The Skilling Australians Fund

The Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) became law on 22 May 2018 and will take effect by 23 November 2018 at the latest.

The SAF is relevant to employers of skilled migrants.

The Training Benchmarks that previously applied to employers of skilled migrants have been abolished and employers are now required to undertake sponsored Labour Market Testing (LMT) before employing a migrant, and pay the Nomination Training Contribution Charge when lodging a nomination.

Important things about Labour Market Testing (LMT):

• Advertising of the job must not start earlier than 4 months before a nomination is lodged
• The advertising must be targeted so that the significant proportion of suitably qualified and experienced Australians would be aware of the position and set out the experience and skills required
• The advertising must be for a minimum 4 weeks
• A copy of the advertising must accompany the nomination at the time of lodgement

Important things about the Nomination Training Contribution Charge:

• An employer is liable to pay the Nomination Training Contribution Charge in relation to a nomination for an employee under the Temporary Skill Shortage visa (sub class 482), Employer Nomination Scheme visa (sub class 186) and the Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme visa (sub class 187)
• Employers will not be simultaneously subject to the SAF levy and existing training benchmarks
• Employee nomination applications lodged prior to the implementation date will continue to be assessed for compliance with the old Training Benchmarks
• Nomination applications lodged on or after the date of implementation will be liable to pay the Charge and undertake Labour Market Testing.
• The Charge will be payable in full at the time the worker is nominated and the amount will depend on the size of the business
• For businesses with annual turnover of:
  • less than $10 million, the Charge will be $1,200 per year for a temporary visa subclass 482, and $3,000 for permanent visa subclass 186/187;
  • more than $10 million, the Charge will be $1,800 per year for a temporary visa subclass 482 and $5,000 for a permanent visa subclass 186/187.

 

In a nut shell, the new legislation aims to minimise the burden on the sponsoring businesses when they are sponsoring an overseas employee, by removal of the ongoing training requirements.

 

Disclaimer

This article is for information only and is not legal advice. If this topics discussed seem relevant to your situation and you need advice please contact Esef Mirascija, Manager – Migration Law, on 07 5597 3366 or send him an email to emirascija@belllegal.com.au

For more on Bell Legal Group and how they can help you with your migration needs including Skilled Visa changes and whether this may affect you visit our Migration Law team’s web page here