepared in parallel and lodged together. In practice, this is how most employer sponsorship applications we manage are structured.

The worker’s visa application can only be submitted once the nomination (and ideally the SBS) has been lodged – and for the visa to be granted, both the SBS and nomination must be approved.

For onshore applicants who need to maintain valid visa status during processing, the timing of when each application is lodged matters. We work with clients to map out the timeline carefully, particularly where the worker’s current visa has an imminent expiry date.

A practical note: even though concurrent lodgement is possible, both applications need to be properly prepared independently. Lodging a rushed nomination alongside an SBS to save time rarely results in a faster outcome – incomplete or inconsistent applications almost always generate requests for further information that add more time than would have been saved.

See the three-step process at https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/employing-and-sponsoring-someone/sponsoring-workers

If a Sponsored Worker Loses Their Job

If a sponsored worker on a 482 visa loses their job – whether through redundancy, resignation, or termination – they have up to 180 days to either find a new approved employer sponsor or make arrangements to depart Australia. This 180-day grace period was introduced to give skilled workers a genuine opportunity to transition between employers without immediately breaching the visa condition.

For the outgoing employer, the sponsorship obligation does not end the moment the employment relationship does. The employer must notify the Department of Home Affairs promptly when a sponsored worker’s employment ceases. Failure to do so is a breach of sponsorship obligations and can result in sanctions.

For the worker, the 180-day period is a genuine window of opportunity, but it requires active effort. Finding a new employer who is an approved Standard Business Sponsor, and completing a new nomination and potentially a new visa application, within 180 days is achievable but not automatic. We regularly assist workers in this situation to find a compliant pathway.

An important change to note: work experience accumulated under multiple sponsors now counts cumulatively toward the two-year qualifying period for the 186 Temporary Residence Transition stream – it no longer resets with each change of employer.

For further detail see https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/working-in-australia/skills-in-demand-visa

The Permanent Residency Pathway

Yes – for many skilled workers, the 482 visa is the starting point of a pathway to Australian permanent residency, not a permanent temporary status. Understanding how that pathway works from the day of nomination is important for both the employer and the worker.

After completing two years of full-time work in the nominated occupation, the worker’s employer can nominate them for the Employer Nomination Scheme Subclass 186 visa under the Temporary Residence Transition (TRT) stream. This is the most common permanent residency pathway for 482 visa holders, and it is the one we plan for with our employer clients from the outset of the sponsorship arrangement.

A significant change that has improved outcomes for many workers is that the two-year qualifying period is now accumulated across multiple sponsors. Previously, the clock reset each time a worker changed employers. Under the current rules, time worked for different approved sponsors counts cumulatively – meaning a worker who has spent one year with one employer and one year with another can be nominated for the 186 TRT stream by their current employer.

To be eligible for the 186 TRT stream, the worker must generally be under 45 at the time of the PR application, hold or have held a 482 or 457 visa, and have been working in the nominated occupation. For more information on the 186 TRT stream, see https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/employer-nomination-scheme-186/temporary-residence-transition-stream

Compliance Risks for Employers

Compliance at the 482 nomination stage is no longer just about submitting the correct paperwork – and this is something we discuss in detail with every employer client we work with. The risk environment has changed significantly.

Since 2024, the Australian Tax Office and the Department of Home Affairs have conducted quarterly data-matching between employer payroll records and the details lodged in nomination applications. If the salary being paid to a sponsored worker does not match the nominated salary, or if the ANZSCO occupation code used in the nomination does not align with the worker’s actual role and duties, the system flags it automatically. Neither the employer nor the worker needs to do anything to trigger a compliance review – it happens in the background as a matter of routine.

The practical implication is that the nominated salary and occupation code need to accurately reflect reality – not just at the time of lodgement, but throughout the visa period. If a worker’s role evolves materially over time, or if salary adjustments are made that change the remuneration structure in ways that affect how it maps to the nominated package, these changes need to be assessed against the original nomination.

We also see compliance issues arise when employers make informal arrangements around salary packaging that do not translate cleanly to the nominated annual earnings figure. The Department assesses the nominated salary against what is actually paid and recorded through payroll – arrangements that look fine informally can create compliance exposure when viewed through the data-matching lens.

The message is straightforward: get the nomination right from day one, keep your payroll records consistent with what was nominated, and seek advice promptly if the worker’s role or remuneration changes materially.

Sponsor obligations are detailed at https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/employing-and-sponsoring-someone/sponsoring-workers/sponsor-obligations