Temporary visa holders in Australia have the same basic workplace rights as Australian citizens and permanent residents. These rights are enforced jointly by the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) and the Department of Home Affairs (DHA). Exploitation of migrant workers — including underpayment, unsafe conditions, unlawful deductions, and threats based on immigration status — is a recognised problem that Australian law addresses through both immigration and industrial relations frameworks. A key feature of the enforcement framework is the reporting protection policy: workers who come forward to report workplace exploitation generally receive protections from adverse immigration action, even if they have breached visa conditions such as work restrictions. Workers can also report anonymously — they are not required to give their name. Only DHA can cancel a visa; employers who threaten to cancel workers' visas are engaging in unlawful coercive conduct. This page explains the work rights enforcement framework, reporting mechanisms, employer obligations, and the distinction between immigration visa conditions and workplace legal rights.

For current information on work rights and reporting protections, refer to the DHA work rights and exploitation page and the DHA migrant worker protections page.

• Fair Work Act 2009 — applies to all national system employees in Australia regardless of citizenship or visa status; the Fair Work Ombudsman enforces minimum employment conditions and the National Employment Standards
• Migration Act 1958, s 245AR–245AZF — civil penalty provisions for employers who engage, or allow the engagement of, unlawful non-citizens or visa holders working in breach of conditions; also allows the FWO to share information with DHA for compliance purposes
• Anti-Slavery Act 2018 (NSW) and related state legislation — address forced labour and trafficking, which overlap with exploitation of migrant workers
• DHA: Workers' rights and visa reporting protections — immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/work-rights-exploitation
• DHA: Migrant worker protections — immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/migrant-worker-protections

Workplace rights apply regardless of visa status

Under Australia's industrial relations framework, the following rights apply to all workers in national system employment — including temporary visa holders:

• Minimum wage: all employees must be paid at least the national minimum wage (or applicable award rate) — no employment contract, visa condition, or employer arrangement can reduce pay below this
• Fair work conditions: National Employment Standards (NES) apply — including maximum weekly hours, annual leave, personal/carer's leave, and notice requirements
• Protection from underpayment: the FWO can investigate and pursue employers who underpay workers, including migrant workers — penalties for underpayment apply to employers regardless of the worker's visa status
• Safe work environment: Work Health and Safety (WHS) legislation applies; workers have the right to refuse unsafe work
• Freedom from discrimination: anti-discrimination laws protect workers from discrimination on grounds including national origin, ethnicity, and race

Reporting exploitation — protections for visa holders

DHA operates a policy of protecting visa holders who report workplace exploitation. Key features:

• No adverse action for reporting: a visa holder who reports exploitation to the FWO or DHA will generally not have adverse immigration action taken against them as a result of that report — including where the report reveals the worker has breached their visa conditions (such as exceeding work hour limits)
• Anonymous reporting: workers do not have to give their name when reporting to the FWO or via DHA's Border Watch service — anonymous reports are assessed and can lead to investigation without identifying the reporter
• Strengthening Reporting Protections Pilot: DHA has operated a pilot scheme offering enhanced immigration protections to workers who report exploitation — under the pilot, eligible workers may receive temporary visa protections to allow them to stabilise their situation while the exploitation is addressed

For current reporting contact information and the Strengthening Reporting Protections Pilot, refer to the DHA Strengthening Reporting Protections Pilot page.

Employer obligations and liability

Under the Migration Act, employers who engage workers who are unlawful non-citizens or who are working in breach of their visa conditions may face civil penalties. The key obligations on employers are:

• Checking that a worker has a valid visa and has work rights before engaging them — employers can use VEVO (Visa Entitlement Verification Online) to verify visa status and work conditions
• Not engaging a worker to work in an occupation or for more hours than their visa permits
• Not threatening or coercing workers using their immigration status — threatening to report a worker to DHA as a means of controlling them is itself an offence
• Not deducting money from wages for visa processing, visa application fees, or migration agent fees that are the employer's responsibility

Only DHA can cancel a visa

A common form of employer exploitation involves threatening workers with visa cancellation to suppress complaints or control behaviour. Workers should be aware that:

• Only DHA has the power to grant, refuse, or cancel a visa — an employer has no legal power to cancel or otherwise affect a visa
• Employer threats to "cancel a visa" or "report workers to immigration" are commonly used as exploitation tactics and are themselves reportable conduct
• Contacting Border Watch (DHA's anonymous tip line) to report exploitation does not trigger automatic visa cancellation for the reporting worker

Visa conditions and work rights are separate frameworks

An important distinction exists between:

• Visa conditions (administered by DHA): restrictions on the type of work, hours, employer, or occupation authorised under the visa — a breach of visa conditions is a migration compliance matter
• Workplace rights (administered by the FWO): minimum pay, safe conditions, freedom from discrimination — these apply to all workers regardless of visa conditions; an employer cannot use the fact of a visa condition breach as a justification for underpaying a worker

A worker who has worked in breach of visa conditions (for example, a student who worked more hours than their visa allows) still retains their workplace rights — the employer is still required to pay the correct rate for all hours worked.

Work rights enforcement for migrant workers has received increasing policy attention in Australia following documented cases of exploitation in agriculture, hospitality, and domestic work. The DHA and FWO operate a formal information sharing arrangement to enable joint enforcement. The reporting protections framework reflects the tension between immigration enforcement and encouraging exploitation victims to come forward — if workers fear visa cancellation for reporting, exploitation is more easily concealed. The Strengthening Reporting Protections Pilot represents a practical attempt to address this by providing a safe reporting pathway. For migrant workers in distress, organisations such as the Migrant Workers Centre and the FWO's Overseas Worker Team provide assistance in multiple languages. For current work rights information, the anonymous reporting pathway, and the FWO's contact details for migrant workers, refer to the DHA work rights and exploitation page.