482 Visa Australia 2026: What Replaced TSS

By CrossNation Editorial Team 28 August 2026

The 482 visa Australia 2026 is the Skills in Demand visa. It replaced the Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) visa on 7 December 2024. The subclass number is still 482.

Hiring managers who still brief "TSS 482" in 2026 are using last year's map. About 456 occupations sit on the Core Skills Occupation List, yet many of the hardest aged care vacancies (personal care workers, assistants in nursing, aged or disabled carers) usually cannot use that list at all.

You already know local supply is thin in healthcare, aged care, construction, hospitality, and childcare. This briefing will not pretend a recruiter can grant a visa, permanent residency, or a start date.

It will show which shortage roles typically fit which stream, what to lock before you source, and how AHPRA, ACECQA, and trade licensing sit beside the visa. Recruitment, registration, and migration run on three clocks. Mixing them is how rosters stay empty.

Key takeaways

• Skills in Demand replaced TSS on 7 December 2024. The live streams are Core Skills, Specialist Skills, and Labour Agreement. Essential Skills is not a live general stream.
• For nominations lodged from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027, CSIT is AUD $79,423 and SSIT is AUD $146,576. Pay the higher of that floor or the Annual Market Salary Rate. Confirm both on Home Affairs.
• Registered nurses, enrolled nurses, electricians, plumbers, child care workers, and many chefs or cooks can sit on the Core Skills Occupation List. Direct-care aged care roles often need an Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement instead.
• A 482 nomination is not a hire. Standard Business Sponsor approval, nomination, and visa are three separate decisions. AHPRA, ACECQA, or a state trade licence can sit on another clock.
• If sponsored employment ends, condition 8607 generally allows 180 consecutive days (365 days in total across the visa) to find a new sponsor. The visa can remain. A new nomination is required before the person works for a new sponsor.

If you are mapping a shortage vacancy to overseas hiring, start with CrossNation's overseas recruitment process for Australian shortage sectors. That is a recruitment briefing and shortlist process, not a visa lodgement service.

What the 482 visa Australia 2026 replaced

The TSS 482 replacement kept the same subclass and threw out the old short-term and medium-term split. New applications are assessed as a Skills in Demand visa. If your internal policy, job ad, or board paper still says "TSS 482", rewrite it before you brief a migration partner.

The visa is still a temporary employer-sponsored pathway. Stay is generally up to four years. Applicants typically need about 12 months of relevant work experience. Confirm how that period is measured with a registered migration agent.

It is not a general labour visa, and it is not a permanent visa. CROSSNATION EDUCATION SERVICES PTY LTD (ABN 73 631 775 810, Victoria VIC 3978) is not a registered migration agent and does not give migration legal advice.

Three streams, not the old TSS split

Essential Skills appeared in earlier policy papers. As of mid-2026 it is not a live general 482 stream. If a vendor sells you an "Essential Skills 482", stop and get advice on the actual stream.

A third-party explainer of the Skills in Demand visa

The webinar below is a third-party explainer of the Skills in Demand visa, useful if your team still thinks in TSS streams. It is not a CrossNation video and it is not legal advice.

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Which shortage roles fit which stream

Legal guides explain the visa. Employers need a different question: does this vacancy fit Core Skills, Specialist Skills, or a labour agreement, and what else must be true before you source?

Check the occupation against the Core Skills Occupation List compilation dated 28 March 2026 and against Home Affairs. Lists and caveats change. A job title on SEEK is not an ANZSCO code.

Healthcare and aged care: CSOL versus labour agreement

Registered Nurse (Aged Care) 254412 and other RN codes sit on the CSOL. Enrolled Nurse 411411 sits on it too. Occupational Therapist 252411, Physiotherapist 252511, Speech Pathologist 252712, and Social Worker 272511 also appear.

Those are Core Skills conversations if salary, experience, English, and nomination settings line up. They are still not a start-date promise.

Personal care workers, assistants in nursing, and aged or disabled carers usually do not fit standard Core Skills. Direct-care aged care often needs the Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement for overseas care workers.

A regional aged care operator in Mildura, for example, might have two night-shift RN vacancies and three PCA vacancies. The RN roles can be scoped to CSOL codes and to AHPRA readiness. The PCA roles need a different pathway discussion with a registered migration agent.

One overseas recruitment campaign cannot carry both unless the employer has already sorted which stream belongs to which role. CrossNation can source and screen both pipelines. It cannot collapse them into one visa slogan.

