Temporary Residence Transition stream

• stay in Australia indefinitely
• work and study in Australia
• enrol in Australia’s public health care scheme, Medicare
• sponsor eligible relatives to come to Australia
• travel to and from Australia for 5 years
• apply for Australian citizenship, if eligible.

Newly arrived residents may have to wait before they can access certain Australian Government payments and benefits.

This is a permanent visa – it lets you stay in Australia indefinitely.

You become a permanent resident on the day we grant the visa.

Your permanent residency for citizenship purposes starts:

• on the day we grant the visa if you are in Australia
• on the day you enter Australia on this visa if you are outside Australia.

You can:

• include family members in your application when you apply
• add family members to your application after you apply but before we decide on your visa.

For this visa, your family members are:

• your partner
• your dependent child or stepchild
• your partner’s dependent child or stepchild
• the dependent child or stepchild of your or your partner's dependent child or stepchild.

You can also include a subclass 457 visa or subclass 482 visa holder if we granted them that visa as they are a member of your family. To meet this requirement, they must hold the eligible visa and must be included in your application when you apply.

Family members who apply for the visa with you must meet our health and character requirements.

Family members who do not apply for the visa with you might also have to meet the requirements.

The visa costs AUD6,140.00 for the main applicant. Concessions apply in limited circumstances.

There is also a charge for each family member who applies for the visa with you.

To see what your visa will cost use the Visa pricing estimator. The estimator does not consider the second instalment or other costs.

Second instalment

You must pay an extra charge called a second instalment for any family member aged 18 years or older who:

• applies for the visa with you, and
• has less than Functional English.

The second instalment for family members who apply for the visa with you is AUD4,890.

If you need to pay the second instalment, we will send you an invoice after you have met all other requirements for the visa.

Other costs

You might also have to pay other costs for:

• health checks
• police certificates
• biometrics.

From 1 July 2026, a lower visa cost applies to eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste citizens who lodge a valid visa application.

We will charge eligible applicants the lower visa application cost during the application process in ImmiAccount. We will recognise eligible applicants by the valid passport from the specified countries used in the application when they apply.

Family members are also eligible for the lower visa cost. We base this on the passport of the primary applicant (or visa holder who satisfies the primary visa criteria).

The primary applicant must hold a valid passport issued by one of the following countries:

• Federated States of Micronesia
• Fiji
• Kiribati
• Nauru
• Palau
• Papua New Guinea
• Republic of the Marshall Islands
• Samoa
• Solomon Islands
• Timor-Leste
• Tonga
• Tuvalu
• Vanuatu.

You can be in or outside Australia when you apply for the visa, but not in immigration clearance.

If you are applying in Australia, you must hold a:

• substantive visa or
• Bridging visa A, Bridging visa B or Bridging visa C.

You can be in or outside Australia when we decide on your application.

For an indication of processing times for this visa, use the visa processing time guide tool. This will show the processing times for recently decided applications. It is a guide only and not specific to your application.

Your application can take longer to process if:

• you do not fill it in correctly
• you do not include all the documents we need or we need more information from you
• it takes us time to verify your information.

You and your family members must obey all Australian laws.

We expect that you will work for your nominating employer for at least 2 years.

You must begin your employment within 6 months of:

• entry to Australia if you were granted the visa outside Australia
• the visa grant date if you were granted the visa in Australia

From the date we grant this visa, you can travel to and from Australia for up to 5 years.

After that period, you will need a Resident Return (RRV) visa to re-enter Australia as a permanent resident.

If you leave Australia after the expiry date of your travel facility, without being granted another permanent visa with a valid travel facility, for example a Resident Return (RRV), you might not be able to return to Australia as a permanent resident.

To see when your travel condition ends, use VEVO.

We will digitally link your visa to your passport. You will not get a label in your passport.

You must have the required skills and qualifications needed to perform the tasks of the nominated occupation.

We might ask you to get a skills assessment to show you have these skills.

You must have been employed in eligible sponsored employment for a total of 2 years in the 3 years prior to the date you apply for your visa.

Eligible sponsored employment must be:

• full-time
• undertaken in Australia
• undertaken while holding a subclass 457,482 or eligible bridging visa
• undertaken in an occupation you were granted a subclass 457 or subclass 482 visa to perform.

If you have held multiple subclass 457 or 482 visas in the 3 years prior to your application, sponsored employment can be counted in any occupation you were approved to work in.

