The Standard Business Sponsor (SBS) approval is the first step in the Australian employer-sponsored skilled visa pathway. Before an employer can nominate a worker for a Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482) under the Core Skills or Specialist Skills streams, the employer must be approved as a Standard Business Sponsor by the Department of Home Affairs (DHA). The SBS approval is valid for 5 years and authorises the employer to lodge nomination applications for temporary skilled workers during that period. Both Australian-based businesses (Australian Business Sponsors) and overseas businesses (Overseas Business Sponsors) can apply. Once approved, sponsors have ongoing obligations — including paying market salary rates, not recovering sponsorship costs from workers, keeping records, cooperating with DHA compliance inspections, and notifying DHA of certain changes. This page explains the SBS application requirements, the approval period, the ongoing obligations, and the distinction between Standard Business Sponsor and Accredited Sponsor status.

For current SBS application requirements, application forms, and processing times, refer to the DHA Standard Business Sponsor page.

• Migration Act 1958, s 140E — approval of businesses as sponsors: sets out the framework under which DHA can approve, bar, or cancel sponsorship arrangements; a person or entity can be approved as a sponsor by making an application and satisfying the approval criteria
• Migration Regulations 1994, regulation 2.67A — standard business sponsor criteria: the business must be lawfully operating in Australia (or overseas for OBS), must not have any relevant adverse information, and must meet all prescribed requirements; DHA may take into account adverse compliance history
• Migration Regulations 1994, regulation 2.79 — sponsor obligations: the obligations applicable to standard business sponsors, including the obligation to pay no less than market salary rate, not to recover sponsorship costs from sponsored workers, keep required records, cooperate with DHA, and notify DHA of certain events
• DHA: Become a Standard Business Sponsor — immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/sbs

The three stages of employer-sponsored skilled migration

Employer-sponsored skilled migration under the Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482) involves three distinct stages:

1. Sponsorship: the employer applies to become an approved Standard Business Sponsor — this is the stage covered on this page
2. Nomination: the approved sponsor lodges a nomination application for the specific worker and occupation they wish to fill — the nomination specifies the occupation, position, salary, and the nominated worker
3. Visa application: the nominated worker applies for the subclass 482 visa — DHA assesses the worker's identity, skills, health, and character

All three stages must be completed — an employer who is not an approved SBS cannot lodge a nomination, and a worker cannot apply for the 482 without an approved nomination.

Who can apply to become an SBS

The following types of business can apply to become a Standard Business Sponsor:

• Australian Business Sponsor (ABS): an entity that is lawfully operating a business in Australia — this includes companies, partnerships, sole traders, trusts, government bodies, and other lawfully operating entities; the business does not need to have a minimum size, revenue, or number of employees
• Overseas Business Sponsor (OBS): an entity that is lawfully operating a business outside Australia and has a genuine need to sponsor workers for temporary skilled work in Australia — an OBS may be required to meet additional requirements, such as demonstrating a genuine need to operate in Australia

Eligibility requirements for SBS approval

To be approved as an SBS, a business must meet the following criteria:

• Lawfully operating: the business must be lawfully operating — for an ABS, this means the business must be registered and compliant with Australian business registration requirements; for an OBS, the business must be lawfully operating in its home country
• No relevant adverse information: DHA will consider any adverse information about the business, its principals, and associated persons — adverse information can include prior non-compliance with sponsorship obligations, adverse migration-related conduct, fraud, or conduct inconsistent with the character requirement; the existence of adverse information does not automatically result in a refusal, but DHA will assess whether it is relevant to the approval
• Complying with immigration and workplace laws: the business must be able to demonstrate compliance with applicable immigration laws and workplace laws — a history of non-compliance with employment conditions or visa conditions can be adverse information

SBS approval period — 5 years

A Standard Business Sponsor approval is valid for 5 years from the date of approval. During this period, the sponsor can lodge nomination applications for as many workers as needed. Key points:

• The sponsor should apply to renew the SBS approval before the 5-year period expires — if the SBS approval lapses, the sponsor cannot lodge new nominations until a renewal is granted
• DHA processes SBS renewal applications — in most cases, sponsors with a clean compliance history will have their renewal approved without issue
• An SBS approval can be cancelled, barred, or suspended by DHA for serious non-compliance with sponsor obligations

Standard business sponsor obligations

Once approved as an SBS, the sponsor has the following ongoing obligations under the Migration Regulations:

• Pay market salary rate: the sponsored worker must be paid no less than the market salary rate for their occupation and location — the sponsor cannot pay a sponsored worker less than an equivalent Australian worker would be paid for the same role
• No cost recovery from sponsored workers: the sponsor must not transfer the cost of the sponsorship (the Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) levy, visa application charges, or other costs) to the sponsored worker; certain costs may be shared in limited circumstances but cost recovery from workers is generally prohibited
• Cooperation with DHA: the sponsor must cooperate with DHA compliance inspections, provide information requested by DHA, and allow authorised officers to enter and inspect premises
• Record-keeping: the sponsor must keep prescribed records relating to sponsored workers, including records of employment, salary, and visa details
• Notify DHA of certain changes: the sponsor must notify DHA within 28 days of certain events, including the sponsored worker ceasing employment with the sponsor, a change in the business's legal entity, or certain other specified events

Simultaneous nomination and SBS application

An employer does not need to wait for SBS approval before lodging a nomination. A nomination application can be lodged simultaneously with the SBS application — DHA will process both and the nomination will only be assessed once the SBS application is approved. This can reduce the overall timeline for the employer-sponsored pathway.

The SBS approval is the gateway to employer-sponsored skilled migration in Australia — without SBS status, a business cannot nominate workers for the subclass 482. For most businesses, the SBS application is relatively straightforward if the business is lawfully operating and has no adverse compliance history. The most common issues in SBS applications relate to adverse information — DHA's approach to adverse information is factual but can be difficult to predict where there has been prior non-compliance or corporate restructuring. The simultaneous lodgement of SBS and nomination applications is recommended to minimise processing delays, particularly where the skilled worker's current visa is approaching expiry. Sponsors should be aware of the ongoing obligations, particularly the cost recovery prohibition — the Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) levy is a significant cost for sponsors (particularly small businesses) and the prohibition on passing this on to workers is strictly enforced. For current SBS application forms, the assessment criteria, SAF levy rates, and processing times, refer to the DHA Standard Business Sponsor page.