Do I need a lawyer or a migration agent?

Many visa applications are lodged directly. A registered migration agent or immigration lawyer helps with complex or refused matters.

What is a Section 48 bar?

It limits the visas you can apply for while unlawfully in Australia after a refusal or cancellation. A professional can map your options.

Can I appeal a refused visa?

Often yes — the Administrative Appeals Tribunal reviews many decisions, but strict time limits apply.

Employment questions: using Fair Work information without assuming coverage

The Fair Work system covers most Australian workplaces, but state public sector, local government and some Western Australian business structures fall outside it, and some Fair Work Act entitlements still apply even then.

Before you rely on anything the Fair Work Ombudsman publishes, check one thing: whether your employer is in the national system at all. The Fair Work Ombudsman states that the Fair Work system covers most Australian workplaces — not all of them — and that some workplaces, particularly certain state public sector, local government and Western Australian businesses, stay under their state or territory system instead.

That check changes which source answers your employment question correctly.

Why coverage is the first question

Coverage determines which instrument actually governs the employment relationship: the Fair Work Act 2009, or a state industrial relations instrument. Reading national system material about a workplace that sits outside the national system can send you down the wrong path from the first step.

It also cuts the other way. The Ombudsman notes that some Fair Work system entitlements still apply to employers and employees who aren't in the national system. So "not covered" does not mean "no workplace rights" — it means the source you need is probably a state or territory body rather than the Fair Work Ombudsman.

The exceptions, state by state

State or territory	Position under the national system
ACT and Northern Territory	Generally all employees and employers are covered by the national system.
New South Wales	State public sector and local government employees aren't covered and remain under the state system.
South Australia	State public sector and local government employees aren't covered and remain under the state system.
Queensland	State public sector and local government employees aren't covered and remain under the state system.
Tasmania	State public sector employees remain under the state system. Local government employees are covered by the national system.
Victoria	Most employees are covered, including state government employees, with some exceptions such as senior public servants.
Western Australia	All WA State public sector employers are covered by the state industrial relations system.

Tasmania is the one worth double-checking: local government employees there sit inside the national system, while the state public sector does not.

Western Australia needs a second look

WA has the broadest carve-out, and it turns partly on how the business is structured. On top of the State public sector, the following business types are covered by the state system:

sole traders
partnerships
other unincorporated entities
non-trading corporations

Structure can also change the answer over time. A business run by a WA sole trader that converts to a company may move to the national system. A WA partnership will usually qualify as a national system employer if one of the partners is a company, or is engaged in sufficient trading or financial activities.

For local government, the date matters. From 1 January 2023, all Western Australian local government entities are covered by the state system, following a state declaration endorsed by the federal Minister. Before that date, WA local government entities may have been covered by either system — which matters if you're looking at an older agreement or a historical claim.

Where to get help if you're not covered

The Ombudsman's own advice for employers and employees outside the national system is to contact the relevant state body, or your internal human resources department.

Useful starting points:

ACT Government — accesscanberra.act.gov.au
Northern Territory Government — nt.gov.au
NSW Industrial Relations
Business Victoria
Queensland Government — forgov.qld.gov.au
SafeWork SA
Tasmanian State Service Industrial Relations
WA Private Sector Labour Relations

If you're simply unsure which system applies in WA, the Department of Local Government, Industry Regulation and Safety publishes guidance on which system of employment laws applies. For the structure question behind it, Business.gov.au explains business structures.

A practical order of operations

If you're preparing an employment question, work through it in this order:

Identify your employer. Is it a trading company, a sole trader, a partnership or an unincorporated entity?
Identify the sector. State public sector, local government, or neither?
Note the state or territory where the work happens.
If you are in WA, record whether you were employed before or after 1 January 2023.
Only then decide whether the Fair Work Ombudsman materials or the state and territory body is the right source for your question.

One point to keep in mind even if you're outside the system

Being outside the national system is not a clean break from workplace entitlements. The Ombudsman points to its Library article on non-national system employee entitlements in the Fair Work Act 2009 for the entitlements that reach beyond national system coverage. If your issue involves unpaid wages, leave or deductions rather than awards or agreements, that reference is worth reading before you conclude that nothing applies to you.