Subclass 482 — Skills in Demand visa

Eligibility snapshot

In general terms: a nominating employer approved as a sponsor, an occupation on the applicable list for the stream, salary at or above the published threshold for that stream, relevant skills and experience, English, and health and character requirements. The employer side (sponsorship and nomination) is its own process with its own fees. General information only.

Frequently asked questions

Health examinations and character checks

Most people applying for an Australian visa are asked to meet a health requirement before a decision is made. Applicants are generally required to be free from conditions that would be a significant cost to Australia's health and community services or that would limit other people's access to services in short supply. Depending on the visa and the person's circumstances, one or more health examinations may be requested, and the results are assessed by a Medical Officer of the Commonwealth. In some cases family members included in an application are also asked to complete examinations. Applicants must also satisfy character requirements, which are set out in the Migration Act 1958. As part of an application, a person is generally expected to declare any criminal charges or convictions in any country, answer all questions truthfully, and provide the information requested. The Department may ask for a police certificate (sometimes called a penal clearance certificate) from each country a person has lived in. This is usually requested where an applicant is over a certain age and has spent 12 months or more in a country during the previous 10 years. Australian police certificates are obtained through an Australian Federal Police National Police Check rather than a state or territory check. Police certificates are generally treated as valid for 12 months from their issue date. Additional documents, such as a Form 80 or a military service certificate, are sometimes requested for character assessment.

Health insurance and Medicare

Some Australian visas require applicants to show they have adequate arrangements for health insurance while they are in Australia. According to the Australian Government's Private Health website, the subclass 482 is among the working visas that can carry condition 8501 (health cover), meaning holders are generally expected to maintain acceptable health insurance for the duration of their stay. Most temporary visa holders do not have access to Medicare, so they are usually responsible for the full cost of any hospital, medical, and related care they receive in Australia. For this reason the Department strongly encourages temporary entrants to arrange private health insurance, commonly through an Overseas Visitors Health Cover (OVHC) product. As a guide to the minimum level of cover, the Department indicates that a policy's benefit limit should generally be no less than AUD1,000,000 per person each year, alongside cover for hospital treatment, prostheses, pharmaceuticals, medical services, and ambulance transport. Policies can still include excesses, co-payments, and waiting periods, and some treatments may not be covered, so the fine print is worth checking. People from countries that have a Reciprocal Health Care Agreement with Australia may be able to access some care under Medicare, but this does not remove the value of adequate private cover. The Australian Government's privatehealth.gov.au site lets people compare registered insurers and policies.

Visa application charge and other costs

The Visa Application Charge is the amount the Australian Government charges to lodge this visa application. On the Department's official visa page, the charge for the main applicant is currently shown as starting from AUD4,015. This figure is indexed and can change, and the amount payable generally depends on the date the Department receives the application. Additional charges usually apply for family members included in the same application, and a second instalment of the charge is payable for some applicants. The Department's Visa Pricing Estimator is the tool it points to for an indicative figure, and it notes that the estimator does not include the second instalment or other costs. Beyond the government charge, applicants commonly pay separately for things such as health examinations, police certificates, English language testing, and skills assessments where these are required. These are distinct expenses rather than part of the Visa Application Charge. The government Visa Application Charge is separate from any fee charged by an independent service or platform for assistance. Fees for help preparing or reviewing an application are not the same as the charge paid to the Department, and are always shown separately here.

Visa length, travel, and processing

Under the Skills in Demand (subclass 482) visa, the visa is usually granted for a stay of up to 4 years. Hong Kong passport holders may be granted a stay of up to 5 years. For family members applying later as subsequent entrants, the visa generally runs for as long as it remains valid. While the visa is valid, holders can typically travel to and from Australia as many times as they wish. Where eligibility is met, this visa can also form part of a pathway toward permanent residence. The Department does not publish a single fixed processing time for this visa. Instead it directs people to its visa processing time guide tool, which reflects how long recently decided applications have taken. The Department describes this as a guide only and not specific to any individual application. Because both charges and processing indications are updated from time to time, checking the official pages close to when an application is prepared is the most reliable approach.

Conditions that may be attached to this visa

The Department of Home Affairs lists a defined set of conditions that can be attached to a Skills in Demand (subclass 482) visa. The exact conditions that apply to any particular grant are shown on the visa grant letter and can be checked online through VEVO. The conditions the Department identifies for this visa are 8303, 8501 and 8607. Condition 8607 is the main work condition. In general terms it requires the holder to work only in the occupation they were nominated for, and to work only for their approved sponsor or an associated entity unless an exemption applies. Holders are generally expected to begin their employment within 90 days of arriving in Australia, or within 90 days of the grant date if the visa was granted onshore, and to tell the Department if their employer or employment situation changes. Condition 8501 requires the holder to maintain adequate health insurance for the period they are in Australia. Condition 8303 requires the holder not to become involved in activities that are disruptive to, or that involve violence threatening harm to, the Australian community or a group within it. Conditions generally apply to the primary holder and, where relevant, to accompanying family members, who must also obey Australian laws. Not complying with a visa condition can have consequences for the visa, so holders are generally advised to check their own grant letter or VEVO for the conditions that apply to them. This is general information only and is not immigration assistance or legal advice.

