Can I Leave My Employer After Getting a 186 Visa?

Yes, after your subclass 186 visa is granted, you are an Australian permanent resident, and you are legally entitled to leave your nominating employer. The 186 visa carries no condition that obliges you to stay for two years. The two-year expectation rests on the employer’s nomination obligations and on the “genuine intention” both parties signalled at the time of nomination. 

Leaving the day you receive your grant, walking off after a few weeks, or having written evidence that you always intended to quit can attract integrity scrutiny under section 109 of the Migration Act 1958, which gives the Department of Home Affairs the power to cancel a visa where false or misleading information was provided. In contrast, leaving after a reasonable period of genuine service or because of redundancy, business closure, restructure, mistreatment, or a documented change in circumstances is generally low risk.

This 2026 guide explains your rights, your sponsor’s obligations, when leaving is safe and when it is risky, the practical steps to protect yourself, the impact on your citizenship pathway, and how The Migration’s MARA-registered agents review your situation before you resign so the change of employer never threatens the permanent residency you worked hard to secure.

Can you legally leave your employer after the subclass 186 visa is granted?

Yes, you can legally leave your employer once your subclass 186 visa has been granted. The 186 is a permanent residency visa, not a temporary sponsored visa, so it does not contain a visa condition (such as 8607 on the 482) requiring you to remain in your nominated occupation or with your sponsor. The right to choose any employer, occupation, or industry sits with you as a permanent resident from the moment of grant.

What the 186 visa actually requires

• If you are in Australia at the time of the grant, you are expected to commence work with your nominating employer in the nominated position.
• If you are outside Australia, you must enter the country and start the role within six months of first arrival.
• There is no clause in the visa grant letter that requires you to remain employed with the sponsor for two years or any other minimum period.
• Permanent residency entitles you to work in any occupation, in any industry, anywhere in Australia, subject only to professional registration requirements.

What does “genuine intention” mean for the 186 visa?

Genuine intention is the legal test that both you and your sponsor must have entered the nomination believing the employment would actually proceed and continue for a meaningful period, commonly read as around two years. It does not bind you contractually, but it does anchor how the Department interprets a sudden departure if questions are later raised.

Genuine intention at the applicant’s end

• You should have intended to take up the nominated role and work in it when you signed the application.
• Your CV, statement, and supporting documents should reflect a real commitment to that occupation.
• Resigning immediately after the grant, when paired with written evidence of pre-existing intent to leave, is the highest-risk fact pattern.
• Honest, documented changes in circumstances after grant family events, health issues, restructure, redundancy do not breach genuine intention.

Genuine intention at the sponsor’s end

• The sponsoring employer must have genuinely intended to employ you in the nominated position.
• The position must have been a real, ongoing role and not a paper arrangement.
• Sponsors carry sponsorship obligations under the Migration Regulations and may be subject to monitoring even after the visa is granted.
• If the employer terminates your role, makes you redundant, or breaches its sponsor obligations, the genuine-intention question is generally resolved in your favour.

Can the Department of Home Affairs cancel a 186 visa under section 109?

Yes, the Department can cancel a permanent visa, including a granted 186, under section 109 of the Migration Act 1958, but only where it has evidence that false or misleading information, or bogus documents, were provided in connection with the application. Cancellations of granted PR visas for “leaving the employer” alone are very rare and require a clear evidentiary trail.

1. When section 109 cancellation is realistic

• Internal emails or messages showing you intended to resign immediately upon grant.
• Sham employment arrangements where the sponsoring role was never genuine.
• Bogus payslips, fabricated experience letters, or false qualification documents.
• Statutory declarations or interview answers that contradict the supporting evidence.
• Coordinated the departure of multiple sponsored employees soon after a grant from the same sponsor.

2. When section 109 cancellation is not realistic

• You worked in the nominated role for a reasonable period and then resigned for a documented reason.
• Your role was made redundant, or the business was restructured or closed.
• You were subjected to underpayment, unsafe conditions, or other workplace issues you can evidence.
• You moved to a higher-paying or career-progression role in the same occupation after a meaningful period.
• Family, health, or relocation reasons that arose after the grant.

When is leaving your 186 employer low risk?

Leaving your 186 employer is low risk once you have served a reasonable period in the nominated role, your departure is for a documented reason, and you have evidence that you joined and worked in good faith. The longer the genuine service, the lower the risk—and after about two years, the question rarely surfaces again.

Lower-risk scenarios

• You have completed at least two years in the nominated role with the sponsoring employer.
• You are made redundant in a documented restructure with a written separation letter.
• The business closes, downsizes, or relocates outside your reasonable commute.
• You experience documented mistreatment, underpayment, or breach of award conditions.
• You receive a written reference and final payslips confirming genuine employment.
• You move to a similar occupation that uses the same skills you were nominated for.

