Employer Nomination Scheme Visa (Subclass 186)
Reviewed 4 Oct 2026
What is the Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) visa?
The Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) is the permanent visa an Australian employer uses to keep a skilled worker for good. The employer lodges a nomination (its sponsorship paperwork for the job) and the worker lodges the visa application.
A grant gives permanent residence from day one: no limit on how long you can stay, Medicare, and a path to citizenship.
Most people reach the 186 after two years on a 482 visa. Others qualify directly with a skills assessment and three years’ experience. The government charges are $540 for the nomination, a $3,000 or $5,000 training levy paid by the employer, and $6,140 for the main visa applicant.
The nomination and the visa are two separate applications, decided on their own criteria. In our experience the problems sit on the employer’s side: pay that falls below $79,423 or the market rate for the job, or a position that does not look full-time and ongoing. Get the nomination right before the worker pays a cent.
Which 186 stream fits your situation?
There are three ways in. The stream decides what evidence you need, so settle it first.
- Temporary Residence Transition (TRT) — for workers already on a 482 visa (or the old 457) who have worked full-time for their sponsor in their nominated occupation for two of the last three years. No skills assessment and no occupation-list test.
- Direct Entry (DE) — for workers who cannot yet meet the two-year rule. You need an occupation on the Core Skills Occupation List, a positive skills assessment issued in the last three years, and at least three years’ experience in the occupation.
- Labour Agreement — for employers with a labour agreement with the Commonwealth. The agreement sets the rules, including any concessions on age, English or salary.
| TRT | Direct Entry | Labour Agreement | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who it suits | 482 or 457 holders with 2 years’ full-time work for the sponsor | Workers with a skills assessment and 3 years’ experience | Workers under an employer’s labour agreement |
| Skills assessment | Not required | Required, issued in the last 3 years (limited exemptions) | As the agreement says |
| Occupation list | No list test; the occupation is the one on your 482 | Core Skills Occupation List | As the agreement says |
| Half of applications decided within | 21 months | 21 months | 50 days |
| 9 in 10 decided within | 25 months | 25 months | 12 months |
Processing figures: Home Affairs processing tool, checked 4 October 2026 (tool updated 29 September 2026).
Our 186 visa requirements guide walks through each stream’s rules, including how the two-year rule counts time across more than one employer. If you are still on a 482 and planning ahead, the 482 to permanent residency pathway explains the timing.
What does the employer nomination have to show?
The nomination is the employer’s application and it carries most of the risk. Home Affairs looks for four things:
- A real, operating business — actively and lawfully operating in Australia.
- A genuine, full-time position — one that is expected to exist for at least two years. The duties must match the nominated occupation.
- Pay that clears two floors — the Core Skills Income Threshold of $79,423 (for every 186 nomination lodged since 7 December 2024) and the annual market salary rate, meaning what an Australian worker would be paid for the same job. The higher of the two applies.
- The charges paid in full — the $540 nomination fee and the Skilling Australians Fund levy: $3,000 for a business with turnover under $10 million, $5,000 otherwise. The employer cannot recover these from the worker.
A 186 nomination does not require labour market testing (advertising the role before nominating), which a 482 nomination generally does. The employer also does not need to hold standard business sponsorship for a 186; that approval belongs to the 482 program. The genuine-position test still applies in full.
Nominations sit outside the Department’s published processing order. Ministerial Directions 121 and 122 set the queue for visa applications only.
What does the worker have to show?
- Age — under 45 when you apply. Exemptions exist for some academics, scientists, regional medical practitioners and high earners; the requirements guide lists all five.
- English — Competent English: IELTS 6.0 in each component or an equivalent score. Passport holders from the UK, USA, Canada, New Zealand and Ireland are exempt from testing.
- Health and character — for you and every family member on the application, including those not travelling.
- The stream rules — the two-year work history for TRT, or the skills assessment and three years’ experience for Direct Entry.
- Timing — the visa application must be lodged with the nomination or within six months of its approval. You can be in or outside Australia when you apply and when the visa is decided.
Eligibility by stream
Open the stream that applies to you. The conditions below are the ones that decide most 186 cases; the requirements guide has the exceptions.
Direct Entry stream
Your occupation must be on the Core Skills Occupation List, and you need a positive skills assessment from the assessing authority for that occupation, issued within the three years before you apply. You also need at least three years of full-time work experience in the occupation.
Academics nominated by a university, scientists nominated by an Australian government scientific agency, and some 444 or 461 visa holders with two years’ service with the nominating employer are exempt from the skills assessment.
Temporary Residence Transition stream
You must hold a 482 visa (any stream), a 457 visa, or a bridging visa linked to one of them, and have a nomination from your current employer, lodged with your application or approved within the six months before you apply.
The work history is the core test: two years of full-time work in Australia, in your nominated occupation, while holding a 457 or 482, within the three years before you apply. Time across more than one sponsor can count; work overseas and part-time work generally do not.
There is no skills assessment and no occupation-list test in this stream.
Labour Agreement stream
Your employer must have a current labour agreement with the Commonwealth that covers your occupation, and the nomination must be made under it. The agreement may vary the standard age, English and salary rules. Each agreement is different, so the terms of the agreement are the eligibility rules.
How long does a 186 visa take?
Half of Direct Entry applications and half of TRT applications are being decided within 21 months, with 9 in 10 decided within 25 months (Home Affairs processing tool, updated 29 September 2026). Labour Agreement applications are quicker: 50 days for half, 12 months for 9 in 10.
Those figures describe decided files. For files still waiting, the Department publishes the lodgement dates it is currently allocating: as at 4 October 2026, applications lodged in July 2025 in the priority sectors, March 2025 for other applicants in Australia and July 2024 for other applicants outside Australia.
