A Cremorne software company asked our commercial practice to add two engineers to its option plan. Both held 482 visas. The founders had one question: can we do this? The migration team had three more. What happens to the options if the visa ends? Does the equity count towards the nominated salary? And who pays the tax, in which country, when the engineer leaves?
In short: A sponsored worker can hold shares or options in their employer, and the visa does not stop the grant. The equity cannot form part of the nominated salary of at least $79,423. The leaver clauses must say what an ending visa does to unvested rights.
Why the migration team reads an option plan
Employee share schemes are a retention tool. For a sponsored worker, retention already has a legal shape. The 482 visa ties the worker to one sponsor and one occupation. A 186 nomination through the Temporary Residence Transition stream needs 2 years with that sponsor. The scheme and the visa pull in the same direction.
The harder part is that the visa has its own calendar. A visa can end, be refused, or carry the worker to a new sponsor within 180 days. We draft the plan so the two calendars agree.
What the visa touches, and what it does not
| Question | Position |
|---|---|
| Can a 482 holder own shares in the sponsor? | Yes. Condition 8607 limits work, not ownership |
| Does equity count towards the salary threshold? | No. The nominated salary is money, at $79,423 or more |
| Can equity replace sponsorship costs? | No. The $420 sponsorship, $330 nomination and the levy stay with the employer |
| Does a grant change the 186 pathway? | No. The 2 years run with the same employer regardless |
| Can the worker become a controlling owner? | Risky. A controlling owner is hard to present as an employee |
The salary point catches most people. Options, dividends and a share of profit have a value nobody can fix in advance. So they fall outside annual earnings. They cannot lift a package over the Core Skills threshold of $79,423 or the Specialist figure of $146,576. Our note on employment contracts for sponsored staff shows how the cash figure is evidenced.
What is the equity meant to do?
Vesting on a visa calendar
A standard plan vests over 4 years with a 1 year cliff. A sponsored worker lives on a different timetable. We lay the two side by side before setting a date.
- Month 0482 granted. Contract signed at the nominated salary. Option grant made, with the offer document given the same day.
- Month 12Cliff reached and the first tranche vests. Any change in the worker's employment is still notified within 28 days.
- Month 24Two years of full-time work with the sponsor. The 186 nomination can be lodged. The second tranche vests on this date, not before it.
- 186 grantedCondition 8607 falls away. The holding cap can lift, and later tranches vest on ordinary commercial terms.
A vesting date is also an employment event. A tranche that vests the week a nomination is decided invites a question about the package. We move the date rather than explain it afterwards.
Leaver terms when the visa does the leaving
Most plans sort departing employees into two boxes. A sponsored worker can leave through a third door, and the plan should name it.
Resignation on notice, redundancy, illness or death. Vested options survive for a set exercise window. Unvested options lapse, or vest pro rata where the board agrees. The buy-back price is market value.
Summary dismissal, a breach of restraint or confidentiality, or leaving to compete. Options lapse, or shares are bought back at the lower of cost and market value. The sponsor still notifies the Department within 28 days. The worker keeps 180 days to find a new sponsor.
The visa is refused, cancelled or expires, or the worker moves to a new sponsor. None of this is misconduct, so bad leaver pricing invites a dispute. We treat it as a good leaver event, with one addition. The exercise window is long enough to use from overseas. The company holds a power of attorney to complete the buy-back.
The tax the accountant models
We do not advise on tax. We do make sure three questions reach the accountant before the grant, because the answers change the drafting.
The first is whether the start-up concession applies. The Australian Taxation Office sets the conditions. The company must be unlisted, incorporated less than 10 years, with aggregated turnover below $50 million. A share must be issued at a discount of no more than 15% of market value. An option needs an exercise price at or above the market value of an ordinary share. The worker holds the interest for 3 years or until employment ends. The worker also stays under the 10% ownership and voting test. Meet those, and the discount is not taxed on receipt.
The second is the deferred taxing point for a plan outside the concession. Leaving the job used to be a taxing point in its own right. The law on that has changed, and the accountant confirms the rule for the grant date.
The third is residency. Tax residency turns on facts, not on the visa. A worker who leaves Australia with vested shares can face a different capital gains position. The leaver clause, the exercise window and the buy-back price all interact with that answer.
The offer document
Since 1 October 2022, the Corporations Act 2001 has had its own employee share scheme regime. It sits in Division 1A of Part 7.12. A proprietary company can offer shares and options to employees without a prospectus, on the regime's conditions. A monetary cap applies where participants pay, and each participant receives an offer document. A sponsored worker is an employee like any other here. We attach the visa leaver clause so the worker reads it before accepting.
Before the first grant to a sponsored worker
Our two teams work through this list together. Your browser will remember what you tick.
The fifth item is the one founders push back on. A capped holding feels ungenerous. The alternative is a worker who directs the company that nominates them. Our note on share transfers and nomination ownership covers that control question.
How we run these files
Our commercial practice drafts the plan rules, the offer document and the leaver terms. The migration team checks the grant against the nomination, the salary and the visa calendar. The accountant models the tax. All three read the same draft before anyone signs. If your company sponsors staff and wants an option plan, speak to us before the first grant.
Frequently asked questions
Can an employee on a 482 visa join our employee share scheme?
Yes. Condition 8607 restricts the work a 482 holder may do. It does not restrict the shares or options they hold in their employer.
Do options count towards the nominated salary of $79,423?
No. The nominated salary must be paid in money. Options, dividends and profit shares have no fixed value, so they sit outside annual earnings.
What happens to unvested options if the visa ends?
That depends on the plan rules. We draft a visa leaver clause that treats an ending visa as a good leaver event. The exercise window is usable from overseas.
Can we price the options to recover our sponsorship costs?
No. A sponsor cannot recover the sponsorship charge, the nomination charge or the levy from the worker. Equity priced against them is a recovery.
Does the start-up tax concession apply to a sponsored worker?
It can. The conditions attach to the company and the interest, not the visa. The company must be unlisted, under 10 years old and below $50 million aggregated turnover.
Figures verified against Home Affairs visa pricing as at 1 July 2026. Start-up concession conditions read on the Australian Taxation Office on 13 October 2026. The offer regime is Division 1A of Part 7.12 of the Corporations Act 2001.
General information as at 13 October 2026. The company described in the opening is a composite, not a client. Not legal or tax advice. Scheme terms, visa conditions and tax outcomes turn on your own facts, so obtain advice before any grant.