Can an employer use my visa or PR nomination to pressure me after harassment in 2026?
Explains whether an employer can use your visa or permanent residency nomination to pressure you after harassment, and what penalties apply in 2026.
No. In Australia, using your visa status — including the prospect of a permanent residency nomination — to pressure you after sexual harassment is unlawful, and the Department of Home Affairs states it can lead to additional criminal charges on top of the harassment itself. The Department sets this out on its migrant worker protections "Case studies" page and its "Information for employers and labour hire organisations" page.
What does "using your visa status" actually cover?
The Department lists a set of employer behaviours that count as migrant worker exploitation. Several of them are about pressure rather than money:
- threatening to cancel a visa
- threatening to report a worker to immigration authorities
- threatening future visa applications
- pressuring someone to work more hours than their visa allows
- sexually harassing a migrant worker
- keeping a migrant worker's passport
- forcing workers to live in unsafe, dirty or crowded housing
- underpaying a worker
- asking a worker to repay sponsorship, nomination or recruitment costs
- asking a worker for money in exchange for visa sponsorship
Note the third item. A threat does not have to be about cancelling the visa you hold right now. A threat about what will happen to a future application is covered in its own right.
Why is harassment plus a nomination threat worse than harassment alone?
Because two separate wrongs are being committed, and the second one carries its own consequences.
The Department's published case study involves a young IT worker sponsored to work in Australia. Her manager makes inappropriate sexual comments and engages in unwanted touching. When she raises it, her boss says that if she causes trouble, she will have no chance of being nominated for a permanent visa.
The Department's conclusion is explicit: sexual harassment is against the law, and under the offences described on that page, the boss could face additional criminal charges for using her visa status to exploit her.
That "additional" is the part worth understanding. The harassment is one breach. Turning her immigration status into a reason to stay quiet is a second one. The Department describes these protections as covering both work and non-work related matters that arise in the workplace, so a threat does not need to be about pay or hours to fall within them.
Under the Migration Act 1958, employers and labour hire organisations can face criminal charges and/or civil penalties, including large fines, if they exploit temporary migrant workers.
What penalties can the employer actually face?
| Consequence | What the official pages state |
|---|---|
| Serious, deliberate or repeated breaches of the Migration Act 1958 | Up to 5 years' jail and fines of up to $131,040 (360 penalty units) |
| Breaching a prohibition once declared | Criminal prosecution, up to 5 years' jail and/or a fine of up to $131,040 (360 penalty units), or both |
| Prohibited employer declaration | Ban on hiring new temporary visa holders — up to 10 years for a criminal offence (other than human trafficking or modern slavery), up to 5 years for other migrant worker sanctions |
| Public listing | Business name or personal name may be published on the register of sanctioned sponsors |
| Failing sponsorship obligations | Infringement notice of $79,200 for a body corporate or $15,840 for an individual, per failure |
| Civil penalties imposed by the courts for sponsorship obligation failures | Up to $396,000 for a body corporate and $79,200 for an individual, per failure |
| Other sponsor sanctions | Cancellation of sponsor approval, banning from sponsoring other workers, banning from future approval applications, a compliance notice, or an Enforceable Undertaking |
More than one sanction can be imposed at the same time. The Department also states that a sponsor penalised for exploiting migrant workers can have its business name, or an individual's personal name, made public on the register of sanctioned sponsors.
If my employer is declared a prohibited employer, do I lose my job?
Not automatically. The Department states that if an employer is declared a prohibited employer, temporary visa holders who were already working for that employer at the time of the declaration may continue working there if they wish. The ban applies to hiring new temporary visa holders.
Separately, sponsors must tell the Department when there is a change relating to the person they are sponsoring, or when their business circumstances change.
Does it matter if the threat is about a nomination rather than my current visa?
No. The Department's list includes "threaten future visa applications" as a distinct form of exploitation, and its case study turns on exactly that — a sponsored worker being told that complaining would end her chances of a permanent visa.
What matters is the use of your immigration status as leverage, not which visa document was named in the threat.
What if I have broken a visa condition myself?
This is a common fear, and the official wording addresses it directly. The Department states it is illegal to exploit migrant workers even if they:
- are doing paid or unpaid training
- have broken their visa rules
- do not hold a valid Australian visa
So an employer cannot make exploitation lawful by pointing at something you did wrong. If anything, the case studies show the reverse: pressuring a worker into breaching a visa condition is itself listed as unlawful conduct.
Where does general workplace law fit in?
Alongside the migration offences, the Fair Work Act 2009 applies. The Department states that all visa holders and migrant workers have the same workplace rights and protections as other employees in Australia, regardless of their migration status.
The Fair Work Ombudsman is the body the Department names for workplace rights advice and for reporting employers who are not following workplace laws, covering matters such as pay and wages, leave and other entitlements, and discrimination.
For migration-specific conduct — taking passports, using a migrant's visa situation to threaten or force them to work, forcing unsafe or overcrowded housing — the Department names Border Watch, and states that you do not need to give your name when you make a report.
What should I write down, and in what order?
Do these steps in order, one at a time.
Write down the date, time and place of each incident.
Record the exact words used about your visa or nomination.
Save messages, emails and rosters without editing them.
Store copies somewhere your employer cannot reach.
List anyone who saw or heard what happened.
Keep pay records and your contract with the same notes.
This is general information only, not advice about your individual circumstances — how these rules apply to you depends on your own situation, and you should rely on the current official wording and on professional advice for your case.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can my employer withdraw a permanent nomination because I complained?
A nomination decision sits with the employer, but using it to silence you is the conduct the Department lists as exploitation. "Threaten future visa applications" appears on the official list of unlawful employer behaviour in its own right.
Does there need to be harassment, or is the visa threat enough on its own?
The visa threat is enough on its own. The Department lists threatening to cancel a visa, threatening to report a worker to immigration authorities, and threatening future visa applications as separate forms of exploitation, independent of any harassment.
Will I lose my sponsored visa if my employer is penalised?
A prohibited employer declaration operates on the employer: they can no longer employ new temporary visa holders. Temporary visa holders who were already working for that employer at the time of the declaration may continue working there if they wish.
Can I make a report without identifying myself?
Yes. The Department states that you do not need to give your name when you make a report. Border Watch is the channel named for migration-related conduct such as using a migrant's visa situation to threaten them.
What is the maximum penalty my employer could face?
For serious, deliberate or repeated breaches of the Migration Act 1958, the Department states up to 5 years' jail and fines of up to $131,040 (360 penalty units). Sponsorship obligation failures can also attract court-imposed civil penalties of up to $396,000 for a body corporate and $79,200 for an individual, per failure.
Does it still count if I am on a Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482)?
Yes. The Department describes these protections as applying to temporary visa holders, including temporary sponsored skilled workers, and the case study involves a sponsored IT worker.
Do I have the same workplace rights as Australian employees?
Yes. Under the Fair Work Act 2009, the Department states that all visa holders and migrant workers have the same workplace rights and protections as other employees in Australia, regardless of migration status.