Determining a candidate's eligibility to work

Due to a skills shortage in the medical sector throughout Australia, more employers are using alternative means and thinking more creatively about how they can fill those vacant positions within their practices. One of the considerations is to employ non-Australian citizens on work eligible visas.

Once you have gone through a compliant hiring process and wish to consider hiring an individual on a visa, you need to be aware of critical factors to ensure compliance with Australian immigration laws as well as following your own policy.

Work rights verification
How do you check a potential employee’s work rights and ensure their visa permits the work they are being hired to do? Once the visa holder has given you permission, you can do this by using the visa entitlement verification online (VEVO) system to determine their visa conditions. 

Important - Prior to using the VEVO system, you must register for an ImmiAccount through the Department of Home Affairs. 

From the outset, keep and maintain records which outline the employee’s visa status and expiration dates. This will avoid employing someone who during their employment becomes unauthorised to work. 

Sponsoring an employee 
You may wish to consider sponsoring an employee on a visa such as the temporary skills shortage (TSS) () visa. This visa offers employers a pathway to hiring skilled international talent when local skills are scarce. The benefits of sponsoring skilled workers from overseas offers several advantages:

• close skills gap – helps fills roles struggling with local talent shortages
• enhance workforce diversity – brings global perspectives and expertise, enriching the team’s culture
• boost retention – it may offer a route to permanent residency which encourages commitment
• keep productivity steady – allows quick filling of essential roles, keeping practice operations running smoothly

To sponsor a candidate under the TSS Visa, you must meet the following conditions:

• Have approved sponsor status. You must apply to become a standard business sponsor which is valid for five years.
• You must prove financial viability by showing the capability to meet the sponsored employee’s salary requirements.
• Show commitment to training by paying the Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) levy to invest in local workforce training (small business, under AUD 10 million turnover pay $1,200 per employee, per annum, while larger businesses pay $1,800 per employee, per annum).

Once you have received approval to become an approved sponsor (this usually takes one-two months) you can start nominating potential employees. There is a nomination process you must adhere to when nominating potential employees to prove every attempt was made to hire a local candidate before nominating a sponsored candidate:

• Advertise the position. To comply with Labour Market Testing (LMT) requirements, employers need to advertise the job vacancy in Australia for at least 28 days. This step is critical to demonstrate that local recruitment efforts were unsuccessful.
• Lodge the nomination with the Department of Home Affairs. After the job has been advertised, the employer can submit the nomination application, providing details of the position, location and responsibilities.
• Justify the position. Show that the nominated role cannot be filled by local candidates by documenting unsuccessful recruitment efforts which can include a record of job advertisements and application outcomes which helps demonstrate that no suitable Australian candidates were available for the role.

By following all the steps and staying compliant, you can be in a position where you can bolster your team as well as contributing to Australia’s long term-skills development.

Have you considered sponsoring an employee? Please reach out to the Workplace Relations Team on 07 3872 2264 or workplacerelations@amaq.com.au with any questions you have regarding the process.