TSS Visa to Permanent Residency
The Department of Home Affairs has set 25 November 2023 for implementing changes to the employer-sponsored permanent residency program.
Once the ENS reforms have been implemented, short-term Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) 482 Visa holders will gain access to permanent residency under the 186 Temporary Residence Transition Stream (TRTS) of the ENS visa program.
- All Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) SC 482 visa holders will be eligible for ENS visas sponsored by their employers.
- Applicants will need to continue to work in the occupation nominated for their TSS visa(s).
- Sponsored visa holders will be eligible for ENS TRT after two years (down from three years) of sponsorship on a TSS by their employer.
- Applicants will need to meet all other nomination and visa requirements for the TRT stream of the Employer Nomination Scheme visa.
- The limit on Short Term stream TSS visa applications that can be made onshore has also been removed in the interim.
PR pathway for specified 482/457 Visa STSOL holders
From 1 July 2022 applicants can apply for permanent residency if they are:
457 visa holders:
- (1) A person who on 18 April 2017 held a subclass 457 visa or had a pending 457 visa application that was subsequently granted
482 visa holders:
- (2) Commencing 1 July 2022 if you are a subclass 482 holder and
- if you have been in Australia for at least 12 months between 1 February 2020 and 14 December 2021; and
- at the time of application, you are employed by an employer actively and lawfully operating a business in Australia.
This new legislation provides a pathway to permanent residency for Subclass 482 visa holders in the short-term stream, regardless of whether their nominated occupation is on the Medium & Long-Term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL), the Short-Term Skilled Occupation List (STSOL) or the Regional Occupation List (ROL).
This new legislation is relevant for applications under the following Employer-sponsored programs:
- Subclass 186 (Employer Nomination Scheme) visa
- Subclass 187 (Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme) visa
According to the changes, if the applicants have worked for their employer for two of the last three years while holding a 482 visa in the short-term stream, after 1 July 2022, they can apply for 186 permanent residency visas.
Legislative Instrument Migration (Specified persons and periods of time for regulation 5.19) Instrument (LIN 22/038) 2022 replaces IMMI18/052 which was self-repealed on 18 March 2022.
This new Instrument provides a pathway to employer sponsored permanent residency for an additional cohort of SC457/482 visa holders through the Temporary Residence Transition stream of the employer nominated/sponsored schemes as announced by Minister Hawke on 25 November 2021.
After 30 June 2022 a new cohort of ‘specified persons’ will be eligible to be nominated under the TRT stream of the SC 186 and in some cases the RSMSSC 187.