Switching to a 482 From a 485, Student, 407 or 403 Visa

Switching to a 482 from a 485, student, 407, 403 or working holiday visa is possible in Australia when the current visa carries no “no further stay” condition, an approved sponsor nominates the position, and the 482 application is lodged while the current visa is still in effect. A subsequent temporary application charge of $700 per applicant applies on top of the $4,015 visa charge unless an exemption applies, for example a first substantive temporary visa application made in Australia. The first step is to check the conditions on the current grant in VEVO, then confirm the occupation, salary and 1 year of experience the 482 needs.

Can you apply for a 482 while on another visa?

Yes, if five conditions are met:

1. You are in Australia but not in immigration clearance (Migration Regulations 1994, Schedule 1 item 1240(3)(c)).
2. You hold a substantive visa, or a Bridging visa A, B or C, when you lodge (item 1240(3)(d)).
3. No no-further-stay condition blocks the grant. Conditions 8503, 8534 and 8535 prevent the grant of a 482 in Australia unless the condition is waived. A waiver needs a major change in circumstances after the visa was granted that was outside your control; marriage and pregnancy are not grounds, and the Administrative Review Tribunal cannot review a waiver refusal (Home Affairs no further stay waiver page).
4. You have substantially complied with the conditions of your previous visas (Schedule 2 clause 482.211).
5. You pay the subsequent temporary application charge of $700 where it applies (Home Affairs subsequent temporary application charge page).

How each common source visa meets those conditions. Anything not stated here depends on the grant, so check the grant letter or VEVO:

Whether a no-further-stay condition, the $700 charge or the date the current visa ends blocks an onshore 482 is decided by the exact conditions on the grant, so an immigration lawyer who checks them before the employer nominates and the $4,015 is paid makes a valid, grantable application more likely.

From a 485 graduate visa

A 485 holder switches on the 482’s own criteria; holding the 485 does not replace any of them. The 482 needs:

• an occupation that fits a stream: the Core Skills Occupation List, or ANZSCO Major Groups 1, 2, 4, 5 or 6 for Specialist Skills;
• 1 year of full-time work (or the equivalent) in the occupation or a related field within the last 5 years, not the 2 years the TSS required before 7 December 2024 (Schedule 2 clauses 482.221(1) and 482.231(1); Home Affairs news item 1272);
• English at IELTS 5.0 in each component or an equivalent, unless an exemption such as 5 years of full-time study in English applies;
• a skills assessment where IMMI 18/039 lists the occupation and passport, commenced before the 482 is lodged.

What is the difference between a 485 and a 482?

The 485 is not employer-sponsored. The 482 ties the holder to the sponsor’s business and the nominated occupation under condition 8607, and leads to permanent residence through the 186 Temporary Residence Transition stream.

From a student visa

A student visa holder first checks the grant for conditions 8534 and 8535. Condition 8534 allows only a protection, 485 or 590 visa to be granted in Australia, and 8535 only a protection visa or a government-sponsored student visa, so either blocks an onshore 482 unless waived. Work experience gained as part of a Masters or PhD, or in formal placements and internships, can count toward the 1 year where the Core Skills stream page’s conditions are met. Full-time study delivered in English for 5 years, in secondary or higher education, is one of the English exemptions (English Language Test Requirements for Subclass 482 Visas Instrument 2025, s 4(b)). The sponsor’s nomination must be approved before the 482 is granted.

From a 407, 403 or working holiday visa

For each of these visas, the conditions on the grant decide whether a 482 can be lodged in Australia, so the first check is VEVO. The same holds for the Temporary Work (Short Stay Specialist) visa (subclass 400).

From a 407 training visa

A 407 holder lodges in Australia only if the 407 grant carries no no-further-stay condition. The new employer must be an approved sponsor with an approved nomination, and the experience must meet 1 year full-time or equivalent in the occupation or a related field.

From a 403 visa

A 403 holder follows the same test: check the grant conditions in VEVO, then the employer’s nomination. The employer that nominates must be an approved sponsor, and the experience must meet 1 year in the occupation or a related field.

From a working holiday visa (417 or 462)

A working holiday maker checks the grant conditions in VEVO before the employer nominates. The experience must meet 1 year full-time or equivalent in the occupation or a related field; part-time or casual work counts only as its full-time equivalent.

What visa do you hold while you wait?

An onshore 482 application made while you hold a substantive visa usually brings a Bridging visa A, which comes into effect when that visa ends. Until then, the current visa’s conditions keep applying; after it, the Bridging visa A’s conditions apply, and they are in the grant letter and in VEVO (Home Affairs Bridging visa A page). A Bridging visa A that does not allow work can be replaced by one that does only on a further application, usually on financial hardship grounds. The Bridging visa A does not allow return travel: a Bridging visa B is needed before leaving Australia. What the bridging visa allows, and when it ends, is on the Bridging Visa A page.

After the 482 is granted, condition 8607 applies and work for the sponsor must start within 90 days of the grant.

Should you wait for a points-tested visa instead?

The 189, 190 and 491 need an invitation, at least 65 points and an age under 45 when invited, and an expression of interest is not a visa application, so it gives no bridging visa and does not keep you lawful. How the sponsored and points-tested routes compare is on the page on a 482 or a points-tested visa.

Common mistakes

Seven mistakes when switching to a 482, each set against the rule and its source:

1. Lodging in Australia with a no-further-stay condition. The 482 cannot be granted in Australia unless the condition is waived (Schedule 8 conditions 8503, 8534 and 8535; Home Affairs no further stay waiver page).
2. Letting the current visa end before lodging. An applicant in Australia must hold a substantive visa or a Bridging visa A, B or C (Schedule 1 item 1240(3)(d)).
3. Relying on an expression of interest to stay lawful. “An EOI is not a visa application” and gives no bridging visa (Home Affairs 189 page).
4. Treating 2 years as the requirement, or counting part-time work at face value. The rule is 1 year full-time or equivalent within the last 5 years; part-time work counts only as its full-time equivalent (clause 482.221(1); Core Skills stream page).
5. Starting the sponsored job outside the current visa’s work conditions. The current visa’s conditions apply until it ends (Home Affairs Bridging visa A page).
6. Travelling overseas on a Bridging visa A. It does not allow return; a Bridging visa B is needed first (Bridging visa A page).
7. Lodging before a mandatory skills assessment has started. The application is invalid (IMMI 18/039 s 5(2)(d); Core Skills stream page).

Supplementary: finding the sponsor first

Every switch starts with an employer that is an approved sponsor, or will become one, and nominates the position. The checks a worker runs before asking an employer are set out in how to find a sponsor in Australia.