Australian employers who wish to nominate workers for Temporary Skill Shortage Visa and Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional visa must meet certain requirements. Such requirements are to be met for subclass 482, 494, 186 and 187.

If they pay the overseas worker an annual salary less than AUD250,000 they must show that they have determined the annual market salary rate (AMSR) correctly, and they will not pay the overseas worker less than the AMSR, that is, less than an Australian worker would be paid.

Both the AMSR and the overseas worker’s pay, excluding non-monetary benefits, are no less than the Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT).

These requirements will help to ensure that overseas workers are not paid less than Australian workers doing the same work.

The Temporary Skilled Migration Income Thresholds (TSMIT) are as follows:

  • AUD73,150 for applications lodged on and between 1 July 2024 and 30 June 2025.
  • AUD70,000 for applications lodged on and between 1 July 2023 and 30 June 2024.
  • AUD53,900 for applications lodged on and between 1 July 2013 and 30 June 2023.

Both the AMSR for the nominated occupation and the workers’ guaranteed annual earnings must be at least as much as the relevant TSMIT at the time of lodgement.

The TSMIT does not include non-monetary benefits such as accommodation or a car. Employers must pay such benefits in addition to the TSMIT.

The Annual market salary rate (AMSR) is determined by assessing what an equivalent Australian worker is paid, enterprise agreements, job outlook information, advertisements for the last 6 months in the same location and remuneration surveys or advice from unions or employer associations.

From 1 July 2024, the TSMIT was increased from $70,000 to $73,150. The new nomination applications from this date have to meet the new TSMIT of $73,150 or the annual market salary rate, whichever is higher. This change will not affect existing visa holders and nominations lodged before 1 July 2024.

For some visa types, Australian employers must show they can’t find a suitable Australian worker. For these visas, if they nominate an overseas worker, they will need to test the local labour market. Labour market testing (LMT) generally involves advertising the position in Australia.

Temporary Skill Shortage Visa (subclass 482) is a Short-term stream visa that enables employers to address labour shortages by bringing in skilled workers where employers can’t source an appropriately skilled Australian worker. With this visa, you can work in Australia for up to 2 years.

Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 494) visa enables regional employers to address identified labour shortages within their region by sponsoring skilled workers where employers can’t source an appropriately skilled Australian worker.