Employer visas / Sponsor obligations
Guide · After approval
Your obligations as a sponsor.
Approval as a sponsor comes with obligations that start the day you're approved and can last years after the last sponsored worker leaves. Home Affairs and Fair Work monitor them, and breaches carry real penalties.
What you must do
The obligations, in plain English.
Tell Home Affairs
Notify certain events in writing, through ImmiAccount or sponsor.notifications@abf.gov.au. Most must be reported within 28 days.
Keep the worker in the role
The worker must only work in the nominated occupation, under a written contract. A different occupation needs a new nomination and, for the 482 and 494, a new visa.
Equivalent terms
Pay at least the salary in the approved nomination, on terms no less favourable than an equivalent Australian worker. Applies below AUD 250,000.
Never pass on costs
Sponsorship and nomination charges, recruitment costs and migration agent or lawyer fees for sponsorship and nomination are yours. You can't charge them to the worker.
Pay return travel
If the worker or Home Affairs asks in writing, pay reasonable economy travel home for the worker and sponsored family, within 30 days.
Keep and provide records
Keep pay, duties, contract and notification records in a reproducible format, and provide them when asked.
Recruit fairly
Don't discriminate in recruitment based on citizenship or visa status, and keep records showing you didn't.
Cooperate with inspectors
Give inspectors access to premises, people and documents. This continues for 5 years after the sponsorship ends.
Deadlines
What to report, and when.
| Event | Deadline |
|---|---|
| A sponsored worker's employment ends, or is expected to end | Within 28 days |
| A sponsored worker's duties change | Within 28 days |
| You pay a worker's return travel costs | Within 28 days |
| A new director (companies) or partner (partnerships) is appointed | Within 28 days |
| Your business becomes insolvent, enters administration or stops existing | Within 28 days |
| Changes to legal or trading name, address, structure or contact person | In writing |
Source: Home Affairs, sponsorship obligations for standard business sponsors.
If it goes wrong
Monitoring and sanctions.
Home Affairs can write to you for records, make site visits with or without notice, and share information with the Fair Work Ombudsman and the ATO.
Possible sanctions
- A bar on sponsoring more workers
- Cancellation of your sponsorship approvals
- A compliance notice or an enforceable undertaking
- Infringement notices of up to AUD 79,200 per breach for a company
- Civil penalties of up to AUD 396,000 per breach for a company
- Publication of your business on the sponsor sanctions list
A simple compliance routine
- A 28-day diary entry the moment a sponsored worker resigns, changes role or is promoted
- Payroll checked against the nominated salary every pay review
- Position descriptions that match the nominated occupation
- Contracts, payslips and notifications filed together
- A yearly review of every sponsored worker
How it works
From first call to a working visa.
Free 15-minute call
We confirm the right visa, the occupation and the salary, and flag anything that could hold it up.
Clear terms, then we begin
You receive a written quote and a checklist for the business and the employee.
We prepare everything
Sponsorship, nomination and visa, prepared together where we can. We guide any job advertising that’s needed.
Lodged and looked after
We lodge, deal with Home Affairs until a decision, and explain your obligations.
FAQ
Questions about sponsor obligations.
How long do obligations last?
Most start when you're approved and end 2 years after the sponsorship ends and you no longer employ a sponsored worker. Cooperation with inspectors continues for 5 years.
A sponsored worker resigned. What do we do?
Tell Home Affairs within 28 days and pay return travel costs if asked in writing. The worker then has up to 180 days to find a new sponsor.
Can we promote a sponsored worker?
If the new role is a different occupation, you need a new nomination, and for the 482 and 494 the worker needs a new visa. A pay rise in the same role doesn't.
We've received a request from Home Affairs. Can you help?
Yes. Book a call and send us the letter. Responses have deadlines, so contact us as soon as it arrives.
General information only, checked against Home Affairs guidance on 15 October 2026. Not legal advice. Requirements change, so we check your case against the rules in force when you nominate.
Keep reading
More on employer visas.
Hiring from overseas?
Book a free 15-minute discovery call to check basic eligibility and whether we're the right fit. It isn't legal advice, and depending on your circumstances you may still need a consultation. For legal advice now, book a 30-minute consultation ($330). Or call 1300 079 743.