Can I sponsor a dairy farm worker in Australia? Managers yes, senior workers by agreement, milkers no

The three roles, side by side

Dairy regions (Gippsland, the south-west of Western Australia, the Murray, northern Tasmania, the New South Wales north coast, south-east Queensland) are all regional for the 494 and most sit inside a DAMA, so a dairy rarely lacks a route; what it lacks is the right code for the person it has.

The caveat, in the Department’s words

The Core Skills list entry for Dairy Cattle Farmer (and for pig, poultry, goat and aquaculture farmers) excludes “any position that predominantly involves responsibility for low-skilled tasks”, with “feeding of livestock or animals” given as the first example. A nomination describing a farmer who milks twice a day, feeds and drives the tractor is refused on that caveat; a nomination describing a manager who sets the production plan, manages staff and the herd, handles the budget and reports to the owner is assessed on its merits. The job description and the pay have to match the manager code, and the Department looks at the size of the farm.

Dairy workers already here

The role does not have to wait for a visa. Three groups can work for you today without sponsorship, and dairies already run on them:

• Working holiday makers (417 and 462): any role, six months per employer; register with the ATO for the 15 per cent rate and pay super. Employing working holiday makers.
• International students: 48 hours a fortnight in term, unlimited in breaks. Employing international students.
• Partner, graduate (485) and bridging visa holders: full work rights, a VEVO check and nothing else. Who can work for you now.

SponsorTalent lists candidates by occupation, visa and city, so you can see who can start on Monday before you make contact; search is free and a contact unlocks for A$30.

Irish, British and New Zealand dairy workers on working holiday visas and Filipino and Latin American workers on student and other visas are the onshore supply; for the senior worker you want to keep, the dairy agreement is the route, and for the one who is ready to run the farm, the farmer code. The whole sector list: agriculture occupations you can sponsor; the hiring sequence: how to hire farm workers.

Do not nominate the role under an occupation it is not. A milker nominated as a Dairy Cattle Farmer is tested against the duties, the qualification, the award classification and the pay, and a mismatch is refused, can bar the business from sponsoring for years, and exposes the worker to cancellation. If the person genuinely does the listed job and holds its qualification, nominate that job at its rate; if not, use the routes above.

Frequently asked questions

Can a dairy farm sponsor a worker on a 482 visa? Yes, for a genuine farm manager or operator as Dairy Cattle Farmer (121313), and for a senior dairy farm worker under the Dairy Industry Labour Agreement. Milkers and farm hands cannot be sponsored on the standard visas.

What is the Dairy Industry Labour Agreement? The Department’s template agreement for dairy farms, covering senior dairy cattle farm workers and dairy cattle farm operators on the 482 labour-agreement stream with English and salary concessions and a permanent pathway. The farm requests it and then nominates.

Can I nominate my milker as a Dairy Cattle Farmer? No. The occupation’s caveat excludes positions of predominantly low-skilled tasks, with feeding livestock as the Department’s own example. The farmer code is for the person who manages the enterprise or a major part of it.

Can working holiday makers work on a dairy for more than six months? Yes. Plant and animal cultivation anywhere in Australia is exempt from the six-month limit, and regional dairy work counts toward a second-year visa.