For nursing vacancies, use CrossNation's healthcare recruitment for Australian employers and the AHPRA readiness checklist for overseas nurses before anyone talks about a start date.

Construction, hospitality, and childcare

Electrician (General) 341111 and Plumber (General) 334116 are on the CSOL. Diesel Motor Mechanic 321212 is on it as well. Those trades still need the right ANZSCO match, a salary that clears the higher of CSIT or AMSR, and the state licence the site actually requires.

A white card is not a 482 nomination. See construction trades recruitment for Australian employers.

Chef 351311 and Cook 351411 are on the CSOL with caveats. Positions in limited-service restaurants are excluded. Factory or mass-production kitchen work is also excluded.

Limited-service venues include fast food and takeaway, fast casual restaurants, drinking establishments with only limited food service, limited-service cafes (including coffee shops and mall cafes), and limited-service pizza restaurants. A job title of "chef" does not save that venue.

A Sunraysia hotel, for example, might want a Chef 351311 for a full-service dining room that also has a cafe servery. The occupation is on the list. The caveat still asks whether the nominated position is in a limited-service restaurant.

If the actual duties sit in the servery, the nomination can fail even though "chef" is on the CSOL. Fix the position description and the venue evidence before you source from Manila or Kathmandu.

Hospitality recruitment for chefs, cooks, and hotel roles should start with the venue model, not the visa form.

Child Care Worker 421111 is on the CSOL, with ACECQA as the assessing authority on that compilation. Being on the list is not the same as clearing CSIT, and it is not ACECQA-ready documents.

Specialist Skills is a salary and ANZSCO filter

Specialist Skills is not a second shortage list. It is a high-pay stream for occupations in eligible ANZSCO major groups. Trades, machinery operators and drivers, and labourers (Major Groups 3, 7, and 8) are out, even if you offer AUD $146,576.

Paying Specialist Skills money does not rescue a cook, electrician, or diesel mechanic nomination.

A metropolitan radiology practice paying above SSIT for a specialist medical role is a different stream conversation from a regional Grade 1 allied health vacancy. Confirm occupation group and salary with a registered migration agent before you write the ad.

482 visa Australia 2026 salary floors you lock before sourcing

Do not source a nominee against last year's TSMIT figure. For nomination applications lodged from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027, the Core Skills Income Threshold is AUD $79,423. The Specialist Skills Income Threshold is AUD $146,576.

BDO's April 2026 note set out the CSIT increase. Earlier $79,499 forecasts were wrong. Always confirm the live figures on Home Affairs.

The nomination lodgement date sets which year's threshold applies. Visa lodgement date does not. A start date in August does not save a nomination lodged after 1 July against the old floor.

CSIT and SSIT are floors, not salaries. The worker must also be paid at least the Annual Market Salary Rate for the equivalent Australian worker in that role and location. The number that binds you is the higher of the stream threshold and AMSR.

Guaranteed annual earnings are what matter. Superannuation and non-guaranteed overtime generally do not lift a package over the line. If the role cannot clear that higher figure, pause sourcing for a standard Core Skills nomination. CrossNation will not set a nomination salary.

Three clocks employers mix up: recruitment, registration, and migration

Recruitment decides whether the employer wants the person. Registration or licensing decides whether the person can legally do the job in Australia. Migration decides whether a visa pathway exists and is approved.

Those are three clocks. CrossNation can move the first and can screen awareness of the second. It cannot run the third.

Priya, an RN in Manila, has five years of medical-ward experience, a current licence in the Philippines, and a recent English test. An Australian hospital wants her on a Skills in Demand nomination. That is a recruitment yes. It is not an AHPRA grant and it is not a visa grant.

If the hiring manager treats visa approval as a roster start date, the vacancy is still open. Document readiness, English evidence, and AHPRA pathway awareness belong in the shortlist, not in a promise.

The same split applies to ACECQA for child care workers and to state electrical or plumbing licences for trades. A strong CV from India or Nepal does not replace the Australian regulator.

Location fit is part of the recruitment clock. Regional allied health and industrial trade vacancies (OT, physio, speech, social work, electrician, or diesel mechanic roles in a Sunraysia setting, for example) fail when the candidate will only consider inner-metro Sydney. Screen location honestly before you spend interview time.

What to lock before you sponsor an overseas worker in Australia

Lock the role, ANZSCO code, stream, salary band, and licence requirement before you ask for CVs. Then lock the three government approvals. Then run labour market testing on a clock that will still be valid at nomination.

