Skilled work visas in Australia: the 482, 186 and 189 for Brits

For most Brits, the road to staying in Sydney for good runs through a job offer and an employer willing to sponsor you.

The short version

• The Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482) replaced the old Temporary Skill Shortage visa on 7 December 2024. It lasts up to four years and ties you to a sponsoring employer [1][2].
• After two years' sponsored work you can usually move to the permanent Employer Nomination Scheme visa (subclass 186) through its Temporary Residence Transition stream [1][2].
• The Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189) needs no employer, but it's points-tested and invitation-only.
• Most permanent routes need a skills assessment from the body that covers your occupation.
• Fees rose on 1 July 2026: AUD 4,015 (about £2,074) for a 482 and about AUD 6,140 (about £3,171) for a 186 or 190 [4][6].

Pound conversions use the Bank of England spot rate of 5 November 2026 (£1 = AUD 1.9363).

The main visas at a glance

Sydney isn't a "designated regional area", so the 494 and the regional 491 are really for people prepared to live outside the big city. NSW does nominate people for the 190.

The Skills in Demand visa (482)

The Skills in Demand visa is the workhorse. An approved Australian employer sponsors you, nominates your role and pays a good chunk of the costs. It has three streams [2]:

• Specialist Skills: for highly paid roles. You must earn above the Specialist Skills Income Threshold, which from 1 July 2026 is AUD 146,576 (about £75,699) a year [7]. Most occupations qualify, except trades, machinery operators and labourers.
• Core Skills: the stream most Brits use. Your occupation must be on the Core Skills Occupation List and you must be paid at least the Core Skills Income Threshold, AUD 79,423 (about £41,018) from 1 July 2026, and the market salary for the job [7].
• Labour Agreement: for employers with a special agreement with the government.

You need at least 12 months' relevant work experience in the last five years, which can be full-time, part-time or casual added up [2]. UK passport holders are usually exempt from the English test that applies to most nationalities.

The key limits:

1. You work for your sponsor (or an associated business), in your nominated occupation [1].
2. If the job ends, you have a limited window to find a new sponsor, apply for another visa or leave. Check the current period with Home Affairs straight away rather than relying on what a friend was told.
3. Your partner and children can come with you as secondary applicants, and your partner can work.

It's the new rules on moving that make this visa less of a trap than its predecessors. Time with any sponsoring employer now counts towards permanent residence, not just time with one [2].

From the 482 to permanent residence: the 186

The 186 is the employer-sponsored permanent visa. It has two main streams [1]:

The TRT stream is the usual path: two years on a 482, your employer nominates you, and you apply. The job must be expected to last at least two years after the grant [1]. Direct Entry normally needs a positive skills assessment unless you're exempt, plus any licence or registration your job needs [1]. There's an upper age limit for most 186 applicants (under 45 at the time of applying, with some exemptions), so don't leave it too late.

Once you're permanent you get full Medicare, can change jobs freely and start counting towards citizenship. Our guide to Australian citizenship for Brits picks up from there.

The independent route: the 189 and 190

If you'd rather not depend on one employer, the points-tested visas are the alternative:

1. Get a skills assessment from the assessing authority for your occupation. Each occupation on the skilled occupation list names one, such as Engineers Australia, the Australian Computer Society or VETASSESS [5].
2. Submit an expression of interest in SkillSelect, Home Affairs' online system, with your points score.
3. Wait for an invitation. Points come from age, English, work experience, qualifications, Australian study and a partner's skills. The pass mark is 65, but in practice invitations go to higher scores in most occupations.
4. Apply within the deadline once invited.

The 190 works the same way, but a state or territory nominates you, which adds points. NSW publishes its own occupation priorities, and they change during the year.

The honest picture: the 189 has become hard to get for most occupations, with relatively few invitations in recent rounds. Most Brits who settle in Sydney do it through an employer.

The costs from July 2026

Source: main applicant charges from 1 July 2026 from the Home Affairs visa pages [4][6]. A partner aged 18 or over adds about AUD 4,015 (about £2,074) to a 482 and AUD 3,070 (about £1,585) to the permanent visas, plus less for each child [3]. On top come skills assessment fees, health checks, police certificates (an ACRO certificate from the UK) and translations. On a sponsored visa, your employer pays the nomination fee and the Skilling Australians Fund levy, and can't legally pass that levy on to you.

The UK side of moving for work

A sponsored job usually means you leave the UK tax system altogether. Tell HMRC you've gone using form P85 (our P85 guide explains it), think about split-year treatment for the year you go, and decide what to do about your UK pension. Your Australian employer will pay super into a fund for you, which is separate from any UK pension you leave behind; transferring a UK pension to Australia needs regulated financial advice. Our guide to superannuation and your UK pensions covers how they sit side by side.

If a UK employer is sending you out rather than an Australian one hiring you, the rules are different. See working abroad for a UK employer.

Visa rules in Australia change often, and income thresholds rise every July. For a complex case, a registered migration agent can check where you stand. And if you want to hear how other Brits got sponsored in Sydney, our community group for Brits in Australia has plenty who've been through it.

Sources

1. Department of Home Affairs: Visa options for skilled sponsored workers
2. MinterEllison: New Skills in Demand visa and Core Skills Occupation List
3. Australian Migration Lawyers: Australian visa fee increases from 1 July 2026
4. Department of Home Affairs: Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482)
5. Department of Home Affairs: Skilled occupation list
6. Department of Home Affairs: Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190)
7. Department of Home Affairs: Salary requirements to nominate a worker

Keep reading

• Australia's working holiday visa for Brits
• Moving to Sydney as a Brit
• Australia taxes for Brits
• Leaving the UK: telling HMRC, the P85 and your last tax year