Australian businesses must become an approved standard business sponsor before they can nominate a skilled worker for an employer sponsored visa.
Read our general information on the standard business sponsorship process below. Contact us directly for specific advice.
Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS)
A Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS) is the approval your business needs before it can sponsor a skilled foreign worker. It is an approval of the business itself, not of any particular role or any particular person. That distinction matters, because it is where most employers new to the process lose time.
Sponsoring a skilled worker in Australia has three separate stages, each with its own application, its own criteria and its own decision.
Once approved, an SBS is valid for up to five years, so this is not something you repeat for every hire. You apply once, then nominate roles under that approval as you need them. The five-year period applies to established businesses; a business trading for less than 12 months is typically approved for a shorter period instead.
The three stages
- Sponsorship – your business applies to become an approved sponsor. This is the SBS.
- Nomination – you nominate a specific position and occupation for a specific worker.
- Visa – the worker applies for the visa itself, and is assessed on skills, English, health and character.
Who needs a standard business sponsorship
- Australian businesses wanting to employ a skilled worker from overseas
- overseas businesses seeking to establish an Australian operation or fulfil contractual obligations in Australia
- businesses already employing sponsored workers whose existing approval is approaching expiry
What one SBS covers
- an approved SBS allows you to lodge nominations for the relevant employer sponsored visa programs, rather than being tied to a single visa subclass
- it does not approve any particular position – each role still requires its own nomination
- it does not guarantee any nomination or visa will be approved
Eligibility
Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS)
The employer sponsorship requirements are about the business, not the role. The Department is asking whether yours is a genuine, lawfully operating enterprise that can be trusted with sponsorship obligations, and whether there is anything on record that suggests otherwise.
Most businesses that are trading properly and meeting their employment and tax obligations will satisfy this. The applications that run into difficulty are usually newly incorporated entities, businesses with limited trading history, or businesses with a compliance history that needs explaining.
Who can apply
- a business legally established and currently operating in Australia
- a business legally established and operating overseas, where you intend to establish an Australian operation or fulfil contractual obligations in Australia
Business requirements
- the business must be lawfully and actively operating
- you must be able to evidence genuine trading activity, not just registration
- you must meet Australian workplace relations and immigration obligations
Adverse information
- the Department will consider whether there is adverse information known about your business or anyone associated with it
- this can include workplace relations breaches, immigration compliance history, and matters involving directors or associated entities
- adverse information does not automatically prevent approval, but it must be addressed properly in the application
- if you are aware of anything that may be relevant, tell us early rather than late
Obligations
Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS)
The obligations attached to sponsorship are where most employers get into difficulty, and they continue well beyond the point where the worker starts. They apply for as long as you sponsor someone, and in some cases for a period after that.
These are enforceable. The Department monitors sponsors, and failing to meet an obligation can lead to sanctions, a bar on future sponsorship, and cancellation of an existing approval. None of that is difficult to avoid, but it does require the business to know what it has signed up to.
Your obligations as an approved sponsor
- pay the sponsored worker at least the salary specified in the approved nomination
- employ the worker only in the nominated occupation
- keep prescribed records and provide them if requested
- notify the Department of certain changes within the prescribed period, including if the worker ceases employment
- cooperate with Department inspectors
- ensure equivalent terms and conditions to those of Australian workers doing equivalent work
- do not recover, transfer or take actions that would result in the sponsored worker paying certain sponsorship or nomination costs
Costs you cannot pass on
- certain sponsorship and nomination costs must be borne by the business and cannot be recovered from the worker, including some professional fees
- this is a common and avoidable compliance failure
- seek advice on cost allocation before the engagement rather than after
If you do not comply
- the Department can apply sanctions, including barring the business from sponsoring in future
- an existing sponsorship approval can be cancelled
- infringement notices and civil penalties can apply
- see our sponsorship obligations guidance for more detail
Documents
Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS)
The documents required depend on the size, age and structure of your business. A long-established company with audited accounts will evidence its position very differently from a business in its first year of trading. Your Hannan Tew advisor will provide a link to the Hannan Tew portal setting out exactly what your application requires.
Business and legal standing
- evidence of business registration, including ABN and ACN documentation
- company extract or equivalent constitutional documents
- evidence that the business is lawfully and actively operating
Financial
- financial statements, which may include profit and loss statements and balance sheets
- business activity statements
- tax records
- payroll records demonstrating existing employment
Supporting material
- organisational chart
- business plan, particularly for newer businesses or overseas sponsors
- evidence of the genuine need for skilled labour
- details of any adverse information that needs to be addressed
Process
Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS)
We advise and guide you through the sponsorship application from the initial assessment to lodgement. As with our other matters, we use an online document and information collection tool so everything sits in one place, and you can track the status of the application through the Hannan Tew Portal.
In many cases the sponsorship and the first nomination are prepared together, so the business approval and the first role move through in parallel rather than one after the other.
