Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482)
The Skills in Demand visa is a temporary, employer-sponsored visa for a position an employer cannot find a suitably skilled Australian to fill. Subclass 482 is now this visa: the Department states it replaced the Temporary Skill Shortage visa on 7 December 2024.
It sets out, concisely, what the Department states about this visa and where each point comes from. It is an overview, not the law: it names requirements rather than explaining how to satisfy them, and it does not tell you whether you qualify — that depends on your circumstances, and it is what an appointment is for.
What the official page says
Each row below links the official page it comes from.
- Official title — Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482)
- How the Department describes it — A temporary visa that lets an employer sponsor a suitably skilled worker to fill a position they cannot find a suitably skilled Australian to fill.
- What the main page lists — Nomination by an approved sponsor, the right skills for the position, and an English requirement.
What the Core Skills stream adds
The Core Skills stream page states more than the main page does. It is set out here because it was read; it is NOT a description of every Skills in Demand stream, and nothing below should be read across to a stream it does not name.
- Stay — Currently up to four years, and up to five years for eligible Hong Kong passport holders. A current figure, not a permanent feature of the visa.
- Work experience — At least one year of relevant work experience.
- The occupation list — The stream works from the Core Skills Occupation List. Whether a particular occupation is on it is checked against the Department's current list, not against this page.
- Salary — The stream works with the market salary rate for the position and with an income threshold. BOTH ARE SET BY THE DEPARTMENT AND BOTH CHANGE, so neither figure appears here.
- Working for the sponsor — The stream carries a rule about working for the sponsoring employer, which the Department states is subject to exemptions. The exemptions are on the official page.
The subclass continued; the named visa changed
This is the distinction most easily got wrong on 482. The Department’s repealed pages state, in their own words: “On December 7 2024, the Skills in Demand (SID) visa replaced the Temporary Skills Shortage (TSS) visa.” THE SUBCLASS NUMBER 482 CONTINUES — it is not a repealed subclass. What was repealed is the named TSS visa and its streams, each with its own repealed-visa page. The same pages state that applications and nominations lodged before that date are processed under the requirements in force when they were lodged, and that an approved pre-7-December TSS nomination with no TSS application lodged against it is treated as a Skills in Demand nomination. NOTHING FROM THE OLD TSS REQUIREMENTS IS CARRIED ONTO THIS PAGE: an old condition presented as a current one would be worse than no page at all.
Where the requirements and the application are published
- Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482) — Department of Home Affairs — The page that governs: its requirements, its streams, its conditions, its cost and its Apply link.
- Temporary Skill Shortage visa (subclass 482) — repealed, short-term stream — A repealed-visa notice, cited for the replacement statement and the treatment of earlier lodgements. NOT for its requirements.
- Temporary Skill Shortage visa (subclass 482) — repealed, medium-term stream — A repealed-visa notice, cited for the replacement statement and the treatment of earlier lodgements. NOT for its requirements.
- Temporary Skill Shortage visa (subclass 482) — repealed, labour-agreement stream — A repealed-visa notice, cited for the replacement statement and the treatment of earlier lodgements. NOT for its requirements.
- Visa Pricing Estimator — The Department's own tool for what an application costs, including family members. This page states no figure.
- Global visa processing times — A live tool, linked by the official skilled pages themselves. Nothing is quoted from it here: it shows recently decided applications, is a guide only, and is not specific to your application.
- Who can help with your application — Worth reading before you pay anybody for immigration assistance.
What to have ready
Preparation examples, not a checklist of requirements. The official page sets out what is actually required, and what a particular application needs depends on the circumstances.
- The employer's sponsorship position — whether they are an approved sponsor, and since when
- The position itself, and the occupation it would be nominated under
- Whether that occupation is on the Department's current Core Skills Occupation List
- Evidence of at least a year of relevant work experience, with dates and employers
- Your passport, and passports for anyone you would include in an application
- Your qualifications and skills evidence
- Any English language test result you hold, with its date and test type
- The date any earlier nomination or application was lodged — before or after 7 December 2024
- Any previous visa refusal or cancellation, with its reference number
Not any more. The Department states that on 7 December 2024 the Skills in Demand visa replaced the Temporary Skill Shortage visa. The subclass number 482 continues and is not repealed; the named TSS visa and its streams are. The repealed pages state that applications and nominations lodged before that date are processed under the requirements in force when they were lodged, and that an approved pre-7-December TSS nomination with no TSS application lodged against it is treated as a Skills in Demand nomination. So the lodgement date is worth establishing before anything else. TSS requirements are not repeated on this page and should not be assumed to carry over. Official repealed TSS 482 page — Department of Home Affairs
Nomination by an approved sponsor, the right skills for the position, and an English requirement. The position itself has to be one the employer cannot find a suitably skilled Australian to fill. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/skills-in-demand-visa-subclass-482
At least one year of relevant work experience, an occupation drawn from the Core Skills Occupation List, and a salary that engages the market salary rate and an income threshold. It gives the current stay as up to four years, and up to five years for eligible Hong Kong passport holders. No salary figure or threshold amount is reproduced here: the Department sets both and both change. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/skills-in-demand-visa-subclass-482
The Core Skills stream carries a rule about working for the sponsor, and the Department states it is subject to exemptions. The exemptions are set out on the official page and are not summarised here, because a partial list of exemptions is the kind of thing somebody relies on. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/skills-in-demand-visa-subclass-482
No. Only the Core Skills stream is described, because that is the stream page that was read. The main official page is where the streams are set out, and nothing on this page should be read across to a stream it does not name. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/skills-in-demand-visa-subclass-482
No estimate is given here. The Department publishes a global visa processing times guide, linked below as a live tool. In its own words it shows the processing times for recently decided applications, it is a guide only, and it is not specific to your application. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-processing-times/global-visa-processing-times
Talk to somebody about your own situation
This page explains how the visa is structured and what to prepare. What applies to you depends on your circumstances.
General information about Australian visa processes, not legal advice about your situation. Legal services are provided by Jameson Law.