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Recruitment fees in Australia: what the law says

In Australia nobody, employer or agent, may ask for or take money for sponsoring you, nominating you or giving you a sponsored job. An employer that sponsors you can't pass its sponsorship, nomination or recruitment costs on to you.

This is general information, not legal advice. Laws change; the linked official text is the authority. Sources checked 25 October 2026.

The law

“A person (the first person) contravenes this subsection if: (a) the first person asks for, or receives, a benefit from another person; and (b) … in return for the occurrence of a sponsorship‑related event.”

Migration Act 1958, section 245AR(1), Federal Register of Legislation (opens in new tab)

A sponsorship-related event includes sponsoring or nominating you, employing you in a sponsored position and the grant of the visa. It is an offence even if the event never happens: imprisonment for 2 years or 360 penalty units, or both (section 245AR(4)); it also carries a civil penalty of 240 penalty units (section 245AR(5)).

“A person (the first person) contravenes this subsection if: (a) the first person offers to provide, or provides, a benefit to another person … in return for the occurrence of a sponsorship‑related event.”

Migration Act 1958, section 245AS(1), Federal Register of Legislation (opens in new tab)

Offering or paying for sponsorship is also against the law, with a civil penalty of 240 penalty units. Don't pay; if you already have, report it.

“must not recover from another person some or all of the costs, including migration agent costs: … that relate specifically to the recruitment of the primary sponsored person, or a non‑citizen, for the purposes of a nomination …”

Migration Regulations 1994, regulation 2.87(1B)(a), Federal Register of Legislation (opens in new tab)

Regulation 2.87(1B)(b) also bans seeking to recover these costs, and the same list covers the costs of becoming and being a sponsor and of the nomination, including nomination fees. It “applies to a person who is or was an approved work sponsor” (regulation 2.87(1)): the duty doesn't end when the employer stops sponsoring, but only once it is no longer a sponsor and no sponsored person remains (regulation 2.87(3) and (4)).

“An employer (the prospective employer) must not directly or indirectly require another person (the prospective employee) to spend, or pay to the prospective employer or any other person, an amount of the prospective employee’s money if: …”

Fair Work Act 2009, section 325(1A), Federal Register of Legislation (opens in new tab)

The conditions: the requirement is connected with your potential employment, it is unreasonable in the circumstances, and the payment benefits the employer or a party related to it. This holds for any job covered by the Fair Work Act, sponsored or not.

What the law does and doesn't cover

  • Sections 245AR and 245AS bind anyone: an employer, a recruitment agent, a “sponsor broker” or the worker. Regulation 2.87 binds a person who is or was an approved work sponsor, that is the employer sponsoring you or that used to.
  • No sponsorship doesn't make paying an employer for a job offer acceptable: where the Fair Work Act applies, section 325(1A) stops an employer requiring an unreasonable payment for its own benefit in connection with a job. A recruitment agency's charge for a genuine service of its own is a separate question, and the rules for recruitment and labour-hire agencies vary by state. Fair Work Ombudsman: requirements to spend or pay back money (opens in new tab)
  • Sections 245AR and 245AS don't apply to a reasonable payment for a professional service, for example the fee of a registered migration agent you hire for your own visa (sections 245AR(3) and 245AS(3)).
  • Your own visa costs are different. The visa application charge is the government's charge for a visa application, and paying it yourself to the Department of Home Affairs is legitimate; Home Affairs notes that a sponsor or nominator might be required to pay certain fees. Costs such as skills assessments or English tests are paid directly to the official body. Home Affairs: visa application charges (opens in new tab)

6 red flags of a recruitment scam

  1. A “processing” or “placement” fee to secure the job

    Paying a recruiter or employer for a job offer or for sponsorship is the classic scam. The employer's own recruitment, permit or sponsorship costs can't be passed on to you. Some visa costs are yours, such as a visa application charge; pay those only to the government, on its official website.

    The law: Migration Act 1958, s.245AR; Migration Regulations 1994, reg. 2.87; Fair Work Act 2009, s.325(1A)

  2. Payment to a personal account, a money-transfer app or crypto

    Government fees are paid to the government, on its own website or office. A request to send money to a person, or by gift card or crypto, is a scam.

  3. A job offer without an interview

    Real employers check who they hire: an interview, your registration and references. An offer that arrives straight after you send a CV, or in a group chat, is a warning sign.

  4. Pressure to decide or pay today

    “Only two places left”, “the visa quota closes tonight”. Pressure is there to stop you checking. A real offer survives a day for you to verify the employer.

  5. A recruiter on Gmail, WhatsApp or Telegram only

    Check that the email domain matches the employer's own website and look the employer up yourself. Australia has no national licence for recruiters; some states keep a public register of licensed labour-hire providers you can search.

  6. A request for your original passport or certificates

    Nobody needs your original passport to offer you a job. Share a copy only after you have verified the employer, and keep the originals.

How to report

If you are outside the country, you can also tell the job board or site where you found the offer, and the police where you live.