Can I sponsor a travel agent, tour guide or hotel manager in Australia?

The codes

The Department tests a travel consultant or tour guide nomination on the qualification and on whether the pay is genuine: a consultant or guide at A$79,423 is above most award rates, so the nomination needs the business’s pay records and the market-rate evidence to hold together. A position built on commission needs the threshold guaranteed in the base.

The steps and costs

1. Labour market testing: two advertisements of at least 28 days on national-reach platforms within four months of nomination, unless a trade-agreement exemption applies (China, Japan, Korea, Thailand and Vietnam, the largest inbound markets, are all on the exemption list): labour market testing.
2. Sponsorship (A$420), nomination (A$330 plus the SAF levy of A$1,200 per visa year under A$10m turnover), visa (A$4,015 for the 482; A$6,140 for the 186 or 494); VETASSESS assessment for the 186.

Full costs: cost to sponsor a worker. Timeline: how long sponsorship takes.

The DAMA route

Designated Area Migration Agreements are the exception to the lists. Regional agreements carry occupations the national lists omit; the Kimberley list (October 2025 version), for example, includes forklift drivers, truck drivers, retail and hospitality roles, and other regional agreements carry some of the same. The business must be in the region, endorsed by the regional body, and the worker must meet the agreement’s concessions on English, salary and age. Which agreement covers your area: sponsor workers in your state; how DAMAs compare with the other routes: PALM, labour agreement or DAMA.

Tourism regions are the DAMAs’ reason for existing: the Kimberley list carries tour guides, hotel and resort managers, receptionists, housekeepers, drivers and tour escorts, and the Northern Territory, Far North Queensland and other regional agreements were written for the same workforce.

Who can work for you now

The role does not have to wait for a visa. Three groups can work for you today without sponsorship, and tourism already runs 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.

Working holiday makers in tourism and hospitality in northern Australia are exempt from the six-month limit, and multilingual students and graduates are the inbound tour sector’s standing guide pool; employing working holiday makers.

Do not nominate the role under an occupation it is not. A tour escort nominated as a Tour Guide, or a duty manager as a Hotel or Motel Manager 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

Is travel agent on the skilled occupation list? Yes, as Travel Consultant 451612, added to the Core Skills list in December 2024, so the 482 and 186 are available with the 494 regionally.

Can I sponsor a tour guide? Yes. Tour Guide 451412 has been on the Core Skills list since December 2024. The salary must reach A$79,423 or the market rate, and the DAMAs cover guides in tourism regions with salary concessions.

Can a hotel sponsor a manager? Yes: Hotel or Motel Manager 141311 and Hotel Service Manager 431411 are both on the Core Skills list. The manager caveat excludes positions that are predominantly low-skilled tasks, so a duty manager who mainly works the desk is nominated as Hotel Service Manager, not as the hotel manager.

Can I sponsor a hotel receptionist or housekeeper? Not on the standard visas. The DAMAs are the route in regional tourism areas, and working holiday makers, students and other onshore visa holders fill the roles elsewhere.