If you have changed employers in the 3 years prior to your application, sponsored employment can be counted from the date an approved nomination was lodged, if you started working with them before the nomination was approved.

You must be licensed, registered or a member of a professional body if it is mandatory in the state or territory you intend to work in.

Your employer must have been the last person to sponsor you to work full-time on your subclass 457 or subclass 482 visa.

Eligible business

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

You must apply for the visa within 6 months of the nomination being approved.

Find out if your employer is eligible to nominate you.

We can't grant you a visa if:

• we are aware of adverse information about your nominator or any person associated with them, unless it is reasonable to disregard this information, or
• the nomination is withdrawn, or
• the position is no longer available

We can’t link a new nomination to your existing visa application. If this happens you may choose to withdraw your first visa application and submit a new visa application in relation to the new nomination.

You might be eligible for a refund of the visa application charge depending on the circumstances.

Usually, you must be under 45 years of age when you apply.

You are exempt from this criterion 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 scientist, researcher or technical specialist at ANZSCO skill level 1 or 2 by an Australian scientific government agency or Australian university
• You are nominated as a medical practitioner and in the 3 years immediately before you apply have worked in that occupation in a designated regional area of Australia for at least 2 years as a subclass 457 or 482 visa holder. The nominated position is in a designated regional area of Australia.
• As a subclass 457 or 482 visa holder, you have worked in eligible sponsored employment for at least 2 years during the 3 years ending immediately before you apply, and your earnings for each year of that period were at least as much as the Fair Work High Income Threshold.

Transitional arrangements

If you held (or had applied for and were later granted) a subclass 457 visa on 18 April 2017, you can still apply for this visa if you are under 50 when you apply.

You must have at least Competent English.

From 16 November 2019, there is no exemption to the English language requirement for this stream of the visa.

You must currently be the primary visa holder of either a:

• subclass 457 visa (any stream)
• subclass 482 visa (any stream)
• Bridging visa associated with a subclass 457, 482, 186 or 187 application, if your last substantive visa was a subclass 457 or 482.

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

We might ask for health information about family not coming to Australia with you.

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

We might ask for character information about family not coming to Australia with you.

If you are 18 years of age or older, you must:

• have read, or had explained to you, the Life in Australia booklet and
• sign an Australian Values Statement that confirms you will respect the Australian way of life and obey Australian laws

If you owe the Australian Government money, you must have paid it back or have a formal arrangement to pay it back.

We will consider your immigration history when we make a decision on your application, which means you might not be eligible for this visa if you have had a visa cancelled or refused.

In some circumstances you may still apply for a permanent visa if you have had a visa cancelled or an application refused see Limitations on applications in Australia.

If applying for a visa from outside Australia see Can I go to Australia.

If you want immigration assistance, see Who can help with your visa application.

Before you leave

Check your travel documents

You must have:

• a valid visa to enter Australia
• a valid passport or other travel document

At the Border

Completing an Incoming Passenger Card

All people arriving Australia must complete an Incoming Passenger Card. You will be given this card during your flight.

Leaving the airport faster

We have an automated process that uses facial recognition technology and your ePassport. You might be able to leave the airport faster if you use SmartGate

New Zealand passport holders

If an immigration officer processes your clearance at our border, we recommend you tell them:

• you have a permanent Australian visa
• you do not want a Special Category visa (subclass 444)

If you do not tell them, you might be granted the 444 visa. Grant of a subclass 444 visa will override your permanent visa and might affect your eligibility for Australian citizenship.

What you can do when you have this visa

This visa lets you:

• stay in Australia indefinitely
• work and study in Australia
• enrol in Australia’s public health care scheme, Medicare
• sponsor eligible relatives to come to Australia
• travel to and from Australia for 5 years
• apply for Australian citizenship, if eligible

Newly arrived residents may have to wait before they can access certain Australian Government payments and benefits.

What you must do on this visa (your obligations)

You and your family members must obey all Australian laws.

Tell us if things change

Things you need to let us know about when you have this visa include:

• changes to your phone number, email, address or passport
• changes to your relationship status
• the birth of a child

See how to let us know if there is a change in your situation.

See how long you can stay

Permanently

Travelling on your visa

From the date we grant this visa, you can travel to and from Australia for up to 5 years.

After that period, you will need a Resident Return (RRV) visa to re-enter Australia as a permanent resident.

If you leave Australia after the expiry date of your travel facility, without being granted another permanent visa with a valid travel facility, for example a Resident Return (RRV), you might not be able to return to Australia as a permanent resident.

