Employing skilled workers from overseas
Lawfully operating Australian employers can:
- Sponsor and employ skilled workers from overseas, if the worker has recognised qualifications and skills/or experience in a particular occupation required in Australia
See Visa Options
Visa options for overseas skilled workers
Skilled workers can come to Australia with:
- Employer sponsored visas, or
- General Skilled Migration (GSM) visas
See Skilled visas for Australia comparison chart
Labour agreements to recruit skilled workers
A labour agreement is a formal arrangement between an employer and the Australian Government that allows the employer to recruit an agreed number of overseas skilled workers on a permanent or temporary basis.
Employers need to negotiate labour agreements individually with the Australian Government.
See Labour agreements
Identifying a workers occupation – ANZSCO
When a person applies for a skilled migrant or employer sponsored visa, they need to identify their occupation as listed in the Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO).
See Lists of eligible skilled occupations
Employing legal workers
It is the responsibility of all Australian businesses to employ legal workers.
A person is a legal worker if they are:
- An Australian citizen
- An Australian permanent resident
- A New Zealand citizen, or
- A foreign national with a visa with permission to work in Australia
See Employing legal workers
Checking a person’s visa entitlements – Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO)
You can check a foreign national’s visa status and entitlements (including if they have permission to work in Australia) online using Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO).
See Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO)
