the new sid - skills in demand - visa subclass 482 and consequent changes to the 186

Written By Giuseppe Romano

The Department of Home Affairs has introduced exciting updates with the 482 SID Visa, making it more accessible and flexible for skilled workers and their employers and changing the way to obtain a permanent visa. Let’s dive into the key changes:

New Streams replacing the “old” mltssl and the stol streams

  • The new 482 SID Visa now includes two streams: Core Skills Stream and Strategic Skills Stream.

    • Core Skills Stream: Linked to the new Core Skills Occupation List, which features exciting additions such as child care worker, beauty therapist, office manager, retail manager, and tour guide.

    • Strategic Skills Stream: Not tied to a specific list but applies to roles within certain ANZSCO categories with a salary exceeding $135,000

Reduced Work Experience Requirement for the 482 visa

  • New Rule: Applicants now need only 1 year of full-time (or equivalent part-time/casual) work experience within the last 5 years to satisfy the requirement.

  • Key Update: This experience must be met at the time of the application (previously, it was a time-of-decision requirement).

Flexibility in Employment

  • Freedom to Switch Employers: SID visa holders can now change employers more easily and have a longer timeframe to do so (180 days, previously 60)

  • Important Benefit: Time spent under any approved sponsor will count towards permanent residency eligibility, offering greater career flexibility.

English Language Requirement

  • Applicants must achieve an IELTS overall score of 5.0, with no band lower than 5.0 in each component or 36 in the PTE test with no band lower than 36.

    This is the same requirement that applied previously to MLTSSL occupations.

Employer Financial Capacity Checks

  • The government has strengthened checks on employers’ financial capacity to ensure they can offer genuine salaries.

Visa Fee Adjustments

  • With the removal of the STSOL stream, the base application fee for all 482 visas is now aligned with the fee for MLTSSL occupations: $3,115.

Implications for Permanent Residency (PR)

This update is closely linked to Regulation 5.19, which affects 186 visa nominations and 186 visa applications. Here’s why it matters:

  • If you’ve been sponsored on a 457 or 482 visa and lost or changed your job, you can now count all sponsorship periods (under different employers) from the past 3 years towards the required 2 years of sponsorship for PR eligibility under the Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS). You still need to be nominated by an employer under the subclass 186 visa and the nominating employer must be your current 482 sponsor to use the TRT stream of the 186 visa.

  • This is a huge change as previously changing employers would start the count towards PR from ZERO.

What This Means for You

If you’re a skilled worker or an employer:

  • Workers not yet on a sponsorship: Obtain a sponsorship might be easier since the skills requirement has been lowered to one year.

  • Workers already on a sponsorship visa: If you are already on a 457/TSS 482 visa and you changed employers since you first obtained sponsorship, you may be eligible for a 186 visa application TODAY.

Tomorrow Could Be Your Day for PR!

Many other requirements for the 482 Visa and the 186 remain unchanged (ie. age limit for PR, English level for 186), but these updates could mean your eligibility for PR is closer than ever. Act now and explore your options.

Giuseppe Romano
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