{"id":"F2018L01092","name":"Migration (Skilling Australians Fund) Charges Regulations 2018","slug":"migration-skilling-australians-fund-charges-regulations-2018","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":97789,"registerId":"commonwealth-F2018L01092-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-02","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Name","content":"#### 1 Name\n\n  This instrument is the Migration (Skilling Australians Fund) Charges Regulations 2018.","sortOrder":0},{"sectionNumber":"3","sectionType":"section","heading":"Authority","content":"#### 3 Authority\n\n  This instrument is made under the Migration (Skilling Australians Fund) Charges Act 2018.","sortOrder":1},{"sectionNumber":"4","sectionType":"section","heading":"Definitions","content":"#### 4 Definitions\n\n> Note: A number of expressions used in this instrument are defined in the Act, including the following:\n\n    (a) Migration Act;\n    (b) nomination;\n    (c) nomination training contribution charge.\n  In this instrument:\n\n> Act means the Migration (Skilling Australians Fund) Charges Act 2018.\n\n> annual turnover, for a nomination, means:\n\n    (a) if the person liable to pay nomination training contribution charge in relation to the nomination operates a business in Australia—the total ordinary income (within the meaning of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997) the person derived in the most recent income year (within the meaning of that Act) ending before the nomination day; or\n    (b) in any other case—the total income the person liable to pay nomination training contribution charge in relation to the nomination derived in the ordinary course of business in the most recent financial year ending before the nomination day.\n\n> Migration Regulations means the Migration Regulations 1994.\n\n> nomination day, in relation to a nomination, means the day on which:\n\n    (a) the nomination is made under section 140GB of the Migration Act; or\n    (b) the application for approval of the nomination is made under regulation 5.19 of the Migration Regulations.","sortOrder":2},{"sectionNumber":"5","sectionType":"section","heading":"Amount of nomination training contribution charge—Subclasses 457 and 482","content":"#### 5 Amount of nomination training contribution charge—Subclasses 457 and 482\n\n  (1) For the purposes of subsection 8(1) of the Act, this section sets out the amount of nomination training contribution charge payable in relation to a nomination, of a kind mentioned in subsection 140ZM(1) of the Migration Act, of a proposed occupation in relation to any of the following:\n    (a) a holder of a Subclass 457 (Temporary Work (Skilled)) visa;\n    (b) a holder of a Subclass 482 (Temporary Skill Shortage) visa;\n    (ba) a holder of a Subclass 482 (Skills in Demand) visa;\n    (c) an applicant or a proposed applicant for a Subclass 482 (Skills in Demand) visa.\n\n> Note: Nominations of a kind mentioned in subsection 140ZM(1) of the Migration Act relate to temporary visas: see regulation 5.42 of the Migration Regulations.\n\n  (2) Unless subsection (3) applies, the amount of nomination training contribution charge is the amount worked out using the formula:\n  ![Start formula Base amount times Visa period end formula](image.002.png)\n  where:\n\n> base amount is:\n\n    (a) if the annual turnover for the nomination is less than $10,000,000—$1,200; or\n    (b) in any other case—$1,800.\n\n> visa period is the number of years in the period of stay proposed in the nomination.\n\n> Note: The proposed period of stay may be 1, 2, 3 or 4 years: see subregulation 2.73(10) of the Migration Regulations.\n\n  (3) The amount of nomination training contribution charge is nil if:\n    (a) the nomination is for a Subclass 482 (Skills in Demand) visa in the Labour Agreement stream; and\n    (b) the proposed occupation is minister of religion or religious assistant.","sortOrder":3},{"sectionNumber":"5A","sectionType":"section","heading":"Amount of nomination training contribution charge—Subclass 494","content":"#### 5A Amount of nomination training contribution charge—Subclass 494\n\n  (1) For the purposes of subsection 8(1) of the Act, this section sets out the amount of nomination training contribution charge payable in relation to a nomination, of a kind mentioned in subsection 140ZM(1) of the Migration Act, of a proposed occupation in relation to either of the following:\n    (a) a holder of a Subclass 494 (Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional)) visa;\n    (b) an applicant or a proposed applicant for a Subclass 494 (Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional)) visa.\n\n> Note: Nominations of a kind mentioned in subsection 140ZM(1) of the Migration Act relate to temporary visas: see regulation 5.42 of the Migration Regulations.\n\n  (2) If paragraph (1)(a) applies, and subsection (4) does not apply, the amount of nomination training contribution charge is the amount worked out using the formula:\n  ![Start formula Base amount times times start fraction 5 minus Elapsed years in visa period over 5 end fraction end formula](image.003.png)\n  where:\n\n> base amount is:\n\n    (a) if the annual turnover for the nomination is less than $10,000,000—$3,000; or\n    (b) in any other case—$5,000.\n\n> elapsed years in visa period is the number of whole years in the period:\n\n    (a) starting on the date of grant of the visa mentioned in paragraph (1)(a); and\n    (b) ending on the nomination day in relation to the nomination.\n  (3) If paragraph (1)(b) applies, and subsection (4) does not apply, the amount of nomination training contribution charge is:\n    (a) if the annual turnover for the nomination is less than $10,000,000—$3,000; or\n    (b) in any other case—$5,000.