Are you a Café or Restaurant Manager looking to migrate to or work in Australia?

Qualified Café or Restaurant Managers have visa options to migrate to or work in Australia as this occupation is in the different skilled occupation lists, meaning it is an occupation that is needed in Australia or there is a skill shortage that needs to be addressed.

The visa options for a café or restaurant manager, depending on the applicant’s circumstances, can either be employer-sponsored or under the general skilled migration (GSM).  

The visas available for a café or restaurant manager, depending on whether they are eligible includes:

• Skilled Nominated (subclass 190)
• Provisional (temporary) visas that can lead to permanent residency visas:
  • Skilled Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 489) - State or Territory nominated
  • Temporary Skill Shortage visa (subclass 482) - Short Term Stream (subject to caveats)
  • Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (provisional) (subclass 494) - Employer sponsored stream
  • Skilled Work Regional (provisional) visa (subclass 491) State or Territory nominated
• Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186)

Applying under the General Skilled Migration (GSM)

If you are applying under the GSM or the state-nominated visa, you need to:

1. Check your eligibility first and checking if you have the required points needed.

Points are based on the following:

1. Age
2. English language skills
3. Skilled employment/work experience (outside and in Australia)
4. Educational qualifications
5. Australian study requirement
6. Specialist education qualification
7. Credentialled community language
8. Study in regional Australia
9. Partner Skills
10. Professional year in Australia
11. Nomination or Sponsorship

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2. Get a positive skills assessment

The assessing authority for café or restaurant manager is VETASSESS.

Generally, to get a positive skills assessment the qualifications required is a s a qualification assessed as comparable to the educational level of an Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) Diploma or higher (ANZSCO Skill Level 2).

To meet the assessment criteria, you should be able to meet any of the following:

1. Have the minimum the comparable Diploma or higher AQF level AND highly relevant major field of study PLUS 1 year highly relevant employment duration OR
2. Have the minimum the comparable Diploma or higher AQF level AND a minimum AQF Certificate IV level with highly relevant major PLUS 1 year highly relevant employment duration OR
3. Have the minimum the comparable Diploma or higher AQF level PLUS 2 years highly relevant employment duration OR
4. If employment is prior to the completion of the qualification at the required level - Have 4 years of highly relevant paid employment duration with at least 1 year of highly relevant employment within the last five years before applying PLUS have the minimum the comparable Diploma or higher AQF level. The remaining three years of pre-qualifying period may be within the last ten years.

3. Submit your Expression of Interest

You do this through the Department of Home Affairs’ SkillSelect website. In your EOI you would need to provide the details of your:

• Your English language test
• Educational and qualifications
• Skills Assessment
• Employment history

This is where the points you are claiming will be calculated.

4. State nomination

The requirements for each state and territory for state nomination differs. The process may defer depending on which state you want to sponsor you. Some states like Tasmania requires the applicant to submit their Registration of Interest and wait for an invitation to apply for state nomination.

5. Invitation to apply for the visa

6. Apply for the visa

If applying for an employer-sponsored visa

If you have an employer willing to sponsor you, you can look at the employer-sponsored visa options.

Subclass 494

If you are based in a designated regional area in Australia and have an employer who is willing to sponsor you, have at least 3 years relevant work experience then this visa may be for you.  This visa is valid for 5 years and after 3 years of holding this visa and upon meeting the eligibility requirements, you may be able to apply for the Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional) visa (subclass 191).

Subclass 482

If they have an employer who cannot find a qualified Australian worker to work as café or restaurant manager, then the employer may be able to sponsor you for the Subclass 482 visa – Short Term stream.  However, caveats apply for nominating a café or restaurant manager for this visa, that is, you will not be eligible if you work in a limited-service restaurant. Limited-service restaurants are those places such as fast food or takeaway food services, fast casual restaurants, drinking establishments that offer only a limited food service, limited-service cafes similar to mall cafes.

Subclass 482 visa holders may be sponsored by their employer for permanent resident visa, the  Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) visa, after they have worked for their employer for at least 3 years full time while holding a sc-482 visa.

Subclass 186

As mentioned above, eligible subclass 482 visa holders may be able to apply for this visa if they have worked full time for their sponsoring employer for at least 3 years. Note that from 1 July 2022, eligible 457 and TSS – short term stream visa holders will be able to apply through the Temporary Residence Transition stream. The pathway will be accessible for two years from its commencement on 1 July 2022.

Alternative tiles:

• Food and Beverage Manager
• Restaurateur

Others occupation titles that might be consider:

• Café or Restaurant Manager
• Hotel or Motel Manager 
• Hotel Service Manager
• Accommodation and Hospitality Manager
• Cook 
• Chef
• Pastry Cook

If you want to check if you are eligible for any of the above visas, please contact our office on (+61) 08 8351 9956 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Or book an appointment with one of our experienced Immigration Lawyers and Registered Migration Agents here.

Our team of experienced Immigration Lawyers and Migration Agents look forward to assisting you with your Australian visa or appeal.

This article is not intended to be or taken as migration legal advice. The author of this article disclaims any liability for any action or omission on the information provided or not provided in this article. You should always consult an immigration lawyer or a registered migration agent (like Work Visa Lawyers) to form an informed opinion on your immigration matter.