Australia Skills in Demand Visa Changes in 2026: What Replaced the TSS 482 Visa?

Australia changed its main employer-sponsored temporary skilled visa on 7 December 2024, when the Skills in Demand visa replaced the Temporary Skill Shortage visa.

If you still hear people talk about the "TSS 482", that is understandable. The subclass number is still 482, but the visa settings are now different. For employers and workers, the important question in 2026 is not just "Is the 482 open?" It is "Which 482 rules apply to me now?"

What changed

The old Temporary Skill Shortage visa is no longer open to new applications. Home Affairs says the Skills in Demand, or SID, visa replaced the TSS visa on 7 December 2024.

That change matters because it created a new framework for temporary employer-sponsored migration. The SID visa is now the main way businesses bring in temporary skilled workers when they cannot find a suitable Australian worker.

Home Affairs also set out transition rules for people caught in the changeover:

• TSS nominations and TSS visa applications lodged before 7 December 2024 are still processed under the rules that applied when they were lodged.
• If an employer lodged a TSS nomination before 7 December 2024 but the worker had not yet lodged the related TSS visa application, an approved nomination is treated as a SID nomination instead.

So the change was not a simple "old visa closed, new visa opened" story. There are still older TSS matters moving through the system, while new applicants are using the SID structure.

The other big shift is that the SID program was designed to be simpler and to give workers a clearer path to permanent residence. The Department's 2025 administration paper says the SID visa is the primary way to bring temporary skilled workers to Australia and that it offers a clearer pathway to permanent residence for both workers and employers.

Who this affects

These changes matter most to four groups.

First, they affect workers planning to apply for an employer-sponsored 482 visa now. Those applicants are applying under SID rules, not TSS rules.

Second, they affect employers who need to sponsor overseas staff. A business now sponsors workers for the SID visa, and it needs to understand which stream fits the role and salary.

Third, they affect people with older TSS applications or nominations. Those cases may still be processed under old rules, depending on when they were lodged.

Fourth, they affect people thinking beyond a temporary visa. The employer-sponsored pathway is now more connected to longer-term planning, especially for workers who want to move later to permanent residence.

Key facts to know

The SID visa still sits under subclass 482, but its structure is different from the old TSS system.

Home Affairs says the SID visa has three streams:

• Specialist Skills stream
• Core Skills stream
• Labour Agreement stream

The Department's 2025 administration paper says most temporary skilled visa holders are expected to come through the Core Skills stream.

For employers, sponsorship status also matters. A standard business sponsor can sponsor a worker for a SID visa. If the employer is an accredited sponsor, Home Affairs says it receives priority processing for SID nominations and visa applications.

The main features that many readers will want to know are:

• the visa length is generally 1 to 4 years
• applicants must have the skills to perform the nominated occupation
• applicants must have at least 12 months of work experience in the occupation or a related field
• visa holders must usually work only for their sponsoring employer or an associated entity unless an exemption applies
• visa holders must work only in the nominated occupation

Salary thresholds are also important. The Department's 2025 administration paper says that from 1 July 2025:

• the Core Skills stream threshold is $76,515
• the Specialist Skills stream threshold is $141,210

For the Core Skills stream, the occupation question is central. The Department says the Core Skills Occupation List, or CSOL, was announced on 3 December 2024 and gives access to temporary skilled migration for 456 occupations. If you are looking at a standard employer-sponsored pathway, checking whether your job fits the CSOL is one of the first steps.

Another practical change is how the longer-term pathway works. The Home Affairs visa comparison page says the Employer Nomination Scheme temporary residence transition stream is open to SID holders in all occupations. The Department's administration paper also says changes made on 7 December 2024 reduced work experience requirements in the ENS temporary residence transition stream and allowed eligible sponsored full-time employment to count more broadly toward that requirement.

That does not mean every SID holder will move to permanent residence. But it does mean the system is now designed with that pathway in mind more clearly than before.

What this means in 2026

The main practical effect of the SID change is that older TSS material can now be misleading if it does not clearly say it was written before 7 December 2024.

For readers following the current 482 framework, the main points are:

• new applicants are dealing with SID rules, not TSS rules
• older TSS matters can still be in the system under transition arrangements
• stream selection now matters more clearly than before
• employer sponsorship, salary settings and occupation fit remain central

It also means employer-sponsored migration is easier to read as a pathway rather than a one-step event. Home Affairs now presents the temporary 482 setting and the later permanent employer-sponsored pathway as more clearly connected than in the old TSS structure.

Frequently asked questions

Is the TSS 482 visa still open in 2026?

No. The Temporary Skill Shortage visa was replaced by the Skills in Demand visa on 7 December 2024.

Are old TSS applications cancelled?

No. TSS nominations and visa applications lodged before 7 December 2024 are still processed under the rules that applied when they were lodged.

Did subclass 482 disappear?

No. The subclass number stayed the same. What changed was the visa product and the rules attached to it.

Does every SID applicant need to be on the Core Skills Occupation List?

No. The Core Skills stream uses the CSOL, but the SID visa also has a Specialist Skills stream and a Labour Agreement stream.

Does an accredited sponsor still matter?

Yes. Home Affairs says accredited sponsors receive priority processing for SID nominations and visa applications.

Is the SID visa a permanent visa?

No. It is a temporary visa. But the current system is more clearly linked to longer-term employer-sponsored permanent residence planning than the old TSS settings were.