Applications in construction, healthcare, teaching and the other priority sectors are taken first under Direction 122.
Our 186 visa processing time guide carries the live table and what keeps a file out of the slow lane.
Requirements for every stream
Whichever stream you use, these apply.
Age, English, health and character
You must usually be under 45 when you apply, have Competent English, meet the health and character requirements, and hold any licence or registration your occupation requires in Australia.
The nomination and the timing
Your employer’s nomination must be approved and must meet the $79,423 Core Skills Income Threshold and the annual market salary rate. The visa application is lodged with the nomination or within six months of its approval.
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★★★★★ 4.9How does the 186 application work?
- Confirm the stream and the salary. Check which stream you fit, and that the offered salary clears both $79,423 and the market rate. This step decides everything after it.
- The employer lodges the nomination. Business evidence, the position description, the salary evidence, the $540 fee and the training levy.
- The worker lodges the visa. At the same time as the nomination or within six months of its approval, with skills assessment and experience evidence (Direct Entry) or the work history (TRT), plus English, health and character.
- Home Affairs decides both. The nomination is assessed on its own criteria. If it is refused or withdrawn before the visa decision, the visa cannot be granted unless a new nomination is lodged.
- Grant. Permanent residence takes effect on grant, in or outside Australia. The travel facility lasts five years; after that a Resident Return Visa is needed to re-enter as a permanent resident.
Step 1: the employer nomination
The employer lodges the nomination online with evidence that the business is actively and lawfully operating, a position description that matches the nominated occupation, evidence that the role is full-time and expected to last at least two years, and evidence that the pay meets the $79,423 threshold and the market rate. The $540 fee and the Skilling Australians Fund levy are paid at lodgement.
Step 2: the visa application
The worker lodges the visa application at the same time as the nomination or within six months of its approval. Direct Entry applicants attach the skills assessment and three years of experience evidence; TRT applicants attach the two-year work history with their sponsor. Every applicant provides English evidence, health examinations and police certificates. The visa can be granted while you are in or outside Australia.
How much does the Employer Nomination Scheme visa cost in 2026?
| Charge | Amount | Who pays |
|---|---|---|
| Nomination fee | $540 | Employer |
| Skilling Australians Fund levy | $3,000 (turnover under $10 million) or $5,000 | Employer |
| Visa: main applicant | $6,140 | Worker or employer |
| Visa: each additional applicant 18 or over | $3,070 | Worker or employer |
| Visa: each additional applicant under 18 | $1,535 | Worker or employer |
| Second instalment, applicant 18+ without functional English | $9,800 main applicant / $4,890 each secondary applicant | Worker or employer |
Source: Home Affairs current visa pricing, checked 28 September 2026.
The law fixes the employer’s side: nomination fee and levy cannot be passed to the worker. Who pays the visa charge is up to the parties. Every current charge and threshold, with the indexation history, is on our visa fees and thresholds reference. Our professional fee for nomination and visa together is AUD 6,000 plus GST. See our migration agent fees.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between the 482 and 186 visas?
The 482 (Skills in Demand) visa is temporary, granted for up to four years, and tied to the sponsoring employer. The 186 is permanent.
Most workers use the 482 first and move to the 186 through the Temporary Residence Transition stream after two years of full-time work with their sponsor. Direct Entry allows a 186 without a 482 first, if you have a skills assessment and three years’ experience.
Does a 186 nomination need labour market testing?
No. Labour market testing (advertising the position before nominating) applies to 482 and 494 nominations, not to the 186. The employer still has to show the position is genuine, full-time and expected to last at least two years, and that the pay meets the $79,423 threshold and the market rate.
Can I apply for the 186 visa from outside Australia?
Yes. You can be in or outside Australia when you apply and when the visa is decided. Under Direction 122, outside the priority sectors, applications lodged in Australia are placed ahead of those lodged from overseas, so where you are when you lodge affects your place in the queue.
What happens if my employer withdraws the nomination?
The visa cannot be granted without an approved nomination. If the employer withdraws before a decision, you need another employer to lodge and have approved a new nomination, or the visa application will be refused. If you are in Australia on a bridging visa, get advice on your status straight away.
Can I change employer after the 186 visa is granted?
The 186 is a permanent visa with no work condition tying you to the sponsor. The Department does expect the position to be genuine and ongoing at the time of grant, and the employer commits to a role expected to last at least two years.
Leaving shortly after grant does not cancel the visa by itself. A nomination made with no intention of the role continuing can be treated as not genuine, and that is where the risk sits.
Can I include my family in a 186 application?
Yes. Your partner and dependent children can be included as secondary applicants and receive permanent residence with you. Each additional applicant pays $3,070 (18 or over) or $1,535 (under 18), and each must meet health and character requirements.
How long does employer nomination approval take?
Home Affairs does not publish a separate processing time for 186 nominations, and nominations are not covered by the processing directions that order visa applications. A complete nomination with clear salary and position evidence is the single biggest factor in how quickly it moves; the visa application cannot be granted until the nomination is approved.
How much does a 186 visa cost with an agent?
Our fee for a 186 is AUD 6,000 plus GST for nomination and visa together, in either the Temporary Residence Transition or Direct Entry stream. That is AUD 500 less than the two stages individually.
If the Direct Entry stream needs a skills assessment, we charge from AUD 1,500 plus GST, and the assessing authority’s fee is paid separately. Government charges are also separate.
Can I engage you for just one stage, such as nomination only?
Yes. Each stage can be engaged on its own: nomination from AUD 3,000 and visa from AUD 3,500, both plus GST. The package price applies only when both stages are taken together.