Eligibility in detail: streams and what decision-makers assess

This is an employer-sponsored temporary work visa with three streams, Core Skills, Specialist Skills and Labour Agreement, together with a subsequent-entrant pathway for family members joining a primary subclass 457 or 482 holder. Across all streams an applicant is generally nominated for a skilled position by an approved sponsor, needs the right skills to do the job, and must meet the relevant English language requirements unless an exemption applies. There is no points test for this visa. In the Core Skills stream, applicants are generally nominated in an occupation on the Core Skills Occupation List (CSOL), and are generally paid at least the Annual Market Salary Rate for the role and no less than the Core Skills Income Threshold. From 1 July 2026 the Core Skills Income Threshold is AUD 79,423. In the Specialist Skills stream, the nominated occupation is generally an ANZSCO occupation in Major Groups 1, 2, 4, 5 or 6, with a salary that meets the Specialist Skills Income Threshold. From 1 July 2026 the Specialist Skills Income Threshold is AUD 146,576. The Labour Agreement stream applies where the sponsoring employer has a labour agreement in effect with the Australian Government. Common factors decision-makers generally look at include at least one year of relevant work experience in the nominated occupation or a related field, a relevant skills assessment where one is required for the occupation, an approved sponsorship and nomination, and the health and character requirements, which apply to the applicant and to included family members. The income thresholds are indexed each year, so the figures change over time, and the occupation lists are updated by the Department. The requirements are described here in general terms and are not an assessment of any individual person's circumstances. This is general information only and is not immigration assistance or legal advice.

Family members and what the visa allows after grant

An applicant can generally include members of their family unit as secondary applicants. For this visa, the Department describes family members as generally including the applicant's partner, the applicant's or partner's dependent child or stepchild, and the dependent child or stepchild of such a child. Family members are generally included at the time the application is lodged. The Department states that family members cannot be added to an application after it has been submitted; where the application is still being processed, or after a visa has been granted, those family members generally apply separately through the subsequent-entrant pathway. Family members who are outside Australia and want to join a primary subclass 457 or 482 holder later also generally use that subsequent-entrant pathway. After grant, the visa generally allows the holder to work in Australia for their sponsor for up to four years, or up to five years for Hong Kong passport holders; to study (without government assistance); and to travel to and from Australia as many times as they wish while the visa is valid. The Department notes that visa holders and any family members who apply are personally liable for their own healthcare costs while in Australia and are generally expected to maintain adequate health cover for their intended period of stay, consistent with the health-insurance condition that can attach to this visa. Some countries have reciprocal health care arrangements with Australia, and the Department directs people to Services Australia for details. Holders and their family must meet all visa conditions and obey Australian laws, begin employment within the required time, and keep the Department informed of changes such as their address, passport, employer, employment status or relationship. A holder may, if eligible, apply for permanent residence. The Department identifies employer-sponsored permanent residence through the Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) as one possible pathway. Eligibility for any permanent visa is assessed separately. This is general information only and is not immigration assistance or legal advice.

Why applications are refused and review at the Tribunal

Because this visa is built around clearly defined criteria, applications of this type are commonly refused when one of those criteria is not met. Factual examples drawn from the requirements generally include the nomination or sponsorship not being approved, the occupation not being on the relevant list, the salary not meeting the market rate or the applicable income threshold, a required skills assessment not being met, English language requirements not being met, or the health or character requirements not being satisfied. Incorrect or incomplete information provided in support of an application can also affect the outcome. If a decision is unfavourable, merits review may be available at the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART), which can review certain migration decisions made under Part 5 of the Migration Act 1958, including visa refusals and cancellations, nomination refusals, and sponsorship decisions. Depending on the type of decision, the party able to apply for review may be the visa applicant or the sponsoring business. Strict time limits apply to lodging a review application, and an application fee is generally payable. For migration decisions under Part 5, the ART lists an application fee of AUD 3,727, with a 50 percent reduced fee available in cases of financial hardship. For these decisions the ART indicates it generally refunds 50 percent of the fee paid if the decision under review is set aside or varied, or the matter is remitted to the Department of Home Affairs, and refunds the fee if the application is found to be invalid. Merits review is a neutral process that looks again at the decision, and it is not a prediction of any particular outcome. The current fees, time limits and review rights are published by the ART and should be checked directly. This is general information only and is not immigration assistance or legal advice.

Costs: the government charges in detail

The main government cost is the Visa Application Charge, set by the Department of Home Affairs. For the Skills in Demand (subclass 482) visa, the base application charge for the main applicant is AUD 4,015, which is the same across the Core Skills, Specialist Skills and Labour Agreement streams. Additional applicant charges apply for each family member included in the same application. These are generally AUD 4,015 for each additional applicant aged 18 and over, and AUD 1,005 for each additional applicant aged under 18. A subsequent temporary application charge of AUD 700 per person can also apply, based on each person's individual visa history. A second instalment of the Visa Application Charge may apply in some cases and, where required, is payable after the application is made but before the visa can be granted. It can be nil, and it is not charged if the application is refused or withdrawn. Applicants are generally advised to check the current second-instalment amount before applying. The Visa Application Charge is, in most cases, not refunded once a valid application has been made, even if it is later refused or withdrawn; only limited refund circumstances apply. If charges are paid by card or PayPal a payment surcharge applies. The Department's current surcharge rates are 1.40 percent for Visa, Mastercard, American Express and JCB, 1.01 percent for PayPal, and 1.90 percent for UnionPay. Applicants also generally pay separate third-party costs that are not part of the Visa Application Charge, such as health examinations, police or character certificates, biometrics, English language tests and, where required, a skills assessment. These are paid to the relevant providers. All of the above are government or third-party costs. They are separate from, and additional to, any service or professional fee that a migration agent, lawyer or platform may charge for assistance, and such service fees are never part of the government Visa Application Charge. This is general information only and is not immigration assistance or legal advice.