The 186 visa gives permanent residency to skilled workers nominated by an Australian employer. Registered migration agents in Brisbane explain both streams. Book a consult.
The subclass 186 visa is a permanent visa that lets an Australian employer nominate a skilled worker for permanent residency. It’s often called the Employer Nomination Scheme, or the ENS visa. If your employer values you enough to sponsor you to stay for good, this is usually the visa that makes it happen. Unlike a temporary work visa, the 186 gives you permanent residency from the grant, with the right to live and work in Australia indefinitely.
Our registered migration agents in Brisbane prepare 186 applications for both workers and the businesses sponsoring them. Here’s how it works and where the process most often goes wrong.
The 186 is a permanent employer-sponsored visa. Like its temporary cousin the 482, it has three parts: an approved employer, a nomination of a genuine position, and the worker’s visa application. The difference is the outcome. Where the 482 is temporary, the 186 is permanent from day one.
There are two main streams, and which one you use depends on your history with the employer.
Temporary Residence Transition (TRT) stream. This is for workers who have already been working for their sponsoring employer on a subclass 482 (Skills in Demand) or the older TSS visa for the required period. If you’ve done your time on the temporary visa with the same employer, this is usually the smoother route to permanent residency, because you’ve already demonstrated the working relationship.
Direct Entry stream. This is for workers who haven’t been through the temporary-visa transition, or who are applying from overseas. It generally has stricter requirements around skills assessment and work experience, because you’re going straight to permanent residency without the temporary stage first.
Working out which stream fits, and whether it’s worth waiting to qualify for the TRT stream rather than pushing through Direct Entry, is one of the first things we sort out with clients.
The exact requirements differ by stream, but in general terms you’ll need:
A nominating employer who is lawfully operating in Australia and has a genuine, ongoing position for you.
A nominated occupation that’s eligible for the 186 and matches your skills.
A skills assessment for your occupation, where required, which is more commonly needed for the Direct Entry stream.
Relevant work experience in your occupation.
English language ability at the required level.
Health and character requirements met, and to be under the age limit unless an exemption applies.
The age limit and the work-experience thresholds catch people out, and there are some exemptions worth checking rather than assuming you’re out. We look at your full picture before you commit to a stream.
For a lot of workers, the 186 is the second half of a plan that started with a Skills in Demand visa (482). You come in on the temporary visa, work for your sponsor, and then transition to permanent residency through the TRT stream once you’ve met the requirement.
That’s why we always plan the two together. If you’re on a 482 now and permanent residency is the goal, the choices you make on the temporary visa, staying with the right employer, keeping your occupation aligned, affect how clean the 186 is later. Getting advice early saves a lot of trouble at the permanent stage.
Employer nomination isn’t the only route to permanent residency. If you don’t have an employer to sponsor you, or you’d rather not be tied to one, points-tested skilled migration through the 189, 190 or 491 might suit you better. The right choice depends on your occupation, your points, and whether you have a willing employer. We’ll compare the paths honestly rather than push you down one.
We work out whether Direct Entry or Temporary Residence Transition is the right stream for you.
We prepare the employer’s nomination and the worker’s visa so both sides align.
We handle the skills assessment and work-experience evidence, which is where Direct Entry applications often stumble.
We check the age limit and any exemptions before you lodge, not after.
We plan the 482-to-186 transition so your temporary visa supports the permanent one.
If a nomination or visa is refused, we know the review options and the deadlines. See our Visa Refusal & Appeal page.
It’s a permanent visa under the Employer Nomination Scheme that lets an approved Australian employer sponsor a skilled worker for permanent residency. It gives you the right to live and work in Australia permanently from the date it’s granted.
Temporary Residence Transition is for workers who’ve already worked for their sponsor on a 482 or TSS visa for the required period. Direct Entry is for those who haven’t been through that transition, or who apply from overseas, and it usually has stricter skills-assessment and experience requirements.
Not for the Direct Entry stream, which you can use without the temporary stage. But if you go through the Temporary Residence Transition stream, you’ll need to have worked for your sponsor on a 482 or TSS visa for the required period first.
Broadly, a nominating employer with a genuine position, an eligible nominated occupation, a skills assessment where required, relevant work experience, the right English level, and meeting health, character and age requirements. The detail depends on your stream, so we confirm it for your case.
Yes, there’s generally an age limit, though some applicants qualify for exemptions depending on their circumstances and occupation. It’s worth checking your situation with us rather than assuming you’re over or under the line.
Processing times vary with the stream, how complete the application is, and the department’s workload. A well-prepared application with the skills assessment and evidence ready up front tends to move more smoothly. We’ll give you a realistic timeframe for your circumstances.
Yes. You can usually include your partner and dependent children, and as permanent residents they’ll have broad rights to live, work and study in Australia. There are extra costs for each family member.
Yes. Unlike a temporary work visa, the 186 is permanent from the moment it’s granted, so you’re a permanent resident with the right to stay indefinitely and, in time, a pathway to citizenship.
Yes, typically through the Direct Entry stream. We work with applicants both inside and outside Australia and handle the process remotely where needed.
Occupation lists change, and a related occupation or a different visa pathway may still work. Don’t assume you’re out. Let us check the current lists against your background.
Depending on the decision, there may be a review pathway at the Administrative Review Tribunal, with strict time limits. If you’ve received a refusal, contact us straight away so we can act before a deadline passes.
