A 482 visa cancellation usually starts with a written notice of intention to consider cancellation, and a holder in Australia has 5 working days from receiving it to respond. Only Home Affairs (the Minister or a delegate) can cancel a visa; an employer or sponsor cannot. The notice sets out the grounds and the information behind them, so first note the response date, then gather evidence that the ground does not exist or that there is a reason the visa should not be cancelled.
Time limit
Respond within 5 working days if you are in Australia. If you need more time, ask in writing before that period ends for the one further 5 working days.
Worth knowing
This guide explains the rules. It is not advice about your situation: the grounds in your notice, and the evidence you hold, decide what the response should say.
| Item | Amount | Applies from | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time to respond to a notice of intention to consider cancellation, holder in Australia | 5 working days | current | Migration Regulations 1994, reg 2.44(2)(a) |
| Time to respond to a notice of intention to consider cancellation, holder outside Australia, cancellation considered in Australia | 28 days | current | Migration Regulations 1994, reg 2.44(2)(b)(i) |
| Further time prescribed to respond to a cancellation notice (extension) | 5 working days | current | Migration Regulations 1994, reg 2.44(3) |
| Time to apply to the ART for review of a reviewable migration decision (nomination, sponsorship, onshore visa), person not in detention | 28 days | current | Migration Act 1958, s 347(3)(b) |
| Time to apply to the ART for review of a reviewable migration decision if in immigration detention when notified | 14 days | current | Migration Act 1958, s 347(3)(a) |
| Time to apply to the ART about a character decision under s 501 (person in the migration zone) | 9 days | current | Migration Act 1958, s 500(6B) |
| Administrative Review Tribunal fee, migration (Part 5) decision | $3,727 | current | Administrative Review Tribunal: fees |
| ART fee for a character-related visa refusal or cancellation (the Tribunal standard application fee; not the Part 5 migration fee in art_fee) | $1,195 | current | Administrative Review Tribunal: fees |
| Exclusion period (re-entry ban) under public interest criteria 4013 and 4014 (Home Affairs: "up to 3 years") | 3 years | current | Migration Regulations 1994, Sch 4 PIC 4013 and 4014; Home Affairs re-entry ban page |
The cancellation process, stage by stage
| Stage | What happens | Time limit | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notice of intention | Home Affairs writes that there appear to be grounds, with the particulars and the information behind them | – | Migration Act s 119 |
| Further adverse information | Home Affairs gives particulars of other information it may rely on and invites comment | Same periods as your response | s 120 |
| Your response | In writing, at an interview or by phone, as the notice specifies | 5 working days in Australia; 28 days outside Australia if the cancellation is considered in Australia; one extension of 5 working days | s 121; reg 2.44 |
| No response | Home Affairs may decide without further action once the time has passed | – | ss 123, 124 |
| Decision | Written notice of the ground and, where it exists, the right to ART review, its time limit, who can apply and where | – | s 127 |
| ART review | Application by the former holder, who must be in Australia | 28 days after notification; 14 days in immigration detention; 9 days for a character decision under s 501 | ss 338(3), 347, 500(6B) |
| After cancellation | Family members’ visas are cancelled too; a Bridging visa E may be available; new applications in Australia are limited; a re-entry ban may apply | Re-entry ban of up to 3 years | s 140(1); s 48 and reg 2.12; Cancelling a visa page; re-entry ban page |
How does a 482 cancellation start?
- The notice. Home Affairs gives a notice of intention to consider cancellation under section 119 of the Migration Act 1958, in the way the Act prescribes.
- The date it counts as received. A notice sent by email or to ImmiAccount is taken to be received at the end of the day it is sent; one posted within Australia is taken to be received 7 working days after its date (s 494C). Your response period runs from then.
- A representative as authorised recipient. If you appointed your lawyer or another person as your authorised recipient, receipt by them counts as receipt by you (s 494D).
Why are 482 visas cancelled?
Home Affairs lists its grounds on its Cancelling a visa page. For a 482, the grounds in the Act and in regulation 2.43 of the Migration Regulations 1994 include:
- the circumstances on which the grant was based no longer exist (s 116(1)(a));
- a visa condition was breached, such as the 482 visa condition 8607 limits on employer, occupation and breaks from sponsored work (s 116(1)(b));
- incorrect information was given (s 116(1AB));
- paying for visa sponsorship (s 116(1AC));
- the intention to perform the occupation, or the position, is not genuine (reg 2.43(1)(kc));
- the sponsor gave false information, failed a sponsorship obligation, had its approval cancelled or was barred, or its labour agreement, including a DAMA agreement, ended (reg 2.43(1)(l));
- for a family member, the sponsor did not list them on the latest nomination (reg 2.43(1)(ld));
- the sponsor has paid the holder’s return travel (reg 2.43(1)(le));
- a conviction for an offence (reg 2.43(1)(oa));
- character (s 501).
The same cancellation powers in the Act applied to 457 visa holders.
How do you respond to the notice?
- Note the date and the method. The notice specifies how to respond: in writing, at an interview or by phone (s 121(1)).
