What is a Designated Area Migration Agreement (DAMA)?

Summary

• DAMAs allow employers in designated regional areas to sponsor overseas workers for occupations and concessions not available under standard visa programmes.
• Businesses must negotiate and operate under a labour agreement with the Department of Home Affairs, and must demonstrate genuine efforts to recruit locally first.
• Non-compliance with DAMA obligations can result in sponsorship sanctions, cancellation of visa approvals, and reputational consequences with the Department.
• This article is a plain-English guide to Designated Area Migration Agreements (DAMAs) for Australian business owners operating in regional areas, produced by LegalVision, a commercial law firm.
• LegalVision specialises in advising clients on employer-sponsored migration and labour agreement frameworks.

Tips for Businesses

Identify whether your region has an active DAMA and confirm your occupation is covered before applying. Maintain thorough records of local recruitment efforts. Ensure employment conditions meet or exceed Australian standards. Review your labour agreement regularly, as terms and approved occupations can change between agreement periods.

 

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On this page

• Introduction to DAMAs
• Common Business Requirements
• Common Key Advantages
• Existing DAMAs
• Key Takeaways
• Frequently Asked Questions

If your business cannot find local workers, you may be able to sponsor overseas employees through a Designated Area Migration Agreement (DAMA). A DAMA is a labour agreement that allows employers in specific regions to sponsor skilled and semi-skilled workers who do not qualify under standard visa pathways, such as the TSS visa subclass 482. This article outlines the existing DAMAs, the common elements and requirements across these arrangements and the specific details you need to know from the most popular DAMAs.

Introduction to DAMAs

DAMAs operate under a labour agreement-based framework. They provide flexibility for certain designated regional areas to respond to their unique economic and labour market conditions. A DAMA is an agreement between your business, the Australian Federal Government and a Designated Area Representative (DAR). A DAR may consist of regional bodies such as Chambers of Commerce, Regional Development Australia offices or Shire Councils.

A DAMA has a two-tier framework. The first tier is a DAMA ‘head agreement’ between the Australian government and a specific DAR. The DAMA ‘head agreement’ lasts for five years and contains a range of occupations, agreed terms, and concessions to skilled visa eligibility criteria, as negotiated between parties.

The second tier is an individual DAMA labour agreement between the Australian government and employers operating in the DAR’s approved region. The agreement is based on the terms of the DAMA ‘head agreement’ and also lasts for five years. It allows to sponsor employees via the following visa programmes:

• 482 TSS visa (labour agreement stream);
• 494 Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional visa (labour agreement stream); and 
• 186 Employer Nominated Scheme visa (labour agreement stream).

The DAMA process, from start to finish, to sponsor a migrant worker is as follows.

1. your business must seek and gain endorsement from a participating DAR;
2. you may then lodge a labour agreement request online through Immiaccount; and
3. you may then sponsor (482 or 494 visas) or nominate (186 visa) migrant workers via specific visa programmes under a labour agreement stream.

Common Business Requirements

You must fulfil some requirements to engage an employee under a DAMA, regardless of which DAMA covers your business. You will need to show that you:

• are actively operating in the state or designated region;
• are financially viable and have been operating in an eligible DAR region for at least 12 months;
• have no history of not meeting your obligations to employees;
• are looking to employ overseas workers to fill full-time positions with duties that align with one of the occupations on each DAMA occupation list;
• can demonstrate you cannot fill the position locally with Australian citizens or permanent residents; and
• can provide terms and conditions of employment to overseas workers that are in accordance with those offered to Australian workers employed in the region.

Common Key Advantages

Using a DAMA instead of the usual employer-sponsored visa streams available to you will be advantageous for several reasons. For instance, it:

• provides pathways to sponsorship (482 and 494 visas) for certain occupations;
• provides pathways to permanent residency (186 visa) for certain occupations;
• offers English language concessions for some occupations;
• offers salary concessions for some occupations; and
• allows you to form a five-year agreement.

Indeed, certain occupations will require lower English language competency than those under the usual employer-sponsored visas. Similarly, some DAMA occupations will not require you to meet the Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT) when paying your foreign worker, which is currently $53,900.

To seek this concession, however, a strong business case needs to be made. You will also need to show that the salary offered is at least equivalent to what an Australian citizen could expect for the same role.

Existing DAMAs

There are currently twelve DAMAs in place across Australia, including:

• South Australia:
  • Entire State Region─South Australia Regional – Skilled & Business Migration.
  • South Australia Regional─Skilled & Business Migration.
• Western Australia:
  • South West─Shire of Dardanup.
  • The Goldfields─City of Kalgoorlie Boulder​​​​​.
  • Pilbara─RDA Pilb​ara​.
  • East Kimberly─East Kimberley Chamber of Commerce and Industry​.
  • Western Australia─Department of Training and Workforce Development​.
• Queensland:
  • Far North Queensland─Cairns Chamber of Commerce 
  • Townsville─Townsville Enterprise Limited​
• Victoria:
  • Goulburn Valley─Goulburn Valley​
  • Great South Coast─Warrnambool City Council​
• Northern Territory:
  • Northern Territory─Northern Territory Designated Area Migration Agreement
• New South Wales:
  • Orana─Regional Development Australia – Orana

Each DAR will have its own set of eligible occupations, business requirements, and a unique DAMA ‘head agreement’ with the Australian Government. 

