Minister of Religion Labour Agreement
http://www.border.gov.au/Trav/Work/Empl ... f-religion
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Minister of religion labour agreement
This page provides information specific to requesting a minister of religion labour agreement and should be read in conjunction with the information guide Information about requesting a labour agreement (116KB PDF).
A minister of religion labour agreement is the only pathway which allows overseas skilled workers to work in the occupation of minister of religion.
The minister of religion labour agreement allows Australian religious organisations to sponsor the temporary and permanent entry of overseas skilled workers. The terms and conditions of the agreement have already been established and are non-negotiable.
Minister of religion labour agreement
A minister of religion labour agreement is the only pathway which allows overseas skilled workers to work in the occupation of minister of religion.
The minister of religion labour agreement allows Australian religious organisations to sponsor the temporary and permanent entry of overseas skilled workers. The terms and conditions of the agreement have already been established and are non-negotiable.
Key settings
Visa subclass
Temporary Work (Skilled) visa (subclass 457)
Employer Nomination Scheme visa (subclass 186), either where an overseas worker has held a subclass 457 visa as a primary visa holder, for a minimum period of two years, or through the subclass 186 Agreement stream.
The final decision on which visa pathway is appropriate will be made based on the religious organisation’s business case.
Religious organisations
Defined as per Regulation 1.03 of the Migration Regulations 1994:
the activities reflect that it is a body instituted for the promotion of a religious object
the beliefs and practices of the members of which constitute a religion due to those members:
believing in a supernatural being, thing or principle
accepting the canons of conduct that give effect to that belief, but that do not offend against the ordinary laws
meet the requirements of section 50-50 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997
their income must be exempt from income tax under section 50-1 of that Act.
Religious organisations must provide with their request a detailed organisational structure.
English language A concession to the English language proficiency requirement applies. Overseas skilled workers must meet one of the following English language proficiency requirements:
demonstrate an average test score of at least 5.0 in an International English Language Testing System (IELTS), or an equivalent accepted test
hold a valid passport from one of the following countries:
Canada
New Zealand
The Republic of Ireland
The United Kingdom
The United States of America
have completed at least five cumulative years of full-time study in a secondary and/or higher education institution where instruction was conducted in English.
A further concession to English language proficiency requirements might be considered where the visa holder will be directly serving the needs of an ethnic group and interaction within the wider Australian society will be limited – for example they are working in a cloistered or monastic environment.
Occupation
Religious organisations can only nominate the occupation of minister of religion (Skill level 1 - ANZSCO 272211).
The nominee is required to have a leadership role within the organisation. We will consider the size of the organisation and its workforce composition if more than one overseas nominee is proposed by the Australian employer.
Religious organisations must provide, with their request, the following supporting information:
title of position within their faith tradition
duty statement for the position
a copy of an employment contract.
Skills, qualifications and experience
Ministers of religion must have:
been 'ordained' or have ‘professed to a religious life’ as a minister of religion (or equivalent accreditation process within the faith tradition), and
minimum qualifications equivalent to a relevant Australian Qualification Framework (AQF) bachelor degree, or
undertaken at least five years of relevant structured training or instruction. Experience does not meet this criterion.
Religious organisations must provide, with their request, details of the ordination process, training structure and minimum qualifications for the role of minister of religion.
Age
Visa applicants must be no more than 60 years of age at time of visa application for a subclass 186 visa.
Further concessions might be considered where there is not a tradition of retirement within the faith tradition and where the needs of aged religious workers continue to be met by the religious organisation without recourse to the aged pension.
No age requirements apply when applying for a subclass 457 visa only.
Salary
Overseas ministers of religion must receive terms and conditions of employment that are no less favourable than that provided to an Australian minister of religion working in the same role in the same location.
The minimum salary (for both subclasses 457 and 186) must be either:
no less than the temporary skilled migration income threshold (TSMIT) - monetary or non-monetary benefits might be considered in the calculation of TSMIT
where a vow of poverty is required by the wider religious organisation for the occupation, the sponsor attests that overseas workers will be provided equivalent terms and conditions to that of Australians in the same occupation in the sponsoring organisation and will provide all living needs, including board and lodging, health, education, welfare and any other costs incurred by the minister of religion.
Religious organisations must provide evidence of remuneration that is paid to, or would be paid to, an Australian in the same role and location.
Other
Employers are asked to identify nominees at the time of request.
Employers will not be required to:
undertake stakeholder consultation when requesting a labour agreement
provide evidence of meeting training benchmark requirements and obligations
provide evidence of domestic recruitment efforts.