DAMA · Western Australia · Established 2020
Great Southern Designated Area Migration Agreement
The Great Southern DAMA covers Albany and the agricultural Great Southern region of WA. It targets the agricultural, aquaculture, viticulture, livestock and tourism gaps in a region whose workforce is structurally aged and outflowing to Perth.
★Key takeaways
- ✓Great Southern DAMA was established 2020 and is administered by Regional Development Australia Great Southern.
- ✓Occupation list includes 10+ roles with TSMIT and English concessions not available on standard 482 Core stream.
- ✓Employer geographic trigger: Employer must be located in the City of Albany or one of the surrounding Great Southern LGAs (Plantagenet, Denmark, Cranbrook, Gnowangerup, Jerramungup, Katanning, Kojonup, Tambellup, Broomehill-Tambe...
- ✓PR pathway: 186 Direct Entry stream under the Labour Agreement pathway after 3 years on the 482.
- ✓Cite all DAMA pathway numbers against Regional Development Australia Great Southern’s current published occupation list – concessions and occupations are reviewed periodically.
At a glance
Agreement holder
Regional Development Australia Great Southern
Geographic trigger
Employer must be located in the City of Albany or one of the surrounding Great Southern LGAs (Plantagenet, Denmark, Cranbrook, Gnowangerup, Jerramungup, Katanning, Kojonup, Tambellup, Broomehill-Tambellup, Woodanilling)
PR pathway
186 Direct Entry stream under the Labour Agreement pathway after 3 years on the 482
Occupations covered
10+ across mining, trades, hospitality, care and professional services
Top concession occupations
10 representative occupations
A sample of the 10+ occupations on the Great Southern DAMA. The full current list is published by the agreement holder and is reviewed periodically.
Source: Regional Development Australia Great Southern DAMA occupation list →
Concessions summary
What the DAMA actually changes
| Concession | Great Southern DAMA |
|---|---|
| TSMIT | Up to 10% concession on TSMIT for selected agricultural and care occupations |
| English | IELTS 5.0 each band for skilled occupations; 4.5 each band for selected semi-skilled |
| Age (PR pathway) | PR pathway: age cap raised to 55 for selected occupations |
| Work experience and skills | Reduced work experience (2 years) and skills assessment exemptions for selected agricultural roles |
Concessions are set out in the agreement between the Commonwealth and the agreement holder and can change at agreement renewal. Always confirm against the current published agreement.
In depth
How the Great Southern DAMA actually works
Albany is WA’s southern-most major town, a regional centre of around 35,000 anchoring an agricultural region of broadacre cropping, sheep grazing, viticulture, aquaculture and timber. The Great Southern is the most reliably-watered part of WA for agriculture but has experienced steady youth outflow to Perth for two decades. The DAMA was signed in 2020 to give local agricultural employers a structured pathway to sponsor overseas workers.
Veterinarians, agricultural scientists and farm hands head the list. Wool classer is one of the more unusual concession occupations – Australia’s wool industry has structurally lost the skilled classer workforce that used to be supplied by domestic apprenticeship programs. Aged care worker, disability support worker and childcare educator are also concession-eligible to support the Albany social services workforce.
The English and TSMIT concessions follow the standard DAMA pattern. Albany’s agreement is one of the smaller volume DAMAs but is well-regarded as a stable, well-administered scheme.
Employer obligations
- Employer must be located within the agreement region (see geographic trigger above).
- Obtain agreement holder endorsement before lodging a Standard Business Sponsorship (SBS) application with Home Affairs.
- Demonstrate local labour market testing (LMT) was carried out and a local hire was not available.
- Pay the Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) levy on nomination: $1,200/year (small business under $10m turnover) or $1,800/year (larger employers).
- Pay at or above the agreement’s salary floor (cannot use DAMA concession to push salary below the agreement minimum).
- Do not recover any sponsorship or migration agent costs from the worker (this is a strict sponsor obligation).
Agreement holder contact
Regional Development Australia Great Southern
Common questions
Great Southern DAMA – common questions
Does Great Southern DAMA cover all of southern WA?
It covers Albany and the surrounding LGAs (Plantagenet, Denmark, Cranbrook, Gnowangerup, Jerramungup, Katanning, Kojonup, Tambellup, Broomehill-Tambellup, Woodanilling). It does not cover the South West region (Bunbury, Margaret River area) which has no DAMA.
Are seasonal agricultural workers covered?
No – the DAMA is for skilled and semi-skilled occupations on 482 visas. Seasonal agricultural workers normally use the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme or Working Holiday Maker (417/462) visas, not the DAMA.
Can a vet from offshore use this DAMA?
Yes. Veterinarian is on the standard MLTSSL anyway, but the DAMA offers concessions that can be useful where the standard 482 / 186 pathway has tightened. A migration agent can advise whether the standard pathway or the DAMA pathway is better for a specific veterinarian.
Does Margaret River fall under any DAMA?
No. The South West region (Margaret River, Busselton, Bunbury) is not covered by any DAMA. Employers there must use the standard 482 / 494 pathways or apply for a labour agreement directly.
Other DAMA regions