• work in Australia for up to 2 years for your sponsor or work in Australia for up to 4 years if an International Trade Obligation (ITO) applies, or up to 5 years if you are a Hong Kong passport holder
• study (you won’t receive government assistance)
• travel to and from Australia as many times as you want while the visa is valid
• if eligible, apply for permanent residence.

For this stream of the visa, you must be sponsored to work in an occupation listed on the Short term Skilled Occupation List (STSOL).Your visa will come with conditions attached to it. To see your conditions refer to your visa grant letter or use VEVO.

The visa costs AUD1,455 for the main applicant and for each dependant 18 years and over.It costs AUD365.00 for each dependant under 18 years old.You will have to pay other costs for English language tests, health checks, police certificates and biometrics.To work out what your visa will cost use the Visa Pricing EstimatorThe estimator does not take into account the other costs.

This is a temporary visa. You can stay in Australia for the period of time your employer nominates you for.  This will be up to:

• 2 years in most cases
• 4 years if an ITO applies. The maximum length will depend on the actual ITO relevant to your circumstances
• 5 years if you are a Hong Kong passport holder

For further information on recent changes regarding Hong Kong or British National Offshore (BNO) passport holders read Visa options for Hong Kong - update.Broadly, an ITO applies if:

• you are an intra-corporate transferee:
  • your company is based in a World Trade Organization (WTO) Member country or territory
  • you are an Executive or Senior Manager occupation
  • you are from a WTO Member country or territory,or
• you are a citizen/national/permanent resident of the United Kingdom and an intra-corporate transferee, an independent executive or contractual service supplier, or
• you are a citizen/national of China and an intra-corporate transferee, an independent executive or contractual service supplier, or
• you are an intra-corporate transferee from a Singapore based company and a Singapore citizen/permanent resident, or
• you are an intra-corporate transferee from a Thailand based company and a Thai citizen/national, or
• your Thailand based business wants to start a business in Australia:
  • you are an Executive or Senior Manager occupation
  • you are a Thai citizen/national
• you are a contractual service supplier and you are a Thai citizen/national.

Note: the above ITO exemptions do not apply for nominations lodged under a labour agreement and the Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 494).For more information on ITOs, see:

• Trade and investments - Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT)
• The Australian-United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement (A-UKFTA) on the DFAT website.

The A-UKFTA entered into force on 31 May 2023.The mobility provisions of the A-UKFTA are in:

• Chapter 11 Temporary Entry for Business Persons | Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and
• Annex IV Specific Commitments on Temporary Entry for VBusiness Persons - Schedule of Australia | Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

If your visa is expiring and you want to stay in Australia to work for your existing employer:

• your employer will need to submit a new nomination
• you must apply for a new visa.

Your employer may be able to sponsor you for permanent residence through the:

• Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) or
• Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme (subclass 187).

You might be eligible for other skilled work visas. Use our visa finder to find out options for work.Current temporary skilled visa holders from Hong Kong will be eligible for an extension of 5 years (from 9 July 2020) in addition to the time they’ve already been in Australia.Current and future temporary skilled visa holders from Hong Kong will also have a pathway to permanent residency after 5 years.

You can include other family members (called 'secondary applicants') in your visa application. The family members you can add will depend on whether you currently hold a subclass 457 or TSS visa.

You have not previously held a subclass 457 or TSS visa

If you have not previously held a subclass 457 or TSS visa, the secondary applicants you can include in your visa application are those who are members of the family unit.

You currently hold a subclass 457 or TSS visa

If you currently hold a subclass 457 or TSS visa and you are applying for a subsequent subclass TSS visa, the secondary applicants who can be included in your application are::

• one of the members of the family unit or
• a person who currently holds a subclass 457 or TSS visa that was granted on the basis that they were a member of the family unit at the time, and is currently one of the following:
  • your spouse or de facto partner
  • your or your spouse's or de facto partner's child or step-child who is not engaged, married or in a de facto relationship, and is:
    • younger than 23
    • aged 23 or older and fully or mostly reliant on you or your partner because they cannot work, due to a partial or total physical or mental disability
    • is a dependent child of your or your spouse or de facto partner's child or step-child

To be granted the visa, secondary applicants must be included in the main applicant's nomination, or provide written evidence that the sponsor who nominated the main applicant agrees that the secondary applicant can be a secondary sponsored person.Secondary applicants who apply for the visa must meet our health and character requirements.You can’t add family members to your visa application after it has been submitted.If you have submitted your visa application and it is being processed by the Department, family members that were not included in your visa application can lodge a subsequent entrant application.Alternatively, if we have granted you a visa, family members may apply to join you in Australia later as a subsequent entrant.

You can be in or outside Australia when you apply for this visa, but not in immigration clearance.If you are applying in Australia, you must hold:

• a substantive visa, or
• a Bridging visa A, Bridging visa B or Bridging visa C

For an indication of processing times for this visa, use the visa processing time guide tool. This will show the processing times for recently decided applications. It is a guide only and not specific to your application.We assess applications on a case-by-case basis, and actual processing times can vary due to individual circumstances including:

• whether you have lodged a complete application, including all necessary supporting documents
• how quickly you respond to any requests for additional information
• how long it takes to perform required checks on the supporting information provided
• how long it takes to receive additional information from external agencies, particularly in relation to health, character, and national security requirements

We might ask for more information. We are not obligated to request further information or documents and can make a decision on the information provided. It is your responsibility to ensure all relevant supporting/evidentiary documentation is attached to your application.

You and your family must meet all visa conditions and obey Australian laws.You must begin your employment within 90 days of:

• entering Australia, if you are outside Australia when grant the visa
• the visa grant date, if you are in Australia when we grant the visa

See which visa conditions might be attached to this visa.

You can travel outside Australia and return as many times as you want while the visa is valid.The time you spend outside Australia does not extend the visa.

We will digitally link your visa to your passport. You will not get a label in your passport.If we grant you a visa, we will send you a grant notification letter containing the visa grant number. You can use this number to check your visa details and conditions through VEVO.

Conditions attached to this visa include that you work in Australia only in the occupation you were nominated for and only for your nominating business or in some circumstances, an associated entity of the business.Your family can also live, study and work in Australia.Learn more about conditions on this visa.