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Northern Territory (NT) DAMA

All businesses situated in the NT are eligible to access the NT DAMA, regardless of their specific location. The potential employee’s occupation must be on the NT occupation list, which outlines the specific occupations that may be fulfilled under the DAMA ‘head agreement’. This DAMA allows businesses to sponsor occupations such as ‘barista’, which would otherwise not be eligible under standard sponsorship visa pathways. Additionally, it also allows you to sponsor occupations not included in Australia and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupation (ANZSCO), including:

• aquaculture supervisor;
• bar attendant supervisor;
• cook (specialist ethnic cuisine);
• high access maintenance and cleaning technician;
• skilled horticultural worker; and
• waiter (supervisor).

Another advantage of the NT DAMA is that no extra caveats or conditions apply. For example, there are no requirements that the business already has a certain number of employees or that the foreign worker be paid a certain salary.

The Goldfields DAMA 

Businesses will have access to this DAMA if they operate in the Goldfields area or any of the following locations: 

• City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder;
• Shire of Coolgardie;
• Shire of Leonora;
• Shire of Menzies;
• Shire of Dundas;
• Shire of Esperance;
• Shire of Ravensthorpe; and
• Shire of Laverton.

The potential employee must carry out duties that align closely with those on the Goldfields’ occupation list to be eligible under this scheme. The Goldfields DAMA occupation list provides access to occupations not included in ANZSCO: 

• asphalt technician;
• process technician;
• rope access technician;
• sound and light technician;
• bar attendant supervisor; and
• waiter supervisor.

Great South Coast (GSC) DAMA

This DAMA covers the entire GSC region, including the Local Government areas of: 

• Glenelg Shire;
• Southern Grampians Shire;
• Moyne Shire:
• Corangamite Shire:
• Colac-Otway Shire; and 
• Warrnambool City Council.  

There are certain occupations that are eligible for sponsorship under the GSC DAMA. There are also five occupations that have access to this DAMA that are not on the ANZSCO list:

• aquaculture supervisor;
• dairy cattle farm operator;
• brewer;
• housekeeping supervisor; and
• senior dairy cattle farm worker.

South Australian DAMA 

South Australia has two DAMAs, including the: 

• Adelaide City Technology and Innovation Advancement (ACTIA) DAMA; and
• South Australian Regional Workforce (SARW) DAMA.

The ACTIA DAMA was designed to address skills shortages across the Adelaide Metropolitan region in high-tech growth industries including:

• defence;
• pace; 
• technology; and 
• advanced manufacturing industries. 

Additionally, the SARW DAMA covers the entire state and focuses on high-growth industries. Eligible job applicants can access both of these DAMAs, including: 

• agribusiness;
• forestry;  
• health and social services;  
• tourism and hospitality; 
• construction; and 
• mining.

There are approximately 50 occupations not found in ANZSCO occupations that have access to these DAMAs.

Orana DAMA 

The Orana region DAMA also has its unique occupation list, and it applies to the following local government areas: 

• Bogan Shire;
• Bourke Shire;
• Brewarrina Shire;
• Cobar Shire;
• Coonamble Shire;
• Dubbo Region;
• Gilgandra Shire;
• Mid-Western Region;
• Narromine Shire;
• Warren Shire;
• Walgett Shire; and
• Warrumbungle Shire. 

Far North Queensland (FNQ) DAMA 

Your business can access the Far North Queensland DAMA if you operate within the following local government areas:

• Cairns Regional Council;
• Shire of Douglas;
• Tablelands Regional Council;
• Shire of Mareeba;
• Cassowary Coast Regional Council;
• Cook Shire Council;
• Croydon Shire Council;
• Etheridge Shire Council;
• Torres Shire Council;
• Northern Peninsula Area Regional Council; or
• Weipa Town Authority Area.

You should check the occupation list to ensure that workers are eligible for sponsorship.

The Far North Queensland DAMA also provides access to occupations not in the standard business sponsorship scheme. These are:

• bar attendant (supervisor);
• brewer;
• café or restaurant supervisor;
• diving instructor (tourism or photography);
• farm inspector;
• farm supervisor;
• housekeeping supervisor;
• marine environment interpreter;
• night auditor; and
• waiter (supervisor).

Key Takeaways

If your business wants to hire an employee who is not covered by the standard employer-sponsored visa programs, you may choose to engage them under a DAMA. These agreements provide access to more overseas workers than the standard skilled migration program. The key benefits of DAMAs for businesses include a broader range of eligible occupations, possible permanent residency pathways and the English competency, salary and experience concessions that apply to some occupations.

LegalVision provides ongoing legal support for businesses through our fixed-fee legal membership. Our experienced immigration lawyers help businesses manage contracts, employment law, disputes, intellectual property, and more, with unlimited access to specialist lawyers for a fixed monthly fee. To learn more about LegalVision’s legal membership, call 1300 544 755 or visit our membership page.

Frequently Asked Questions