Standard Business Sponsor, nomination, and visa

There are three approvals. The business needs to be an approved Standard Business Sponsor, or become one. The sponsor nominates a genuine full-time position and a specific person. The worker applies for the visa.

Each stage has its own evidence. A candidate who looks ready for interview is not "482 approved".

CrossNation's job is the recruitment side: role brief, sourcing, document and English-readiness screening, references, location fit, and a migration-partner handoff. Employers who ask us to "handle the visa" are asking for work we are not licensed to do.

Labour market testing still generally sits on the nomination clock

Labour market testing is still generally required. The usual pattern is two advertisements on platforms with national reach, running for 28 days. Workforce Australia has not been a required extra platform since December 2023.

Confirm current exemptions and the advertising window with your migration partner. Write the ad to the nominated occupation and location. Do not advertise a "care worker" if you intend to nominate an aged care RN.

English tests expanded on 13 September 2025

Approved tests now include IELTS, PTE, OET, TOEFL iBT, CELPIP, LANGUAGECERT Academic, and MET. Do not mix component scores across tests.

Prescribed scores sit in the visa instrument, not in a recruiter's brochure. Confirm current scores and validity on Home Affairs before you treat a test report as nomination-ready.

After employment ends: 180 days, then a new sponsor

Condition 8607 still ties the holder to the approved sponsor and nominated occupation while they are working in the sponsored role. If that employment ends, the holder generally has 180 consecutive days, and 365 days in total across the visa, to find a new sponsor, seek another visa, or leave. That window used to be 60 days.

Sources describe work rights during the gap in slightly different ways. The careful reading for employers is this: the visa can remain in effect, and a new nomination is required before the person can work for a new sponsor. Do not brief managers that the holder has open work rights.

Eligible subclass 482 holders may later be nominated for subclass 186 Temporary Residence Transition after two years of eligible sponsored employment. That period was reduced from three years in November 2023. Two years is one requirement, not automatic permanent residency.

Frequently asked questions about the 482 visa Australia 2026

What replaced the TSS 482 visa in Australia?

The Skills in Demand visa replaced the Temporary Skill Shortage visa on 7 December 2024. The subclass is still 482. New applications use Core Skills, Specialist Skills, or Labour Agreement streams, not the old short-term and medium-term TSS split.

What is the 482 visa salary threshold in 2026?

For nominations lodged from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027, CSIT is AUD $79,423 and SSIT is AUD $146,576. Also meet AMSR. Use the higher figure. Confirm on Home Affairs.

Can I sponsor a personal care worker on a standard 482 Core Skills nomination?

Often no. PCA, AIN, and aged or disabled carer roles usually sit outside standard CSOL Core Skills. Many employers need an Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement.

Is chef on the Core Skills Occupation List in 2026?

Yes. Chef 351311 and Cook 351411 are listed, with caveats that exclude limited-service restaurants and factory production.

How long can a 482 visa holder stay after they lose their job?

Condition 8607 generally allows 180 consecutive days, and 365 days in total across the visa, to find a new sponsor. The visa can remain. A new nomination is needed to work for a new sponsor.

Does the 482 visa still lead to permanent residency?

Eligible holders may be nominated for subclass 186 Temporary Residence Transition after two years of eligible sponsored employment. That is one requirement, not a guarantee.

Do I still need labour market testing for a 482 in 2026?

Generally yes: 28 days, two national-reach platforms. Workforce Australia has not been a required extra platform since December 2023.

What English tests are accepted for the 482 visa after September 2025?

IELTS, PTE, OET, TOEFL iBT, CELPIP, LANGUAGECERT Academic, and MET. Do not mix scores across tests. Confirm prescribed scores on Home Affairs.

Brief the 482 visa Australia 2026 as a recruitment problem

The 482 visa Australia 2026 is a recruitment problem first. The Skills in Demand visa is how Australia now labels employer-sponsored temporary skilled work. The TSS name is gone. The subclass is not. Employers who still write "TSS 482" into a 2026 workforce plan will brief the wrong lists, salary names, and mobility rules.

Lock the stream to the occupation. Lock salary to the higher of CSIT or AMSR. Lock registration before you promise a start date. Then source.

CrossNation will help with the recruitment part of that sequence, with a migration-partner handoff where legal advice is required. If you want a shortage-role shortlist built that way, brief CrossNation on the vacancy. Candidates from the Philippines, India, Nepal, and other qualified markets can upload a CV.