Most sponsors think their obligations end when the visa is granted. They do not. Under Division 2.19 of the Migration Regulations 1994, an approved business sponsor carries a set of continuing duties, and several of them run for two years after the sponsorship ends, with two running for five years. Home Affairs also monitors compliance for up to five years after a sponsorship finishes.
This guide sets out each obligation, what it actually requires, and when it starts and stops. It is written for Australian employers sponsoring workers on the Subclass 482 Skills in Demand visa, the Subclass 494, and the Subclass 186.
Where the obligations come from
The obligations are not policy or guidance. They sit in Division 2.19 of the Migration Regulations 1994, under the heading “Sponsorship obligations”, and each one has its own regulation number. That matters more than it sounds, because during a monitoring request the Department will ask about a specific obligation, not a general duty to behave well.
Home Affairs publishes a plain English summary of the same duties on its sponsorship obligations page for standard business sponsors. Where this article gives a timeframe or a dollar figure, it comes from one of those two sources.
The three record duties sponsors keep confusing
This is the part we see go wrong most often, and it is worth separating before anything else. There are three different obligations about records and information, and they behave nothing alike.
Regulation 2.82, keep records. A standing duty to hold certain records in a reproducible format. Nobody has to ask you. You either have them or you do not.
Regulation 2.83, provide records and information to the Minister. A reactive duty. When a departmental officer asks, you hand over the records and information in the manner and timeframe they request.
Regulation 2.84, provide information when certain events occur. A proactive duty. Nobody asks you. Something happens in your business or to your sponsored employee, and the clock starts running on your own initiative.
A sponsor can be fully compliant with 2.82, produce every record on request under 2.83, and still breach 2.84 because they never told the Department the employee resigned. Each is assessed separately.
The full list of sponsorship obligations
These are the obligations in Subdivision 2.19.1, which covers approved work sponsors. Not every one attaches to every sponsor, because some are tied to particular visa classes.
| Regulation | Obligation | When it ends |
|---|---|---|
| 2.78 | Cooperate with inspectors | Five years after the sponsorship ends or the person stops working for you |
| 2.79 | Ensure equivalent terms and conditions of employment (457, 482 Skills in Demand, 482 TSS) | When the employee stops working for you, or is granted a different substantive visa |
| 2.79A | Equivalent terms and conditions for the Subclass 494 | As above |
| 2.80 | Pay travel costs so sponsored people can leave Australia | On the earliest of several events, including the employee leaving Australia |
| 2.80A | Pay travel costs for a domestic worker (executive) | Tied to that sponsor class |
| 2.81 | Pay Commonwealth costs of locating and removing an unlawful non-citizen | Five years after the person leaves Australia |
| 2.82 | Keep records | Two years after the sponsorship ends and you no longer employ a sponsored visa holder |
| 2.83 | Provide records and information to the Minister | Two years, as above |
| 2.84 | Provide information when certain events occur | Two years, as above |
| 2.85 | Secure an offer of a reasonable standard of accommodation | Applies to specific sponsor classes |
| 2.86 | Ensure the person works only in the nominated occupation | On the earliest of several events, including the employee ceasing employment |
| 2.86A | Ensure the person works or participates in the activity the visa was granted for | Tied to that visa class |
| 2.87 | Do not recover, transfer, or act so that someone else pays certain costs | Two years, as above |
There is also a duty not to engage in discriminatory recruitment practices that disadvantage people based on their visa or citizenship status.
What you must tell Home Affairs, and how long you have
Under the notification obligation, you generally have 28 calendar days. Home Affairs lists the triggering events, and they fall into two groups.
Things that happen to your sponsored employee:
- their employment ends, or is expected to end, and the end date changing counts as a fresh notification
- their work duties change
- they did not commence working for you
Things that happen to your business:
- you become insolvent, within the meaning of the Bankruptcy Act 1966 and section 95A of the Corporations Act 2001
- the business goes into receivership, liquidation or administration, or ceases to exist as a legal entity
- a new director is appointed, or a new partner joins a partnership
- changes to your legal name, trading name, registration details, business structure, ownership, contact person or business address
Notification goes through the Notification of sponsor changes form in ImmiAccount, or by email to sponsor.notifications@abf.gov.au.
A change in duties is the one that catches good employers out. Promoting a sponsored employee, or quietly widening their role, is a notifiable event, and if the role has moved to a different occupation you need a fresh nomination rather than a notification.
The costs you must absorb, and must never pass on
Regulation 2.87 is short and it is strict. You pay, and you do not recover from the employee or their family, the cost of becoming a sponsor, nomination charges, and the migration agent costs tied to sponsorship and nomination applications.
The recruitment side is broader than most employers expect. Home Affairs lists recruitment agent fees, advertising, screening and shortlisting, interviewing, reference and background checks, police checks, psychological testing, the salaries of your own recruitment staff, and travel to meet candidates.
Attempting to transfer these costs is enough. The obligation covers an attempt, not only a completed transfer.
