Written by Immigrad · Registered Migration Agent · MARN 1805710 · Last updated September 2026
Labour market testing is not required only where Australia has waived it under its international trade obligations. There are no occupation-based, skill-level or disaster exemptions. The waiver depends on the nominee citizenship, or on their existing employment with an associated entity overseas, together with the visa stream and occupation — not on nationality alone.
Two things follow from that. First, the exemptions many employers remember from the old Temporary Work (Skilled) visa (subclass 457) program no longer exist. The Department of Home Affairs states that occupation-based exemptions are not available under the Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482) or the Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 494), and that there are currently no instruments providing exemptions for specific occupations, for ANZSCO skill level 1 or 2 groups, or due to a major disaster.
Second, what remains are the international trade obligation waivers. These are narrow and they turn on the category the nominee falls into, not on their passport by itself. An employer relying on one should state in the nomination submission which category applies and evidence why, rather than leaving the Department to infer it. A nomination that simply asserts an exemption without identifying its basis is a predictable request for further information.
Which nationalities can be exempt from labour market testing?
Labour market testing is waived where the nominee is applying in an LMT exempt category under Australia international trade obligations and is a citizen or national of Brunei, China, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Thailand or Vietnam, or a citizen, national or permanent resident of Canada, Chile, South Korea, New Zealand, Singapore or the United Kingdom. Coming from one of those countries is necessary but not sufficient, because the exempt category still has to be met.
Does an intra-company transfer avoid labour market testing?
It can. The Department waives labour market testing where the nominee is a current employee of a business that is an associated entity of the sponsor, and that associated entity is located in an ASEAN country (Brunei, Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand or Vietnam), or in Canada, Chile, China, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Peru, Samoa, Tuvalu, Kiribati, Tonga, Solomon Islands, Niue, the Cook Islands or Vanuatu. Evidence of the corporate relationship and of the existing employment is what carries it.
Is there a labour market testing exemption for executives and senior managers?
There is a separate waiver where the nominee is a current employee of an associated entity operating in a World Trade Organisation member country, the nominated occupation is an executive or senior manager occupation for the purposes of international trade obligations, and the nominee will be responsible for the entire or a substantial part of the sponsor Australian operations. It is narrower than it first appears, and the responsibility element is tested on the evidence.
Are there occupation-based exemptions to labour market testing?
No. The Department confirms that occupation-based exemptions available under the former Temporary Work (Skilled) visa (subclass 457) are not available under the subclass 482 or subclass 494 programs. There are currently no instruments providing exemptions for specific occupations, for ANZSCO skill level 1 or 2 groups, or because of a major disaster. A senior professional role is not exempt simply because it is senior.
What happens if no labour market testing exemption applies?
The standard requirements apply. The position must have been advertised in Australia, in English, for at least four weeks within the four months immediately before the nomination is lodged, using at least two valid advertisements, with copies provided at lodgement. Building the advertising into the recruitment timeline is considerably cheaper than discovering at nomination stage that it has to be run again.
Related Immigrad pages
- Labour market testing in Australia, the exact rules
- Specialist Skills stream and labour market testing
- Standard business sponsorship, step by step
- Subclass 494 employer requirements
All requirements above were checked against the Department of Home Affairs labour market testing guidance on 19 September 2026. The governing instrument is the Migration (LIN 18/036: Period, manner and evidence of labour market testing) Instrument 2018. Requirements change, so confirm them at the Department of Home Affairs before you rely on them.
Not sure whether your nomination is exempt? Whether an international trade obligation waiver applies turns on the corporate structure, the occupation and the nominee circumstances together, and getting it wrong costs a nomination cycle. Talk to Immigrad about your nomination.
This page is general information only and is not personal migration advice. It does not take your circumstances into account, and no visa outcome or processing time is guaranteed or implied. Processing times are those published by the Department of Home Affairs. Complex cases need personal advice from a registered migration agent. Immigrad is operated by Oceans Consultancy Pty Ltd; Gaurav Duggal, MARN 1805710.