Australia Employer Nomination

Summary

The Employer Nomination Scheme (Subclass 186) is Australia's employer-sponsored permanent-residency visa. It grants permanent residence (PR) from day one, with no provisional stage. The visa has three streams:

• Temporary Residence Transition (TRT) — for Subclass 482 (or legacy 457) holders who have completed at least 2 years of eligible sponsored work. This is the dominant pathway in practice.
• Direct Entry (DE) — for applicants without a prior 482 who are being nominated directly for PR. This route is tighter: under 45, eligible occupation, usually 3+ years of relevant experience, and a formal skills assessment.
• Labour Agreement — for roles covered by an employer's negotiated labour agreement with the government.

For sponsored workers already on a 482, TRT is usually the smoother route because the occupation and skills history has already been tested through the temporary visa process.

Eligibility

Direct Entry (DE)

• Age. Under 45 at the time of application.
• Nomination from an Australian employer for a role on the eligible occupation list for the Direct Entry stream.
• Skills assessment from the designated assessing authority for your occupation.
• Experience. At least 3 years of full-time, relevant work in the nominated occupation.
• English. Competent English (IELTS 6.0 in each skill, or equivalent).
• Health and character. Standard medicals and police checks.

Temporary Residence Transition (TRT)

• Current Subclass 482 (or 457) visa holder.
• At least 2 years of eligible sponsored work in the nominated occupation during the last 3 years.
• Skills assessment. Usually not required again for TRT.
• Age and English. Most applicants must still be under 45 and have Competent English, unless an exemption applies.

Labour Agreement

• Employer has a government-negotiated labour agreement covering the role.
• Meet the specific agreement's terms — which vary widely by industry.

Duration, Renewal, and Long-Term Path

• Duration: Permanent residence from the date the visa is granted.
• Renewal: Can support Australian citizenship after residence and presence rules are met.

What This Route Allows

If approved, the Subclass 186 visa grants Australian permanent residence. It lets you live, work, and study in Australia and can include eligible family members.

Because this is an employer-nominated visa, the employer's nomination and the role's eligibility are central to the application.

What This Route Is Not

This is not a self-sponsored skilled visa. You need an Australian employer willing and able to nominate you.

It is also not a way to bypass skills, English, age, occupation, or stream-specific rules.

Next Steps

1. Confirm your stream. If you've completed 2+ years of eligible sponsored work, TRT may be the cleanest route. Otherwise you're likely looking at Direct Entry or a labour agreement.
2. Verify occupation and skills assessment. DE applicants need a positive assessment in hand before lodging.
3. Sit an English test if required.
4. Employer lodges the nomination. They fill out a business case describing the role, market salary, and why they need a foreign hire.
5. Lodge the visa application within the required period after nomination.
6. Provide supporting documents — identity, passport, evidence of experience, skills assessment, English results, medicals, police checks from every country lived in 12+ months since 16.
7. Attend biometrics and any requested follow-up interviews.
8. If granted, confirm the visa conditions and the permanent-residence evidence for you and any family members.

Sources

• Department of Home Affairs — Subclass 186 ENS — official page.
• Direct Entry stream
• Temporary Residence Transition stream
• Skilled occupation list — combined occupation and assessing-authority lookup.