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you are here: Visas > Business Visas
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Australia's business skills migration program encourages successful business people (Business Owners, Investors & Senior Executives) to settle permanently in Australia and develop new or existing businesses in Australia.
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Skilled migration is limited to the under 45s (yes, quite cruel) and spousal migration is limited to those who have fallen in love with an Australian (yes, even more cruel).
However business migration is limited to age 55 and under, and some states (currently on WA) will look at sponsoring applicants up to age 59.
Therein poses the first question - 'What is state sponsorship ?' : -
This does not mean that you have to run the Sydney marathon sponsored by the state of your choice. State Sponsorship is the first stage of a few different business visa types.
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These are: -
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The Business Owner Visa
Pathway A: -
To be eligible, you need to show that: -
- For at least 2 of the 4 fiscal years immediately before the application is made, you need to have had an ownership interest in up to 2 main businesses that had a combined annual turnover of at least AUD300,000.
- Your business and personal assets (including your spouse) have a net value of at least AUD250,000 which are available for the conduct or establishment of a business in Australia and are lawfully acquired and available for transfer to Australia within 2 years of the grant of State Sponsored Business Owner (Provisional) visa.
1. What does 'ownership interest' mean here ?
It is the portion of net assets (ie total assets minus total liabilities) that should be distributed to all the owners of the business if the business were to be dissolved. An individuals equity or interest is their individual portion of the total owners' equity of the business. In a business, owner's equity may be called shareholders' equity.
2. What kinds of businesses are eligible ?
This is a key point - being self-employed will not allow you to claim the turnover as eligible. Generally, you need to employ staff, with the turnover being made up from sale of goods and services - not payment for services provided by you.
For example if you are a plumber in 'your own business', doing normal work and being paid for it, this will not qualify. If, however, you manage a team of several plumbers who do the work, and you manage the business, this can qualify. As long as you do not do the hands on tasks for 50% or more of the time.
3. What are personal assets comprised of ?
Any bank accounts, savings, bonds, property (including the home you live in), and your own personal assets. Liabilities (any debts owed) would be deducted from the total.
Pathway B: -
Within the Business Owner route, there is a pathway for Senior Managers who do not actually own a business. Applicants seeking to satisfy the criterion of senior manager, must demonstrate that they have been employed in a qualifying business for at least 3 out of the 5 years immediately before lodging the application, in a senior position.
This would mean that they are able to show that they have a record in high level management, and that they were in a position to: -
- Make decisions about how the business was managed.
- Take day to day responsibility for running part or whole of the business.
- And if appropriate have functional responsibility over other managers.
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The Senior Executive Visa
This visa is similar in some ways to the senior manager route above - the difference being that the key criteria slightly differs which you need to show that: -
- For a total of at least 2 years in the 4 years immediately before the application is made, the applicant needs to have occupied a position in the 3 highest levels of the management structure of a major business; and was responsible for strategic policy development affecting a major component or a wide range of operations of that major business.
- Your business and personal assets (including your spouse) have a net value of at least AUD250,000, which are lawfully acquired and available to transfer to Australia within 2 years after the grant of a State Sponsored Senior Executive (Provisional) visa.
1. So, that is the main eligibility criteria - What visa does that give, and How does an applicant move to residency ?
These visas have the same pathway to residency (both applications take around 8 - 12 months in total also): -
- For any 12 month period, an applicant must then meet: -
- Turnover of AUD200,000 (or set up the business and your residence in a regional area).
- Personal and business total assets of AUD250,000 or business assets of AUD75,000.
- Employ an Australian.
- For any 12 month period. As soon as you have met this, then you gain full PR. You need to own just 20% of a business, as long as you are running it.
A key point here is that at the time of meeting the criteria, you need to have been living in Aus for 24 months - this logically means that you can meet the criteria after the first year, as a further 12 months after that will mean 24 months (recreational and business trips outside Aus are allowed during this time, still allowing you to meet the criteria).
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The Investor Visa
This is a way to achieve Full Permanent Residence without having strict regulations on yourself to work in Australia.
To be eligible for this visa, you need to have had AUD750,000 in eligible assets for the last 5 years = all assets such as stocks, bonds, savings, 2nd / 3rd homes - but not the house that you have lived in.
You also need to have had AUD1,125,000 (1.125 million) in total assets (which can include the house that you live in) for at least the last 2 years.
If you are eligible, then at the time of the decision you made a government approved Designated Investment for at least AUD750,000 in a State or Territory of Australia. This amount must be available for transfer to Australia within a reasonable period when requested.
On these visas, should you wish to buy a house in the provisional phase, then you would need to go through the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) - this basically means that you can only buy a new house, or a plot of land.
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So these are the main visa options in the business stream - So what about the actual application itself ?
The first stage is often State Sponsorship, as we mentioned above.
On a state sponsored visa, this means that you submit a business proposal plan to the State, showing Australian business research and knowledge. This means than an applicant needs to meet the criteria above, to move to residency. Without State Sponsorship, the criteria is much higher, and the visa application itself may become more difficult.
Please Note: ASA has specific services for the State Sponsorship, business proposal plan and all areas of the application.
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Frequently Asked Questions
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What can my spouse do on the visa ?
Work is not limited for spouses, and they can take up 'normal' employment.
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I have two businesses - How can I meet the turnover requirements ?
An applicant's two main businesses can combine their turnover to meet the criteria.
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What about schooling ?
On a provisional PR visa, currently in SA and WA, this means that only local schooling fees are payable - in other states, foreigner rate fees are needed.
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Do I have to carry on the same type of business in Aus as I do now ?
Not at all - you can do a different businesses - and to make it easier to meet the requirements, you can open up another business on the side (B&B / Cafe / Franchies), to ensure meeting the turnover - and then once you achieve full PR, you can do anything as you have no restrictions at all at the stage of full residency.
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Business visas are known as the most complex, want to be sure that you meet the criteria for a business visa?
Register online and get the answers NOW!
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