On A Skilled Visa? The Government May Request Access To Your Tax Affairs

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On A Skilled Visa? The Government May Request Access To Your Tax Affairs

Those applying for or holding a skilled Australian visa may have to provide information about their tax affairs to the Government. Interstaff set out the rule changes and the implications.

Written by Sheila Woods of Interstaff 20 December, 2018

If you are on a skilled visa or applying for one you may be interested to know that as a result of recent legislative changes, the Government can now request your Tax File Number to cross match your financial records with your visa information and more easily identify cases of non compliance with visa and sponsorship obligations. It’s a positive step towards enhancing the integrity of Australia’s skilled migration program and ensuring visa holders are protected from exploitation, such as underpayment. Find out more.

What has changed?

On 13 December 2018, changes under the Migration and Other Legislation Amendment (Enhanced Integrity) Act 2018 came into effect to enable the Department of Home Affairs to:

Publicly disclose information about businesses who breach their sponsorship obligations
Request a skilled visa holder’s Tax File Number to cross match information with financial records such as employment history, hours of work and salary

Requests for Tax File Numbers to cross match visa holder information

The Department may begin requesting a visa holder’s Tax File Number for the purposes of:

Verifying a person’s identity
Ensuring compliance with migration regulations such as sponsorship obligations and visa conditions
Developing policy related to visas
Research, intelligence gathering and identifying visa trends or risks

The change is therefore designed to enhance the integrity of the skilled visa program.

For which visas can the Department request Tax File Numbers?

Tax File Numbers may be requested for people holding the below skilled visas:

Employer Sponsored Visas:

Temporary Skills Shortage (TSS) 482 and 457 Visa
186/187 Employer Sponsored Permanent Residence Visas

General Skilled Migration Visas:

189/190/489 General Skilled Migration Visas

Other Skilled and Graduate Visas:

485 Temporary Graduate Visa
476 Skilled-Recognised Graduate Visa
887 Skilled Regional Visa
124 and 858 Distinguished Talent Visas

Business and Investor Visas:

132 Business Talent Visa
890 Business Owner Visa
891 Investor Visa
892 and 893 State/Territory Sponsored Business Owner Visas
188 and 888 Business Innovation and Investment Visas

What the changes mean for visa holders

Visa holders need to make sure they are aware of the visa conditions relating to their particular visa at all times and understand how changes to their hours of work, salary, job description and various other factors could impact their obligations. Penalties apply for not complying with visa and sponsorship obligations, and the changes will enable the Department of Home Affairs to more easily identify these obligations are being met. As part of our assistance with your skilled visa application, our migration agents can help you understand how your visa conditions apply under a number of instances.

Interstaff assist people all over the world with the legal and professional process to travel or migrate to Australia for temporary work or permanent residence. Established in 1988, Interstaff has been trusted by migrating individuals and businesses for over 30 years and are the strongest group of experts for visa work in Australia. MARN: 0533879.

Moving Abroad Checklist

Initial Considerations

Will your partner be travelling with you?

If so, what will they be giving up in your present home and will they be able to continue with their career in your new home? You will need to check whether a separate visa is required for your partner to work or if your visa gives that right. If they are unable to work you will need to decide on the effect on your finances and what alternatives are available to give a fulfilling life (home business, training, voluntary work).

Are you taking family with you?

Moving with family raises many exciting opportunities, but also can create challenges. The HSBC Expat Explorer survey indicates that expat kids can take six months to settle in to their new country (see article). Getting young or even older children to prepare to move and leave their friends and family behind can be a challenge and should be thought through.

The options for education is another area that needs to be thought through.

Moving your child to a new country with a different education system can be a great opportunity to broaden their experience, but if they are close to key exams the timing can make this inadvisable. If you do take your family with you, it is important to decide between joining the local school system or choosing an international school.

Where will you be living?

Whether you will be living in a house or apartment, furnished or unfurnished, these decisions will affect what you need to take with you. The time you are planning to live overseas will also affect whether you should leave your property at home empty, rent it out or sell it. See the article Sell, Store or Ship.