UK Work Visa For Australians: A Guide For Employers
If you are an employer in the UK, you can hire workers from Australia to fill vacancies in your businesses. However, they must meet the UK work visa requirements, and you must sponsor their visa application.
To get more information on hiring work talents from Australia, including eligibility, documents required and how to apply for a UK work visa for Australian citizens, call our team, Total Law, at +44 (0)333 305 9375 or send a message online. We have a team of immigration specialists who can help you get your Australian talent to work for you in the UK.
Our Packages
Do Australians Need a Visa To Work In The UK?
If you want to hire workers from Australia, you must note that Australians need a visa to work in the UK. The UK work visa can last up to 5 years, although you have the prerogative to state how long you want the employee in your service within those 5 years.
The work visa must also be sponsored by the employer in the UK. You’ll first need to have a valid sponsor licence to sponsor overseas workers. This is a permit issued by the Home to eligible employers, enabling them to employ outside the country.
Aside from getting a valid sponsor licence, you need to do several things as an employer to help your Australian talent move to the UK. First, you must offer them a job listed in the occupations code outlined by the Home Office. You must pay them a salary that meets the minimum salary requirement stipulated by the Home Office.
You must ensure that your prospective Australian employee can do the job for which you are employing them. They must also meet the requirements for the UK visas you want them to apply for.
All these requirements are necessary to ensure that only businesses that genuinely need overseas employees get them. Before you embark on employing from Australia, you must ensure you meet all of these requirements.
"I'm very happy with the standard of training received on the OISC Level 1 course, i passed my exam. Thank you!"
Liam Calvert
Posted 6 years ago
"My application was approved and a huge weight has been lifted from our shoulders this year "
Akeel Lakar
Posted 6 years ago
"We used this service for the spouse visa extension application to assure that all the information was valid and correct."
Nabil Anwar
Posted 6 years ago
The Different UK Work Visas For Australians
There are different types of UK work visas. The type your Australian employee will apply for depends on the kind of work they are coming to do for you in the UK.
Health and Care Worker Visa
If your business supplies health services to people in the UK, you can employ a health professional from Australia under this visa category. They could be doctors, nurses, radiologists or adult caregivers. One of the benefits of this visa is that it is a lower-cost alternative for both employer and employee because the applicant does not need to pay the immigration healthcare surcharge.
Your care sector employee will no longer be permitted by the UK government to bring dependents on this visa. However, they can settle permanently in the UK after spending 5 years on this visa. For your Australian employee to get into the UK with this visa, you’ll usually need to offer to pay them £29,000 yearly.
While applying for a Health and Care Worker visa, your prospective Australian employee will need to present the following documents:
- Australian passport
- Certificate of sponsorship (CoS) from the UK employer
- Job offer which outlines the job role, title, occupation code and salary
- Savings of at least £1,270. You can help your Australian employee by confirming you’ll cover their expenses in their first month in the UK
- Criminal history certificate if the role you are offering requires it
Your employee will pay an application fee of £324 if you want them to work for you for up to 3 years. They will pay £628 if you want them to work for you for more than 3 years.
Skilled Worker Visa
UK employers can hire Australian employees permanently via this work visa route. You must issue the overseas employee a certificate of sponsorship that has the details about the job they are coming to do.
Note that the job must be on the eligible occupations lists; otherwise, the Home Office will reject the visa application. Unlike the Health and Care Worker visa, your Australian employee can bring their family to the UK.
You must also pay the employee a minimum of £41,700 yearly. You can get the employee to work for you for as long as you want within 5 years. They will pay an application fee between £819 and £1,618, depending on how long you want them to work for you. They will also pay the health surcharge of £1035 yearly.
Your Australian employee will need to submit the following documents to prove UK work visa eligibility:
- Certificate of sponsorship
- Australian passport
- Employment offer showing job role, title, wage and employment details
- Bank savings showing they have £1,270. You can help them in this regard by choosing to pay for their maintenance while issuing CoS
- Valid ATAS if it is needed for the job
- Marriage and birth certificates if they are applying to move to the UK with their family
- Criminal record certificate if they will work with vulnerable members of society, like children, the aged or the sick
Senior or Specialist Worker Visa
If you have a business in Australia with a branch in the UK, you can sponsor some of your employees in Australia to move to the UK branch and work for you. Note that the employee you are sponsoring must already work for you in Australia. The employees you can sponsor via this route must be in senior or managerial roles.
You must also be willing to pay the employee a minimum of £48,500 yearly. You can sponsor the employee to work for you in the UK for as long as you want within 5 years. This visa can be renewed after 5 years if you are paying the employee up to £73,900 yearly.
Your Australian employee can move to the UK with their family on this visa. However, this is not a route to permanent settlement in the UK. It will cost your employee between £719 and £1,420, depending on how long you want them to work for you.
To prove their eligibility, your employee must submit the following documents:
- Certificate of sponsorship reference number
- Valid Australian passport
- Job offer outlining the role, salary and occupation code
- Employer details
- Bank statement showing a savings of a minimum of £1,270
- Valid ATAS certificate if the job requires it
- Proof of having worked for the same employer in Australia for at least 1 year if your salary is not up to £73,900
- Marriage and birth certificate to prove a genuine relationship with family members
Seasonal Worker Visa (Temporary Work)
If you have a farm or poultry in the UK, you can sponsor seasonal workers from Australia to help out in your agricultural business. They can only stay for 6 months if they work on the farm and 3 months in your poultry. Your Australian employee must have submitted their application by the 15th of November yearly if they intend to work in poultry. They can apply anytime if they are coming to work on your farm as fruit or flower pickers.
Since this is a temporary visa, your employer cannot come to the UK with their family members, and this visa is not a route to permanent residence. Your employer must be at least 18, and you must pay them the minimum salary requirement stipulated by the Home Office. They will also need to pay the £340 application fee.
