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494 Nomination
Nominate skilled workers for employer-sponsored roles in regional Australia under the Subclass 494 visa
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494 Nomination
Regional workforce solution:
Nominate a skilled worker to fill a genuine role in a designated regional area where you cannot source an appropriately skilled Australian worker.
Nomination is role-first:
Your nomination must clearly define the position (occupation, duties, location, hours, and employment terms) and demonstrate the business need for the role in the regional labour market.
Two nomination pathways:
Nominate through the Employer Sponsored stream (standard sponsorship) or the Labour Agreement stream (where you hold an approved labour agreement with agreed terms).
Salary and threshold alignment:
The nominated role must meet market salary expectations and the applicable skilled visa income threshold requirements, which are indexed annually, plus any labour-agreement-specific wage settings.
Sponsor eligibility first:
You must be an eligible business and hold (or have applied for) the sponsorship approval required from the department.
Levy and cost responsibility:
You must pay the Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) levy at nomination lodgement, and sponsorship/nomination-related costs must be borne by the employer.
Compliance through the lifecycle:
Ongoing sponsor obligations (record keeping, notifying changes, cooperation with the Department, and lawful employment practices) are essential to protect the nomination outcome and the worker’s longer-term pathway planning.
494 Nomination
Employer Sponsored stream: sponsor must be (or have applied to become) a Standard Business Sponsor.Labour Agreement stream: sponsor must be an eligible business and hold a current labour agreement.
A nomination must be lodged. Employer Sponsored stream: occupation must be on the relevant skilled occupation list.Labour Agreement stream: occupation must be listed in the labour agreement.
The nominated position must be in a Designated regional area.(e.g., regional Victoria locations such as Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo, Shepparton, Warrnambool—subject to current designated area settings).
Employer Sponsored stream: LMT required (exemption applies).Labour Agreement stream: generally required unless exempt by the labour agreement.
Employer Sponsored stream: sponsor must show the nominee will be paid at least AMSR (exemptions apply); RCB assesses AMSR.Labour Agreement stream: salary/market rate requirements are managed under the labour agreement terms (RCB applies where required).
Position must be genuine, full-time, ongoing, with duties consistent with the nominated occupation skill level/tasks.
Nominee must be engaged under a written employment contract meeting stream requirements (Employer Sponsored stream specifiescontract expectations and clauses; Labour Agreement stream follows agreement/nomination requirements).
Sponsor must comply with Australian immigration and workplace relations laws, must not engage in discriminatory recruitment practices,and employment conditions must not be less favourable than those for an Australian worker doing equivalent work at the same location.
No adverse information about the sponsor business or associated persons (unless reasonable to disregard).
Labour Agreement stream: sponsor must pay the Skilling Australians Fund levy when lodging nomination (as required).For Employer Sponsored stream, SAF levy applies per nomination settings (where required).
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The Knowbal Visa Application Process
Frequently Asked Questions
Request the executed labour agreement and verify the approved occupation list and approved worksites/regions align with the role and where the employee will actually perform duties.Also confirm the sponsoring entity named on the agreement (legal name and ABN) is the same entity that will employ and pay the nominee.
Work backwards from the nominee’s visa expiry and set a firm “documents-ready” deadline for the contract, position description, organisational chart/reporting, and salary evidence.Build buffer for employer-side checks—especially labour agreement coverage, genuine position evidence, and internal approvals—before any time-critical lodgement steps.
Common risk flags include: low base salary offset by allowances, inconsistent or unclear hours, ambiguous work location, or duties that don’t match the occupation level under the agreement.To sanity-check, ensure the contract is consistent across title, duties, location, and hours, and prepare a clear rationale for the market salary rate and how the business will maintain compliant payroll records.
Minor adjustments are often manageable, but material changes—especially to core duties, work location, or the role level—can undermine labour agreement alignment and the occupation basis.Before implementing changes, we can help you assess whether it triggers an updated submission (genuine position + salary rationale) or whether a fresh nomination strategy is required.
What matters is the work location where duties are performed, not the head office address.
If the role is multi-site, specify a primary regional work location in the contract and maintain rosters/timesheets and site allocation evidence to substantiate regional performance over time.
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