Sponsor Eligibility

An organisation or agency needs to be approved as an exchange sponsor in order to employ skilled workers from overseas. The following requirements must be met for an organisation or agency to become a sponsor.

Who can be a sponsor

For this visa you need to be sponsored by one of the following:

• an Australian organisation that is lawfully operating in Australia
• a government agency
• a foreign government agency.

Lawfully operating in Australia

The organisation or government agency must be lawfully established and actively operating in Australia.

An organisation can include a body corporate, a partnership or unincorporated association (other than an individual or a sole trader) that is lawfully established in Australia.

A new organisation may be considered if there is clear evidence of intention to establish the business.

A government agency includes an agency of the Commonwealth or of a State or Territory.

A foreign government agency includes the following:

• organisations conducted under the official auspices of a foreign national government and operating in Australia, including overseas tourist and media bureaus, trade offices and other foreign government entities
• a foreign diplomatic or consular mission with a presence in Australia
• organisations conducted under the official auspices of a recognised international organisation, such as the United Nations.

Exchange agreement

To nominate overseas workers the Australian organisation or government agency must have an exchange agreement in place with a reciprocating organisation overseas.

Good business record

To meet this requirement:

• there must be nothing adverse known about the organisation or agency
• if the organisation or agency has previously sponsored overseas workers to Australia, they must have a satisfactory record of complying with Australian laws
• the activities of the organisation or agency must not be illegal in Australia.

Capacity to comply with their sponsorship obligations

The sponsor must have the capacity to comply with sponsorship obligations.
See: Sponsor Obligations

Renewing sponsorship

A sponsor may be approved for up to three years. To continue to employ people from overseas the sponsor will need to reapply before their sponsor approval ceases.
See: Applying for this Visa

Before lodging an application, please read all related requirements.
See: Eligibility