When a business with sponsored staff changes hands, the sponsorship stays behind. It attaches to the legal entity that applied, not to the trading name, the premises or the workforce. We see that discovered in due diligence far more often than at the planning stage. It is also the clearest way to understand what the approval is. A Standard Business Sponsor approval is a licence held by one entity, carrying obligations that entity cannot assign.
This note explains what the approval covers, what the Department checks before granting it and what it binds the business to afterwards. Our commercial practice and the migration team prepare these together, because the obligations end up in contracts.
In short: A business must hold approval as a Standard Business Sponsor before it can nominate a 482 worker. The sponsorship charge is $420, each nomination is $330, and the Skilling Australians Fund levy is $1,200 or $1,800 for every year of the nomination.
What the approval attaches to
The approval sits with the entity that applied. Once granted it runs for five years, and the business can lodge as many nominations as it needs in that time. It covers the Core Skills and Specialist Skills streams of the subclass 482 visa. It does not transfer on an asset sale, and it does not automatically extend to other companies in a group.
That last point catches employers with holding structures. The entity that will employ the sponsored worker must hold the approval or be covered as an associated entity in the application. Choosing the wrong applicant entity is the first decision we check.
Which entity should apply?
Which entity will sign the worker's employment contract?
What the Department checks
Approval turns on the business rather than on any worker. The business must be lawfully established and currently operating. There must be no adverse information about the business or the people who run it. Unpaid tax debts, workplace breaches and earlier sponsorship sanctions all count.
Financial statements, registrations and an organisational chart usually settle the question. We also check the compliance history of directors and related entities, because adverse information about a person follows them into a new company.
A start-up can be approved, but it must show it is real. Signed customer contracts, a lease, a business plan and evidence of capacity to pay the nominated salary all help. Thin trading history invites closer scrutiny rather than refusal.
Decide which entity employs sponsored staff before applying. Where several entities will employ workers, each needs its own approval or must be covered as an associated entity. Restructuring after approval can leave a worker employed by an entity that holds nothing.
The charges in 2026-27
| Charge | Paid by | Figure |
|---|---|---|
| Sponsorship application | Employer, once per five years | $420 |
| Nomination | Employer, per position | $330 |
| Skilling Australians Fund levy | Employer, per year of the nomination, in full at lodgement | $1,200 (turnover under $10 million) or $1,800 |
| Visa application | Worker, main applicant | $4,015 |
| 186 nomination, later | Employer | $540 plus a one-off levy of $3,000 or $5,000 |
Figures verified against Home Affairs visa pricing as at 1 July 2026.
The levy is the line that surprises finance teams. It is calculated on the length of the nominated period and paid up front. Refunds are available only in narrow cases, so we budget as if it is not coming back. Professional fees sit on top of every figure in the table.
What the approval binds you to
Sponsorship obligations run for the life of the approval and, for some, beyond it. Five cause most of the trouble. The business must not recover the sponsorship charge, the nomination charge or the levy from the worker. It must pay no less than the nominated salary and the terms of equivalent Australian staff. It must keep records and produce them to an inspector. It must notify the Department when the worker leaves or the business changes. It must keep the worker in the nominated occupation.
Each of those is a contract issue as much as a migration one. Our commercial practice drafts sponsored contracts with no deduction or clawback clause for sponsorship costs. The duties clause stays inside the nominated occupation. The termination clause triggers an internal notification diary, because the reporting period is short. Our note on employment contracts for sponsored staff sets those clauses out.
When the business is sold
What happens to the sponsorship on a sale of business?
In an asset sale the buyer acquires the workforce but not the approval. The buyer needs its own sponsorship and fresh nominations before the sponsored staff can work for it. In a share sale the entity survives, so the approval survives with it, but the change may still be notifiable. Timing the completion date against the visa position is part of the deal. Our guide to selling a business with sponsored employees covers both structures.
Sequence the approval with the hire
Sponsorship, nomination and visa can be lodged together, and we usually recommend it where the evidence is ready. Lodging the sponsorship first and waiting adds time without adding certainty. The nomination and the visa are assessed on their own merits anyway. Labour market testing can run while the sponsorship is assessed, so both are ready together. Our sponsor-first hiring sequence sets out the order we use.
Perhaps your business is weighing its first sponsored hire, or a buyer has just asked about your sponsorship. Either way, the migration practice can map the approval against your structure.
Frequently asked questions
Can a sole trader or partnership become a sponsor?
Yes, provided the business is lawfully established and operating. The approval attaches to the person or partnership carrying on the business. A later move to a company generally needs a fresh approval, so plan the structure before applying.
Does the approval lapse if we do not nominate anyone?
No. It runs for its five-year term whether or not a nomination is lodged. The obligations that depend on a sponsored worker only bite once one is employed.
Does a buyer inherit our sponsorship in an asset sale?
No. The approval stays with the selling entity. The buyer applies for its own approval and nominates each sponsored worker again before employing them.
Can we recover costs if the worker resigns early?
Not the sponsorship charge, the nomination charge, the levy or the cost of recruiting the worker. Recovering any of them is a breach with sanctions attached. We do not draft clawback clauses for those items in a sponsored contract.
Do we need approval before we advertise the role?
No. Labour market testing attaches to the nomination, not the sponsorship. Many employers run the advertising while the sponsorship is assessed, then lodge the nomination as soon as both are ready.
General information as at 2 September 2026. Not legal advice. Government charges change each July, and sponsorship obligations turn on the facts of each business, so obtain advice before acting.