It is your responsibility as an employer to ensure that everyone you hire is eligible to work in Australia. Therefore you need to check the residency status of potential employees and clarify the individual visa entitlements of non residents.

It is a criminal offence under the Migration Act 1958 for a person or an organisation to knowingly or recklessly allow an illegal worker to work or refer an illegal worker for work within another business.

People who migrate to Australia have the right to work in Australia. However, people visiting Australia or in the country on a temporary basis, may or may not have the right to work.

Illegal workers can be:

• people in Australia unlawfully (mainly those who have overstayed their visa expiry date) and who are working to support themselves.
• temporary residents who are here lawfully, but are working even though they do not have work rights, or are working more than is allowed by their visa conditions.

By checking a temporary resident's work rights, employers can ensure that only those people entitled to work in Australia are offered a position.

fit2work will soon be able to check a person's immigration status in order to further safeguard your business against unsuitable employees.

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