The recent abolishment of the Temporary Work (Skilled) 457 Visa has seen in its place the birth of the Temporary Skills Shortage 482 Visa (TSS Visa).
If you are an Australian employer seeking to hire foreign talent to improve your business, there are now many requirements that you must meet if you wish to nominate an overseas employee to work in your Australian business.
One such requirement is Labour Market Testing (LMT) if you are nominating an overseas employee through an Temporary Skills Shortgage (TSS) 482 Visa; Employer Nomination Scheme (ENS) 186 Visa; or a Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (RSMS) 187 Visa.
What is Labour Market Testing (LMT)?
Labour Market Testing is a requirement you must satisfy to prove to the Department of Home Affairs that there is a shortage of skills in the local labour market – that is, no suitable Australian employee could be found to add value to your business in a specific role – prompting you to obtain foreign skills so that you may meet your business needs.
The below flowchart will educate you on whether you would be required to obtain LMT:
https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/trav/work/empl/tss-labour-market-testing
The Department of Home Affairs has set out rigid requirements with respect to the type(s) of evidence that can be accepted for LMT before they can accept a TSS Visa Nomination and Application. (The TSS Application process can be learnt about here).
If following the above flowchart you are required to obtain LMT, the following requirements would have to be met by you:
1. The nominated position must have been advertised in Australia for a period of four (4) weeks and no more than four (4) months;
2. The advertisement must have been in English and included the following information:
a. The title (or description) of the nominated position;
b. The specific skills and experience requirements relevant to the nominated position;
c. Your business name (you must be an approved sponsor) or the name of the recruitment agency being used by your business; and
d. The annual earnings of the nominated position if the annual earnings are lower than $142,000 AUD.
3. At least two advertisements were published in one of the following:
a. An national recruitment website which publishes advertisements for employment positions throughout Australia (this has been extended to the Linkedin online recruitment platform only);
b. National print media that are published at least monthly and marketed throughout Australia;
c. National radio programmes that are broadcast or syndicated nationally; or
d. If you are an accredited business sponsor and this information is shown on your website.
If you are seeking overseas skilled workers to add value to your business’ growth, it is essential that you ensure your LMT requirements are met for the nominated position prior to engaging in the TSS Visa application process. Skill level would not exempt LMT from applying for any nominated occupation.
The LMT process can be a complex matter depending on your individual circumstances. You would be best advised to seek the services of a registered and experienced migration agency.
