Stage 1 – Employer lodges an employer nomination.

• there is a genuine need for a paid employee in a business operated by the employer that is actively and lawfully operating in Australia;
• the employer has a satisfactory record of training employees or, in the case of newly established businesses, can demonstrate they have a satisfactory training framework in place;
• the employer has a satisfactory record of compliance with Australian immigration and workplace relations laws;
• the employer does not have any adverse information against it or its officers;
• the nominated position corresponds to an occupation specified on the Employer Nomination Scheme Occupation List (ENSOL);
• the nominated position will provide employment on a full-time basis for at least 3 years;
• the nominated position provides working conditions which are no less favourable than those provided for under the relevant Australian legislation and awards; and
• the nominated position will pay a salary that is at least the specified minimum salary level for the occupation

A decision on the application will be made on the basis of information provided and the legal requirements which apply at the time the visa application is lodged.

DIAC will assess the visa application against one of the following:

• you have been working full-time in Australia in the nominated occupation while holding an eligible temporary residence visa (visa subclasses 457, 418, 422, 428, 421, 444 or 461) for at least the 2 years immediately prior to the lodgement of your visa application, and that you have spent at least the last 12 months employed with your ENS sponsor.
• you have a satisfactory skills assessment issued by an Australian assessing authority relevant to your nominated occupation and you have at least 3 years of post qualification work experience in your nominated occupation. You do not need to have the necessary period of work experience if you can demonstrate that exceptional circumstances apply. Additionally, the skills assessment criterion may be satisfied if you have already been fully assessed by the relevant registration body for any mandatory registration, licensing or professional membership requirement for your nominated occupation.
• you have been nominated for a position with a base salary specified by legislative instrument that is at least equivalent to the salary for a highly paid executive position.

DIAC will also assess your visa application against all of the following:

• you hold, or are eligible to hold, any mandatory registration, license or professional membership which allows you to work independently and without further training. In order to be considered as eligible to hold any mandatory registration, license or professional membership for the nominated occupation, you must already be fully assessed as suitable by the relevant body. This means you must have applied for, and satisfactorily completed, any testing or training required by the relevant body. You should provide written confirmation from the relevant body that you have been fully assessed as suitable.
• the nominated position continues to satisfy the criteria for approval of the appointment and it is still available to you. You will need to provide evidence of a formal letter of appointment or an employment contract that has been signed by the employer and you.
• you are less than 45 years old, unless you can demonstrate exceptional circumstances apply.
• you have vocational English, unless you can demonstrate exceptional circumstances apply.
• you, as well as all migrating family members, satisfy mandatory health and character criteria.

Exceptional circumstances – ENS

There are no forms or questionnaires to complete in order to conduct this assessment as research indicates that most applicants prefer to discuss their migration plans personally with an experienced migration agent rather than rely on a computer generated response.

Contacting us places you under no obligation to utilise our services and you will not be confronted with an aggressive sales approach. You will however speak to an experienced and knowledgeable migration agent trained to ask you relevant questions in order to establish whether you have the potential to be granted a visa for Australia.