When is leaving your 186 employer high risk?

Leaving your 186 employer is high risk when the timing is short, the documentary trail is weak, or the move suggests you never intended to perform the nominated role at all. These situations attract integrity reviews and, in the most serious cases, can lead to section 109 cancellation proceedings.

Higher-risk scenarios

• Resigning within days or weeks of the visa grant without a clear, evidenced reason.
• Switching to an unrelated occupation immediately after the grant.
• Written communications (texts, WhatsApp messages, emails) discussing pre-grant plans to leave.
• Sponsor under existing investigation for sham contracting or sponsorship breaches.
• Declared salary or duties that did not match the role you actually performed.
• Multiple sponsored workers leaving the same employer immediately after the grant.

What practical steps should you take before resigning from your 186 employer?

Before you resign, build a clean evidentiary record that proves your employment was genuine, document your reason for leaving, and get a professional review of your situation. The goal is to make your departure routine on paper and remove any ambiguity about your intentions at the time of nomination.

Documentation to keep on file

• Signed employment contract, position description, and any role variations.
• All payslips, payment summaries, and superannuation statements since the grant.
• Performance reviews, training records, and project deliverables in the nominated role.
• Email or written correspondence reflecting day-to-day duties.
• Resignation letter or redundancy/separation letter from the employer.
• Reference letter confirming the period and nature of employment.

Actions to take before you resign

• Calculate how long you have actually worked in the nominated position.
• Identify and document the reason for leaving in writing.
• Avoid signing a new employment contract before discussing the timing with a registered migration agent.
• Where possible, give notice and serve it out cleanly rather than walking off.
• Keep copies of everything before handing back company devices.

Does changing employers affect your Australian citizenship pathway?

Changing employers after your 186 visa grant does not, by itself, affect your eligibility for Australian citizenship. Citizenship is assessed against your residency record, character, English, and the citizenship test, not the identity of your employer. What matters is that your permanent residency remains in force throughout the residence period.

Citizenship eligibility timeline

• Lawful residence in Australia for four years immediately before the citizenship application.
• Permanent residence for at least 12 months immediately before applying.
• Absences of no more than 12 months in the four-year period and no more than 90 days in the 12 months before applying.
• Pass the citizenship test (under 60s) and meet the character requirement.

Residency obligations

• Permanent residents have no obligation to stay with the sponsoring employer for citizenship purposes.
• Travel after the grant is permitted for the five-year travel facility on the visa; renewal via a Resident Return Visa (subclass 155) requires the standard residency footprint.
• Long absences from Australia can affect both citizenship eligibility and the Resident Return Visa renewal plan ahead of time if you intend to travel extensively.
• Permanent residents are entitled to Medicare, school enrolment, and most workplace rights from day one.

How The Migration helps 186 visa holders considering a change of employer

The Migration is an Australian migration consultancy with offices in Harris Park (Sydney) and Melbourne CBD, supporting employer-sponsored visa holders through every employment transition after the grant. Our team includes MARA-registered migration agents who pressure-test the timing, paperwork, and risk profile of your move before you resign.

• Pre-resignation file review assessing your time served, documentation, and section 109 exposure.
• Risk assessment of leaving immediately, after six months, after one year, or after two years.
• Documentation strategy for redundancy, restructure, mistreatment, or genuine career progression scenarios.
• Sponsor communication support when conversations with the employer are sensitive.
• Citizenship pathway planning, integrating your travel, residency, and Resident Return Visa needs.
• Family member visa support for partners and dependants on the same 186 grant.
• Section 109 response handling if the Department raises any concerns later.
• Onshore meetings in Sydney and Melbourne, plus video consultations Australia-wide and internationally.

186 visa holders in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra, and regional Australia can book a consultation with our team online or in person at our Harris Park and Melbourne CBD offices.

Conclusion

The subclass 186 visa is permanent residency, and once it has been granted, you are not legally tied to your nominating employer. The two-year figure that floats around the industry comes from the sponsor’s obligations and from the “genuine intention” test, not from a visa condition. The risk of section 109 cancellation is real, but it focuses on false statements, sham roles, and pre-existing plans to leave, not on legitimate career or life changes after the grant.

The safest course is to serve a reasonable period in the nominated role, document why you are leaving, and have a MARA-registered agent review your file before you resign. Done well, a change of employer after a 186 grant is a normal step in your Australian career, one that protects your permanent residency and keeps your citizenship pathway intact. Book your consultation with the migration.

Frequently Asked Questions