If your business sponsors overseas workers, the Australian Border Force (ABF) can bar you from sponsoring, cancel your sponsorship approval, issue infringement notices, or take you to court for civil penalties if you breach your sponsorship obligations. Sanctioned businesses are also named publicly on the ABF website.
This article explains what this means for employers in practical terms: what can happen, how the process runs when a breach occurs, and what you can do to protect your business.
The legal framework
Sponsorship obligations sit in Division 3A of Part 2 of the Migration Act 1958 and Division 2.19 of the Migration Regulations 1994 (regulations 2.78 to 2.87C).
Our office’s guide on sponsorship obligations can be found here.
ABF officers act as the Minister’s delegates when investigating and sanctioning approved work sponsors, including former sponsors.
According to the Department, the framework exists to ensure that:
- sponsored workers’ conditions meet Australian workplace standards;
- sponsored workers are not exploited by their sponsors;
- visa programs are used for their intended purpose;
- all sponsors meet the same standardised obligations.
Obligations apply to each sponsored worker. A single failing practice, such as underpaying a group of visa holders, can therefore amount to many separate breaches.
The sanctions and penalties employers face
Under section 140K of the Migration Act, a sponsor that fails to meet an obligation can face one or more of the following.
- A bar on sponsoring. You can be barred for up to five years from sponsoring further workers under existing approvals, from applying for new sponsorship approval, or both.
- Cancellation of sponsorship approval. Your approval can be cancelled for one, several or all sponsorship classes.
- An infringement notice. This is a fixed penalty you can pay instead of facing court proceedings. Each alleged breach attracts its own amount.
- A civil penalty order. The Department can apply to a court for a pecuniary penalty, which works much like a fine. Each breach can attract a separate penalty.
- An enforceable undertaking. This is a formal, legally binding commitment to fix the problem and comply in future. If you breach it, the Department can seek a court order.
How much?
Amounts are set in Commonwealth penalty units, worth $364 each for conduct on or after 1 July 2026 (ASIC).
Penalty, per breach | Individual | Company |
Infringement notice, first time | 6 units ($2,184) | 30 units ($10,920) |
Infringement notice, repeat (prior notice or court penalty) | 12 units ($4,368) | 60 units ($21,840) |
Court-ordered civil penalty, maximum | 60 units ($21,840) | 300 units ($109,200) |
The penalties add up quickly. The Department gives an example of a minimum-salary obligation breached for five workers over two months: that is 10 separate breaches. For a company, that could mean a maximum court penalty of more than $1 million.
Which breaches lead to which action?
- Failing a sponsorship obligation: any of the actions above. An infringement notice is not available for failing to cooperate with inspectors or failing to secure reasonable accommodation.
- Not complying with a section 140XF notice to produce records or not giving your name and address to an inspector: infringement notice or civil penalty.
- Giving false or misleading information, no longer meeting approval criteria, or a breach of other laws: bar or cancellation. This includes a court finding that you asked for or received payment in return for sponsorship.
How enforcement works in practice
Bars and cancellations: the NOITTA process
Before barring or cancelling a sponsor, the ABF must give you a written Notice of Intention to Take Action (NOITTA). The usual sequence is:
- NOITTA issued. It sets out the alleged breaches; the actions being considered and how to respond. You must be given at least seven days to respond.
- Your response. This is your opportunity to show the breach did not occur, explain mitigating circumstances, and address the criteria the delegate must weigh.
- Decision. The delegate can rely only on material put to you in the NOITTA. If new evidence emerges, a fresh NOITTA must be issued.
- Notice of decision. You are told the outcome, the reasons and your review rights.
Even when the delegate finds a breach but takes no action, the breach is recorded as adverse information. It can be considered when assessing your future sponsorship and nomination applications.
Challenging a decision
- Merits review. Most decisions to bar or cancel can be reviewed by the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART). The application must be lodged within 28 days of receiving the decision.
- Waiving a bar. You can ask for a bar to be lifted on limited grounds. These include significant harm to Australia’s interests or trade, or significant new evidence. A waiver does not overturn the original finding, and a refusal cannot be reviewed by the ART.
Public naming
Sponsors sanctioned for failing an obligation are named on the ABF’s Register of Sanctioned Sponsors, updated monthly. The register shows your business name, trading name, ABN, state and postcode, the obligations breached and how many times, and the sanction imposed. Infringement notice amounts and whether they were paid are listed too. There are currently no exceptions. A listing stays during merits review unless you tell the Department you have applied and stays even if a bar is later waived.
Infringement notices
- A notice must be served within 12 months of the alleged breach.
- You have 28 days to pay. Paying discharges your liability for that breach and is not a conviction.
- You can ask in writing for more time to pay, usually a further 28 days.
- Withdrawal is limited to a clear mistake of fact, proof the breach never occurred, exceptional and compelling reasons, or a jurisdictional error. A notice cannot be withdrawn more than three months after service.
- If you do not pay, the Department can apply to a court for a civil penalty and may also pursue a bar or cancellation.
Court proceedings
The Department can apply for a civil penalty order up to six years after a breach. It must be satisfied there is enough evidence and that proceedings are in the public interest. In setting the penalty, the court considers the nature and extent of the breach, any loss caused, and your history of similar conduct. A penalty becomes a judgment debt owed to the Commonwealth.
The Department can also require third parties, such as your bookkeeper, to assist it with a civil penalty application. Refusing to help is an offence carrying 10 penalty units ($3,640). Anyone who aids, abets or is knowingly involved in a breach can also be personally liable.
Practical steps for sponsors
- Know your obligations. Make sure whoever manages your sponsored workers understands each obligation, including pay, record keeping and notification duties.
- Keep complete records. Record-keeping failures are among the easiest breaches for inspectors to prove, and each missing record can count separately.
- Audit regularly. Check pay, duties and work location for every sponsored worker against what was approved in their nomination.
- Cooperate with inspectors. Respond to requests and notices to produce on time. Failing to do so is a breach in its own right.
- Take every NOITTA seriously. It is your main, and often only, chance to shape the outcome. Respond within the deadline with evidence, not just explanations.
- Never ignore an infringement notice. Get advice promptly. The 28-day payment window is short, and the grounds for withdrawal are narrow.
- Fix problems early. Back-pay underpaid workers and correct processes as soon as an issue surfaces. Remediation is relevant to mitigation.
How Hannan Tew Lawyers can help
Whether you want to check your compliance before an inspection or have just received a NOITTA, infringement notice or notice to produce, early advice can make a significant difference. Hannan Tew Lawyers can help you:
- understand your sponsorship obligations and offer advice if a potential breach is noticed;
- prepare a NOITTA response that addresses the evidence and the decision criteria;
- apply for ART review or a bar waiver.
If you require assistance, please feel free to contact us by email at [email protected] or phone +61 3 9016 0484.
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