- Answer each ground with evidence. Show that the ground does not exist, or give the reasons the visa should not be cancelled.
- Ask for the extension in time. One further 5 working days is prescribed (reg 2.44(3)), and the Minister may extend the response period by that much (s 121(4)), so ask before the original period ends.
- Give workplace-exploitation evidence where it applies. For a breach of a work condition linked to exploitation, give Home Affairs the certificate from a certifying entity and a written commitment. Home Affairs must consider them (reg 2.43A), and in the circumstances in regulation 2.43B it must not cancel.
- For paying for sponsorship, show the context. Home Affairs says it may not cancel where the holder is a victim of exploitation, trafficking or slavery, and it asks for evidence of ties to Australia (Cancelling a visa page).
An Australian migration lawyer is more likely to keep the visa because they answer each ground in the notice with evidence inside the 5 working days, ask for the one extension in time, and put any workplace-exploitation certificate before Home Affairs in the form regs 2.43A and 2.43B require.
Can a cancellation be reviewed?
Yes, for a cancellation made while you were in Australia (s 338(3)), with three exceptions: a cancellation made in immigration clearance, one made personally by the Minister, and one made under section 501. A character decision under section 501 has its own review under section 500, which must be lodged within 9 days, with the standard fee of $1,195.
For other cancellations, apply to the ART within 28 days of being notified with the $3,727 fee. Decisions made personally by the Minister can only go to judicial review (Cancelling a visa page). Who applies, the fee and what the Tribunal can order are set out under review of a 482 decision.
What if the cancellation follows a job loss?
The break allowance in condition 8607(5), up to 180 days at a time and 365 days in total, runs first. After it, breach of the condition is a cancellation ground (s 116(1)(b)), and a sponsor paying your return travel is a ground in itself (reg 2.43(1)(le)). Home Affairs frames the break as the time to be nominated by a new sponsor, be granted another visa or leave Australia (482 change-in-situation page). The count of days after losing your job, with a date calculator, has its own guide.
Can the sponsor cancel your visa?
No. Home Affairs states that an employer, a sponsor or a family member cannot cancel your visa (Cancelling a visa page; Home Affairs worker rights page), and the Fair Work Ombudsman says the same (visa holders and migrants). The sponsor must notify Home Affairs within 28 days when employment ends (Home Affairs 482 change-in-situation page), and its own conduct can create a ground (reg 2.43(1)(l)).
How do you cancel a 482 yourself?
- Be outside Australia. Home Affairs processes a voluntary cancellation request only from a holder who is outside Australia (Cancelling a visa page).
- Lodge the request in ImmiAccount, yourself or through an authorised representative.
- Super. A temporary sponsored holder who has stopped work and left Australia, and whose visa still has months to run, requests cancellation so the visa ceases and the super can be claimed (Cancelling a visa page).
Common mistakes
- Missing the 5 working days. Once the time passes, Home Affairs may decide without further action (Migration Act ss 123, 124; reg 2.44(2)(a)).
- Not asking for the extension in time. Only one further 5 working days is prescribed (s 121(4); reg 2.44(3)).
- Leaving out evidence of workplace exploitation. Home Affairs must consider a certifying entity’s certificate and the holder’s written commitment (reg 2.43A), and in the regulation 2.43B circumstances it must not cancel.
- Missing the ART deadline: 28 days, or 14 days in detention, and the ART cannot extend it (s 347(3), (5)).
- Believing the employer has cancelled the visa, or can. Only Home Affairs can (Cancelling a visa page).
- Forgetting the family. Visas held as members of the family unit are cancelled with a primary visa cancelled under section 116 (s 140(1)).
- Planning to lodge a new 482 in Australia after cancellation. Section 48 limits applications made in Australia to the classes in regulation 2.12, which does not include the 482.
- Asking for voluntary cancellation from inside Australia. Home Affairs processes those requests only from holders outside Australia (Cancelling a visa page).
Unregistered agents
An unregistered agent who gives immigration assistance on a sponsorship, nomination or visa is breaking the law (Migration Act 1958 s 280). They also carry no professional indemnity insurance, so if their mistake leads to a refusal, lost fees or a closed pathway, the worker or employer has no insurer to claim against. A practising Australian lawyer must carry that insurance.
Questions people ask
Can your employer cancel your 482 visa?
No. Only Home Affairs can cancel a visa. The employer must tell Home Affairs within 28 days when your job ends.
What happens if your visa is cancelled?
You need another visa, such as a Bridging visa E where one is available, or you must leave. Family visas linked to yours are cancelled too, new applications in Australia are limited, and a re-entry ban can apply.
What happens if I quit my job on a 482 visa?
The visa is not cancelled when you resign. Condition 8607 gives you up to 180 days at a time, and 365 days in total, to find a new sponsor, get another visa or leave.
How long do I have to respond to a notice of intention to cancel?
5 working days if you are in Australia, with one further 5 working days if you ask for it in time.
How do I cancel my 482 visa through ImmiAccount?
Home Affairs processes a voluntary cancellation request only from a holder who is outside Australia, lodged in ImmiAccount by the holder or an authorised representative.