You must be under 45 years of age when you apply for the visa.

You are exempt from this criteria if any of the following applies to you:

– you are nominated as an academic (University Lecturer or Faculty Head at Academic Level A , B, C, D or E) by a university in Australia
– you are nominated as a medical practitioner and have been employed in that occupation for 3 years immediately before you apply as the holder of a Temporary Work (Skilled) visa (subclass 457) or Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) visa (subclass 482) visa, with at least 2 years of this time employed in regional Australia
– you are nominated as a scientist, researcher or technical (scientific) specialist at ANZSCO skill level 1 or 2 by an Australian scientific government agency or Australian university
– you have held a Special Category visa (subclass 444) or New Zealand Citizen Family Relationship visa (subclass 461) visa for the last 3 years immediately before you apply and have worked for the employer who nominated you, in the nominated occupation, for at least 2 years during that time

– You:
– have held a subclass 457 visa or TSS visa for the last 3 years immediately before you apply
– have worked in your nominated occupation for the employer who nominated you at all time during those 3 years
– had annual earnings for each of those 3 years, that were equal to or greater than the Fair Work High Income Threshold that applied at the end of the relevant year.

You must be nominated by an employer whose business is lawfully operating in Australia.

You must be employed to work in the nominated occupation and in a position within the sponsoring business or an associated entity of that business, located in a designated regional area of Australia.

Before you can apply for the visa, your employer will need to lodge a nomination application for you. They will only be able to do this if they are an approved work sponsor or have at least lodged an application to become a standard business sponsor.

If you are the primary visa applicant, you must demonstrate that you have the skills, qualifications and work experience necessary to perform the nominated occupation. You must undertake a skills assessment to demonstrate this.

If it is not mandatory for you to undertake a skills assessment, you are still required to provide other evidence to demonstrate that you meet this requirement .

You must have been employed in the nominated occupation for at least 3 years on a full-time basis and at the skill level required for the nominated occupation.

Generally, you should have gained your experience within the last 5 years. The period does not need to be continuous. Equivalent part-time work might be considered. Casual work will not be considered.

You must have your skills assessed as suitable for the nominated occupation by the relevant assessing authority. The assessment will show that you have the skills to work in the nominated occupation.

The skills assessment must be undertaken before your application is lodged. A skills assessment obtained for a Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) is not a valid assessment for this visa.

You do not need to complete a skills assessment if at the time of application you held a Temporary Work (Skilled) visa (subclass 457) or Temporary Skill Shortage visa (subclass 482) for the nominated occupation and in order to be granted that visa, you were required to demonstrate your skills by providing a suitable skills assessment.

You are exempt from this criteria if any of the following applies to you:

– you are nominated as an academic (University Lecturer or Faculty Head at academic Level A, B, C, D or E) by an Australian university
– you have held a Special Category visa (subclass 444) or New Zealand Citizen Family Relationship visa (subclass 461) visa for the last 3 years immediately before you apply and have worked for the employer who nominated you, in the nominated occupation, for at least 2 years during that time.

You must have at least Competent English to be granted this visa.

You and any family members who apply for the visa with you must meet health requirement.

You and family members aged 16 years and over who apply for the visa with you must meet character requirement.

You might not be eligible for this visa if you have had a visa cancelled or refused while you were in Australia.

The nominated occupation must be the subject of a labour agreement between the Commonwealth and the nominator.

Unless the labour agreement states otherwise, you must be under 45 years of age when you apply for the visa.

You must demonstrate that you have the skills, qualifications and work experience necessary to perform the nominated occupation.

You must undertake a skills assessment to demonstrate this if having a skills assessment is specified in the labour agreement.

If it is not mandatory for you to undertake a skills assessment, you are still required to provide other evidence to demonstrate that you meet this requirement.

You must have been employed in the nominated occupation for at least 3 years on a full-time basis and at the skill level required for the nominated occupation.

Generally, you should have gained your experience within the last 5 years. The period does not need to be continuous. Equivalent part-time work might be considered. Casual work will not be considered.

If having s skills assessment is specified in the labour agreement, you must have your skills assessed as suitable for the nominated occupation by the relevant assessing authority. The assessment will show that you have the skills to work in the nominated occupation.

You must have the level of English as specified in the labour agreement to be granted this visa.

You and any family members who apply for the visa with you must meet health requirement.

You and family members aged 16 years and over who apply for the visa with you must meet character requirement.

You might not be eligible for this visa if you have had a visa cancelled or refused while you were in Australia.