Two related duties sit alongside it. Under regulation 2.80 you must pay reasonable and necessary travel costs for the employee and their sponsored family to leave Australia, to the value of economy class air travel or a reasonable equivalent, within 30 days of a written request. You pay it once. Under regulation 2.81, if a sponsored person becomes an unlawful non-citizen, you may have to repay the Commonwealth’s costs of locating and removing them, capped at AUD 10,000, less anything you already paid in travel costs.
Equivalent terms and the AUD 250,000 line
You must pay your sponsored employee at least the earnings stated on the approved nomination, and their employment conditions must be no less favourable than those of an equivalent Australian worker.
There is a threshold worth knowing. Home Affairs states this obligation applies only where the employee’s annual earnings are less than AUD 250,000. The same threshold carves out several of the record keeping requirements, including records of earnings and non-monetary benefits.
That does not make a high earner unsponsored or unmonitored. It narrows which obligations attach. Separately, the salary you nominate still has to clear the relevant income threshold, which we cover in our guide to the Core Skills Income Threshold.
How Home Affairs actually monitors sponsors
Home Affairs states plainly that it monitors compliance while you are a sponsor and for up to five years after your sponsorship ends. In practice that takes three forms:
- a written request for information under the regulation 2.83 obligation
- site visits to the sponsored business premises, with or without notice
- information exchange with other agencies, including the Fair Work Ombudsman and the Australian Taxation Office
Monitoring may be carried out by Immigration inspectors, Fair Work inspectors, or Fair Work Building Industry inspectors. Failing to cooperate is itself a breach of the regulation 2.78 obligation, which is the one that runs for five years.
We have written separately on what a sponsorship audit looks like in practice, and on the labour market testing evidence sponsors are expected to hold.
What happens if you breach
The Department can respond administratively by barring you from sponsoring further visa holders for a period, refusing a future sponsorship application, cancelling existing sponsorship approvals, or issuing a compliance notice. It may ask you to enter an enforceable undertaking. It can issue an infringement notice or apply to a court for a civil penalty order. Employers who seriously, deliberately or repeatedly break the law may face a prohibition declaration preventing them from employing further migrant workers.
The Department also publishes information identifying sponsors who have not complied, on the Australian Border Force sponsor sanctions pages. For many businesses that is the part that stings.
One caution on the numbers. Maximum penalties in the Migration Act 1958 are expressed in penalty units, not dollars. The value of a Commonwealth penalty unit is set under section 4AA of the Crimes Act 1914 and is indexed on a three yearly cycle, and it rose again on 1 July 2026. Home Affairs’ sponsorship obligations page was last updated in January 2025, so the dollar figures shown there were calculated at the previous rate. Treat any dollar amount you read on that page as indicative and confirm the current penalty unit value before relying on it.
Frequently asked questions
How long do sponsorship obligations last after the visa is granted?
Most obligations continue until two years after your sponsorship ends and you no longer employ a sponsored visa holder. Two run longer. The duty to cooperate with inspectors ends five years after the sponsorship ends or the person stops working for you, and the duty to repay Commonwealth removal costs ends five years after the person leaves Australia.
Do I have to tell Home Affairs if my sponsored employee resigns?
Yes. The end of employment is a notifiable event and you generally have 28 calendar days. If you gave an expected end date and it later changes, that change is notifiable too.
Can I ask my sponsored employee to pay the nomination fee?
No. Regulation 2.87 prohibits recovering, transferring, or acting so that another person pays the sponsorship and nomination costs, and it captures an attempt as well as a completed transfer.
Does a promotion need a new nomination?
It may. A change in the duties carried out by a sponsored employee is notifiable. If the role has moved into a different occupation, a fresh nomination is generally required, and on a Subclass 482 or Subclass 494 the employee may also need a new visa.
What records does a sponsor need to keep?
Records must be kept in a reproducible format. They include written requests for travel costs and how you responded, the events you notified and when, the tasks the employee performed in the nominated occupation, earnings paid, non-monetary benefits and their agreed value, the written employment contract, and the terms and conditions of an equivalent worker where one exists. Some of the earnings related records do not apply where the employee earns AUD 250,000 or more.
Are obligations different for accredited sponsors?
The obligations themselves are the same. Accreditation affects processing priority and some reporting arrangements, not the substance of what you must do.
A realistic next step
If you are sponsoring and you cannot immediately say who in your business is responsible for the 28 day notifications, that is the gap worth closing first, because it is the obligation that most often gets breached by accident rather than intent. Our team advises Australian businesses on employer sponsorship and compliance, and you can book a consultation with our migration lawyers to review your obligations before a monitoring request arrives.
About the author: Tina Nematian is the Principal Lawyer at One Planet Migration Law. She is an Australian Legal Practitioner and a Registered Migration Agent (MARN), and has guided clients through partner, skilled, employer-sponsored, student, and humanitarian visa applications across Australia.
This article is general information only and does not constitute legal or migration advice. Visa rules change frequently and outcomes depend on individual circumstances. Speak with a registered migration lawyer or agent before making any application. Figures were current as of August 2026; always check immi.homeaffairs.gov.au before lodging.
