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Australia Work Visa: Labour Agreements

Labour Agreements are work visas that enable employers in Australia to recruit a specified number of overseas workers in response to identified or emerging labour market (or skill) shortages in Australia. They provide an avenue for both permanent and temporary entry to Australia.

Visa applicants under a Labour Agreement must be nominated by an employer who is a party to an approved agreement and before the visa can be granted that nomination must be approved.

In addition, the visa application will be assessed against the following:

• That the applicant has the qualifications, skills (including English language skills) and experience specified in the Agreement;
• That the applicant is able to satisfy any mandatory licensing, registration or professional membership requirements under the Labour Agreement;
• That the applicant is less than 45 years of age; and
• That the applicant and all family unit members meet mandatory health and character requirements.

Process

After the Agreement has been negotiated, the process consists of 2 stages:

• Stage 1: Nomination by the employer.

Permanent entry: The employer submits a completed application to the Business Centre managing that Labour Agreement.

The nomination will be assessed to determine:

• The nomination is in accordance with the relevant Labour Agreement;
• The vacancy falls within the agreed ceiling for the Agreement;
• The terms and conditions of employment are in accordance with the Agreement;
• The nominee is under 45 years of age; and
• The nominee has the qualifications and skills (including English language skills) specified in the Labour Agreement.

• Stage 2: Nominee's application for a visa.

The nominee must complete their application, which must be lodged at the Business Centre in Australia managing the agreement.

Skill Matching Database

Employers wishing to nominate visa applicants under a Labour Agreement can utilise the Skill Matching Database to identify suitably qualified workers.

The Skill Matching Database contains the educational, occupational and personal details of Skilled-Independent category applicants and Skill Matching Visa applicants.

The database is updated monthly and distributed to all State/Territory governments and to a network of regional development authorities.

Applicants nominated from the database to work in Australia under a Labour Agreement do not need to lodge a further visa application for migration to Australia.