\n  (4) The amount of nomination training contribution charge is nil if:\n    (a) the nomination is for a Subclass 494 (Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional)) visa in the Labour Agreement stream; and\n    (b) the proposed occupation is minister of religion or religious assistant.","sortOrder":4},{"sectionNumber":"6","sectionType":"section","heading":"Amount of nomination training contribution charge—Subclasses 186 and 187","content":"#### 6 Amount of nomination training contribution charge—Subclasses 186 and 187\n\n  (1) For the purposes of subsection 8(1) of the Act, this section sets out the amount of nomination training contribution charge payable in relation to a nomination of a kind mentioned in subsection 140ZM(2) of the Migration Act.\n\n> Note: Nominations of a kind mentioned in subsection 140ZM(2) of the Migration Act relate to permanent visas: see regulation 5.42 of the Migration Regulations.\n\n  (2) Unless subsection (3) applies, the amount of nomination training contribution charge is:\n    (a) if the annual turnover for the nomination is less than $10,000,000—$3,000; or\n    (b) in any other case—$5,000.\n  (3) The amount of nomination training contribution charge is nil if:\n    (a) the nomination relates to a Subclass 186 (Employer Nomination Scheme) visa in the Labour Agreement stream; and\n    (b) the application for approval of the nomination identifies the occupation of minister of religion or religious assistant.","sortOrder":5}],"analysis":{"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The instrument does not alter which visas or nominations are in scope under the Migration Act or Migration Regulations; it only prescribes the amounts and formulas for the nomination training contribution charge, the turnover threshold for different rates, and specific exemptions for certain labour-agreement religious occupations."},"complexity_factors":["Multiple visa subclasses covered (Subclass 457; Subclass 482 and its 'Skills in Demand' variant; Subclass 494; Subclass 186 and 187) with different charging rules","Two-tier base amounts keyed to an annual turnover threshold of $10,000,000","Different calculation methods: multiply base amount by visa period for some visas; a declining factor using elapsed years for Subclass 494 holders; flat amounts for pending applicants","Definitions that rely on other laws: 'annual turnover' refers to ordinary income under the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 and varies depending on whether the business operates in Australia","Temporal calculations: 'nomination day' and 'elapsed years in visa period' require date arithmetic tied to nomination and grant dates","Exemptions for Labour Agreement stream nominations identifying 'minister of religion' or 'religious assistant' add conditional carve-outs","Dependence on external instruments (the Migration Act and the Migration Regulations) for scope and nomination types"],"plain_english_summary":"This instrument sets the dollar amounts employers (the person liable for a nomination training contribution) must pay into the Skilling Australians Fund when lodging nominations for specific skilled visa subclasses. Charges depend on the visa subclass, the employer’s annual turnover (two-tier threshold at $10,000,000), and the proposed visa period or elapsed years for regional provisional visas; narrow exemptions apply for certain religious occupations under labour agreements. It matters because it fixes per-nomination costs that directly increase employers’ hiring expenses and require simple date- and turnover-based calculations."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The original 2018 instrument covered Subclasses 457 and 482 (temporary skilled visas) and Subclasses 186 and 187 (permanent employer-sponsored visas). Section 5A was added later to incorporate Subclass 494 (Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional)) visa, introduced as part of Australia's regional migration reforms. Additionally, the 2024 amendments added references to the new 'Subclass 482 (Skills in Demand) visa' and expanded the religious exemption to cover this new visa stream. The instrument has grown from covering 4 visa subclasses to covering 5 distinct subclasses with multiple streams, requiring increasingly complex conditional logic and formula variations."},"complexity_factors":["Multiple visa subclasses with different calculation methods (temporary vs permanent vs regional provisional)","Formula-based calculations for Subclass 457/482 (base amount × years) and Subclass 494 (base amount × time remaining fraction)","Dual-tier pricing structure based on $10 million annual turnover threshold","Cross-references to Migration Act 1958, Migration Regulations 1994, and Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 for definitions","Conditional exemptions for religious occupations in Labour Agreement streams across three visa subclasses","Different calculation logic for existing visa holders vs new applicants (Subclass 494)","Defined terms requiring lookup in parent Act (Migration (Skilling Australians Fund) Charges Act 2018)"],"plain_english_summary":"This law requires employers who nominate workers for certain Australian visas (Subclass 457, 482, 494, 186, 187) to pay a \"nomination training contribution charge\" into the Skilling Australians Fund. The charge varies by visa type, employer turnover (small vs large business), and sometimes visa duration, with higher fees for larger firms and for permanent nominations; religious ministers under some streams are exempt.\n\nIt raises direct costs for sponsoring overseas workers and funds apprenticeships and local training to encourage hiring and upskilling Australians."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/migration-skilling-australians-fund-charges-regulations-2018","history":"/api/acts/migration-skilling-australians-fund-charges-regulations-2018/history","analysis":"/api/acts/migration-skilling-australians-fund-charges-regulations-2018/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/migration-skilling-australians-fund-charges-regulations-2018/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/migration-skilling-australians-fund-charges-regulations-2018/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/migration-skilling-australians-fund-charges-regulations-2018/documents"}}