To see when your travel condition ends, use VEVO.

Proving you have a visa

To prove you have a visa and show your conditions to someone, use VEVO

To prove you have been to Australia, request your travel records.

Working

When you work in Australia, you are protected by Australian workplace law. See your workplace rights and entitlements.

Bringing family

As an Australian permanent resident, you might be able to sponsor eligible relatives to come to Australia.

To find a visa for your relatives, explore visa options.

Becoming an Australian citizen

After a certain time, you might be eligible for Australian citizenship. Find out more about becoming a citizen.

For citizenship purposes, your permanent residency starts on the day:

• we grant the visa, if you were in Australia
• you entered Australia on this visa, if you were outside Australia when we granted it

Before you leave

Check your travel documents

You must have a valid passport or other travel document to leave Australia.

Ensure your visa is still valid

Check your conditions and the expiry of your Resident Return visa in VEVO

See what you can and must do if your visa has expired or is about to expire.

At the Border

Leaving the airport faster

We have an automated process that uses facial recognition technology and your ePassport. You might be able to leave the airport faster if you use SmartGate.

After you leave

Proving you have been to Australia

To prove you have been to Australia, request your travel records.

There is no cost to nominate someone for the visa if the position is located in regional Australia.

If the position is not located in regional Australia, it costs AUD540.00 to nominate someone for the visa. You are also required to pay the Skilling Australians Fund levy.

If approved, your nomination will end if the employee you nominate does not apply for a subclass 186 visa within six months of the nomination approval.

You must:

• employ the worker under the terms and conditions that are no less than as those for Australian citizens or permanent residents doing the same work in the same place. Terms and conditions include but are not limited to salary for the nominated position, hours of work and leave entitlements.
• pay the worker the annual market salary rate
• comply with Australian immigration and workplace relations law.

Your business must:

• have no adverse information known about it or any person associated with it, or it is reasonable to disregard this information
• actively and lawfully operate a business in Australia
• if it undertakes activities related to hiring labour to other unrelated businesses, the position must be within your business activities and not for hire to other unrelated businesses
• have a genuine need for a paid employee to fill a skilled position
• pay the Skilling Australians Fund levy when you submit your employer nomination application
• have complied with Australian immigration and workplace relations laws

Your business must also be able to:

• offer a skilled position that is full time and ongoing for at least 2 years. The nominee's employment contract must not limit the position to 2 years
• if the worker will earn less than AUD250,000 per year, pay them at least the annual market salary rate
• demonstrate the applicant is eligible for any licence, registration or membership needed at the time you submit your nomination

The nominated occupation must:

• be listed in the ANZSCO
• be the same occupation as your most recently approved nomination for the applicant.

Occupations in the ENS program are benchmarked to the 2022 release of ANZSCO. If your most recently approved nomination relates to a subclass 457 or TSS visa, your occupation code or title may have changed.

You will not be disadvantaged if the code for your nominated occupation has changed in the 2022 release of ANZSCO (subject to meeting other eligibility criteria).

You must pay the Skilling Australians Fund levy for any nomination application you submit.

If you sponsored the applicant for a temporary work visa, you can nominate them for this stream of the permanent visa. However, you may only do so as long as you remain the applicant’s most recently approved sponsor (as a standard business sponsor or party to a labour agreement). If your business has undertaken a restructure resulting in a new ABN/ACN, and the applicant is now working for the new business entity, you must ensure the applicant’s most recent temporary visa sponsorship arrangements reflect this.

You need to do this before lodging in this permanent stream.

What visa the applicant must hold

When you nominate them, the applicant must hold or have most recently held:

• a subclass 457 visa (any stream)
• a subclass 482 visa (any stream)

If the applicant does not hold a substantive visa when you apply to nominate them, they must hold a bridging visa that was granted to them when they applied for:

• a subclass 457 visa, or
• a subclass 482 visa, or
• a subclass 186 visa, or
• a subclass 187 visa

Continuity of employment

If your business ownership has changed since you were approved to sponsor the applicant on their most recent subclass 457 or 482 visa – for example due to sale, takeover or restructure – you might still be able to nominate the applicant. You must show that you and the previous business sponsor would be considered the same employer. You must be the applicant's most recently approved sponsor.

Please also note, if your business (or an associated business) has been subject to ASIC action such as being placed under administration, your application may not meet the requirements for approval.