Global Talent Employer Sponsored

Global Talent Employer Sponsored or GTES is a scheme that allows employers to sponsor foreign workers for unique or highly-skilled positions that cannot be filled by Australian residents or through other visa programs.

The GTES is aimed at allowing employers to bring highly-skilled overseas workers to Australia acting as ‘job multipliers’, that is, helping the company to hire more local workers.

In order to be a Global Talent Employer Sponsored participant, the employer must enter into an agreement with the Department of Home Affairs (Department of Immigration) and must show that they cannot find either Australian workers or overseas workers who may be eligible for a Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) Subclass 482 visa (click here to learn more). In addition, you must satisfy all the requirements to sponsor the employee for a TSS Subclass 482 visa (click here to learn about TSS Sponsorship process and TSS Nomination process) even if you are approved to be a Global Talent Employer Sponsored participant.

Any position filled through the Global Talent Employer Sponsored program must help to create new jobs for Australians and transfer skills and knowledge to Australian workers.

What are the features of Global Talent Employer Sponsored Scheme?

• employers can access highly-skilled overseas workers whose occupations are not listed in the list for the TSS Subclass 482 visa (both short-term and medium-term streams)
• 2 streams, namely, the Established business and Start-ups
• earning threshold for overseas workers is higher than the standard TSS stream
• can negotiate variations on the standard TSS visa requirements
• visa is valid up to 4 years with PR pathway
• priority processing

Global Talent Employer Sponsored or GTES streams

1. Established Business stream

The Established Business stream is for employers who are accredited sponsors to employ highly-skilled overseas workers to help innovate an established business.

You will need to provide evidence of labour market testing for the position. Your company must be public listed or have an annual turnover of at least $4mil for each of the past 2 years and must be endorsed as a TSS accredited sponsor.

The visa applicant must meet health and character requirements; does not have familial relationship with directors/shareholders of the sponsoring employer; have at least 3 years work experience; must be paid a salary that is equivalent to the Fair Work High Income Threshold or $148,700 (as at 1 July 2019).

The main features are:

• employ up to 20 overseas workers per year
• flexible visa criteria, eg, 4 year TSS Subclass 482 visa
• PR pathway after 3 years with age cap concession (eg, older than 45) (click here to learn about the PR pathway)
• easy and faster agreement application process
• if position ceased, visa holder has 60 days to find a new sponsor and a new visa or leave Australia

2. Startup stream

This stream is for employers who are into developing startup ecosystem and for the overseas worker to bring new ideas, new jobs, new skills and new technology into Australia.

The Startup stream is for companies looking at starting up a tech-based or in the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) field, eg, digital, biomedical, agtech).

Startup companies must be endorsed by the independent GTES startup advisory panel.

You must either have received an investment of at least $500,000 from an investment fund registered as an Early Stage Venture Capital Limited Partnership (click here to learn more) or you have received an Accelerating Commercialisation Grant at any time (click here to learn more).

You must provide evidence of labour market testing. The visa applicant must meet health and character requirements; does not have familial relationship with directors/shareholders of the sponsoring employer; have at least 3 years work experience; must be paid a salary not less than $80,000 which can include equity, but cash component must not be less than the TSMIT amount (currently $53,900).

The main features of the Startup stream are:

• employ up to 5 overseas workers per year
• flexible visa criteria, eg, 4 year TSS Subclass 482 visa
• PR pathway after 3 years with age cap concession (eg, older than 45), click here to learn more
• easy and faster agreement application process
• if position ceased, visa holder has 60 days to find a new sponsor and a new visa or leave Australia

Australian migration law is complex and difficult to understand, contact our immigration lawyer for a consultation (fee applies) to help you decide if the Global Talent Employer Sponsored or GTES is a right scheme for your company. Click here to search other visas that may be suitable for your circumstances.

This article is not intended to be or taken as migration legal advice. The author of this article disclaims any liability for any action or omission on the information provided or not provided in this article. You should always consult an immigration lawyer or a registered migration agent to form an informed opinion on your immigration matter.