Preparing the application
- assess the business against the sponsorship criteria before anything is lodged
- identify and address any adverse information early
- gather the business, financial and supporting documents
- ensure any non-English documents are translated
Lodging the application
- the sponsorship application is lodged online through ImmiAccount
- the nomination may be lodged at the same time, or afterwards
- application charges are paid at lodgement
After lodgement
- the Department acknowledges receipt, and further information is requested by email if required
- processing times vary and are published by the Department. See their processing times page for current figures
- tell the Department if your business circumstances change while the application is being assessed
Once approved
- the approval is valid for up to five years for an established business — shorter, commonly 12 to 18 months, if the business has been trading for less than 12 months
- you may lodge nominations under that approval without reapplying for sponsorship each time
- your obligations as a sponsor start from approval, not from the worker’s arrival
- diarise the expiry date, as a lapsed sponsorship prevents new nominations
Pricing
Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS)
The cost to a business of sponsoring an employee is made up of more than the sponsorship application charge. There is the sponsorship charge, the nomination charge, the Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) levy, and the visa application charge, and the allocation of those costs between business and worker is regulated.
Because government charges change, we link to the Department’s current figures rather than reproduce them here.
Pricing
- Government fees: refer to the Department’s fees and charges page
- Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) levy: payable by the business at nomination stage, with the amount depending on business turnover and the length of the visa sought
- Professional fees: refer to our pricing guide, or use our cost calculator
- Note that certain costs cannot lawfully be passed on to the sponsored worker
SESR Visas
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS)?
A Standard Business Sponsorship is the approval an Australian business needs before it can sponsor a skilled foreign worker. It approves the business as a sponsor, not any particular role or person. It is the first of three stages. Sponsorship approves the business, nomination approves the position, and the visa application assesses the worker. Once approved, an SBS is valid for up to five years and you can lodge nominations under it without reapplying each time.
What is SBS for 482?
The Skills in Demand (subclass 482) visa is an employer sponsorship visa, which means it cannot be applied for without a sponsoring business. The SBS is how your business becomes eligible to sponsor. In practice the sponsorship is the first step in a 482 matter. Once your business holds an approved SBS, you nominate the specific position and occupation, and the worker then lodges the visa application. See our Skills in Demand (subclass 482) visa page for the full process.
Who can apply for SBS?
A business that is legally established and currently operating, either in Australia or overseas where it intends to establish an Australian operation or fulfil contractual obligations in Australia. The Department assesses whether the business is genuinely trading, whether it has a genuine need for skilled labour, and whether there is adverse information known about the business or its associates. Newly incorporated businesses can be sponsors, but they generally need to evidence their position more thoroughly.
How does a business become an approved sponsor in Australia?
By lodging a sponsorship application through ImmiAccount, supported by evidence that the business is lawfully and actively operating and can meet its obligations as a sponsor. The practical sequence for how to sponsor an employee in Australia is: assess the business against the employer sponsorship requirements, address anything that might constitute adverse information, gather business and financial documents, lodge the sponsorship application, and in most cases lodge the first nomination at the same time.
What are a standard business sponsor's obligations?
Sponsors must pay the sponsored worker at least the salary in the approved nomination, employ them only in the nominated occupation, keep prescribed records, notify the Department of certain changes, cooperate with inspectors, and not pass certain sponsorship costs on to the worker. These obligations are enforceable and continue for as long as you sponsor someone, and in some cases beyond. Failing to meet them can result in sanctions, a bar on future sponsorship, and cancellation of your approval.
How long does SBS approval take?
Processing times vary with the completeness of the application and the complexity of the business, and the Department publishes current figures on its processing times page. We do not publish a figure here, because these change. What we can say is that applications delayed are usually applications that arrived incomplete, or where adverse information surfaced that had not been addressed up front.
How much does it cost a business to sponsor an employee?
The 482 visa sponsorship cost for an employer is made up of the sponsorship application charge, the nomination charge, the Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) levy, and in some arrangements the visa application charge. The SAF levy depends on your business turnover and the length of the visa sought. Government charges are published on the Department’s fees and charges page. Our professional fees are fixed and published on our pricing guide, and you can model a full estimate using our cost calculator. Note that certain costs cannot lawfully be recovered from the sponsored worker, so the allocation matters.
Disclaimer
The information contained here is offered for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice or give rise to an attorney-client relationship between you and our firm. The information: (i) must be regarded as a practical guide for general information and not a process guide for determining the specific immigration requirements of the countries covered, (ii) should not be a substitute for a more indepth analysis of applicable facts and circumstances conducted by competent professionals, and (iii) does not represent an opinion from Hannan Tew or any of its agents with regard to the laws of any of the jurisdictions concerned. The information does not guarantee the outcome or approval of any particular immigration application.
What can we do for you?
With extensive experience representing the world’s largest corporations, SMEs and start ups, our staff are well placed to assist with all issues in relation to the employer sponsored visa process, including business sponsorship applications, nomination applications, compliance and sponsorship bars. Whether you are sponsoring your first employee or managing an established sponsored workforce, contact us to discuss how we can help.
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