Your employer will need to provide the following documents for the UK work visa process:
- Certificate of sponsorship
- Valid Australian passport
- Bank statement showing they have £1,270 as savings. You can help your employer to meet this requirement by opting to take care of their maintenance
Charity Worker Visa
If you run a charity organisation, you can get a volunteer worker from Australia to work for you. You’ll need to sponsor their visa application. Note that the job your prospective Australian employee will do when they arrive in the UK must be related to the scope of your charity organisation. Your employee can spend a maximum of 12 months and an extra 14 days on this visa. This visa permits your employee to move to the UK with family members.
One of the advantages of this visa for you as an employer is that you are not required to pay the Australian working for you on this visa. To prove that they meet the requirements for this visa, the prospective employee will need to submit the following documents:
- Certificate of sponsorship
- Valid Australian passport
- Proof of having at least £1,270 in bank savings. You can help Australians meet this requirement by paying for their maintenance during their stay
- Evidence of relationship with family members
- Job offer that outlines the role of the Australian employee
UK Work Visa Requirements And Application Process For Employers Bringing Australians To UK
Requirements
If you want to hire from Australia, here are the requirements you have to meet below:
- You must have a valid sponsor licence
- You’ll need to issue your Australian employee a job offer and certificate of sponsorship
- You must ensure your employee can do the job you’re employing him for
- You’ll need to pay your employee the minimum salary requirement for his role as stipulated by the Home Office
- You must ensure the employee undergoes background checks to ensure they’re not a threat to the UK
Application Process
Step 1: Scout for Talent in Australia
If you want to hire from Australia, you can post your vacancies online using job boards. Ensure you highlight the requirements so you get applications from qualified candidates. Interview the applicants and select one that meets all the requirements.
Step 2: Issue Offer Letter and Certificate of Sponsorship
If you are satisfied with the candidates you have gotten, you can issue them a job offer and send them the unique reference number of the certificate of sponsorship. They’ll need both to apply for a work visa. To make it easier for your prospective employee, indicate in the CoS that you will pay for their maintenance.
Step 3: Ensure the Candidate Applies for a Work Visa
It is vital to note that the certificate of sponsorship is valid for 3 months. So, encourage your Australian employee to apply for the work visa within 3 months of receiving the CoS. To apply for a work visa, your employee has to go to the Home Office website and select the kind of work visa they want to apply for.
They can fill in the details with the correct information and attach supporting documents as prompted by the platform. They can then make an appointment with a visa application centre to have their biometrics collected.
Step 4: Help Employee Settle in the UK
If your Australian talent arrives in the UK, you can help them settle by assisting them in getting an apartment and setting up a UK bank account. You can also organise training to bring them up to speed on their job role.
Family Reunification
Certain work visas permit you to move to the UK with your family. They also permit your family to join you in the UK if you go ahead of them.
Note that if you include your family in your application, each member will pay the same application fee and immigration health surcharge as you did. You must also prove that you have enough savings for your family size.
You typically need to show a savings of:
- £1,270 as the principal applicant
- £285 for your spouse
- £315 for your first child
- £200 for any extra child
How Can Total Law Help?
Many employers shy away from hiring from overseas due to the complexity of the process, even after seeing that some overseas applicants have what they need. However, this should not be your business. If you want to hire from Australia, we are available to help.
We can guide you on issuing your international talent a CoS, assess their documents to ensure they meet the visa requirements and then help them apply. Our team comprises experienced immigration lawyers specialising in UK employment and immigration laws. We have helped many employers hire talents from overseas and can help you, too.
To speak to any of our immigration caseworkers about the UK work visa application process or find out more about what we do, call +44 (0)333 305 9375 or send a message online.
Advice Package
Get clear, expert advice on your visa options, eligibility and application before you commit to applying.
Application Package
Let our immigration lawyers prepare, check and manage your application so you can apply with confidence.
Fast Track Package
Need to apply quickly? Get priority handling by our immigration lawyers from preparation to submission.
Appeal Package
Been refused or received an unfavourable decision? Get expert legal help to challenge it or determine your next step.
The Advice Package
During this Advice Session, an immigration lawyer will assess your circumstances, explain your options and tell you what you need to do to make a strong application.
We review your circumstances, explain the relevant requirements, identify potential problems or refusal risks, and advise you on the evidence and next steps.
The Application Package
With our Application Package, your dedicated immigration lawyer will assess your case, prepare your application, check your supporting documents and submit your forms on your behalf.
We check your application for missing information, inconsistencies and potential issues before submission, helping you avoid common mistakes that could affect your case.
The Fast Track Package
Our Fast-Track Application Package gives your case priority with our immigration lawyers, helping you get your application prepared, checked and submitted as quickly as possible.
Your case receives priority handling, including accelerated document reviews, application preparation, communication with your caseworker and submission support.
The Appeal Package
Our immigration lawyers will review the decision, explain why it was refused and advise on the strongest option available to you, including an appeal, review or fresh application where appropriate.
We will examine the reasons for refusal, identify weaknesses or errors, assess your available options and provide the legal support and representation your case requires.
Related pages for your continued reading.
Frequently Asked Questions
The UK work visa application takes approximately 3 weeks. You may experience further delays due to mistakes in your application or workload at the UK Home Office. If you are applying within the UK, you must wait 8 weeks for a decision.
You can live in the UK with an Australian passport. However, if you need to stay in the UK for more than 90 days, you must have a visa and a biometric residence permit attached to your passport. These prove that you have the right to stay in the UK.
The Youth Mobility Scheme, Working Holiday visa, UK Ancestry visa and the Global Talent visa permit you to work in the UK as an Australian citizen.
