Many employers don’t realise there is a meaningful difference between working with an immigration lawyer and working with a registered migration agent.
From the outside, everyone who “does visas” can look the same.
They all deal with Home Affairs.
They all talk about sponsorship.
They all appear at the same point in your recruitment process.
So it’s completely understandable that the two roles are often treated as interchangeable.
But if you are sponsoring overseas staff — or considering it as part of your workforce strategy — the distinction matters.
In this episode of Mind the Gap Australia, we unpack three key areas:
Let’s walk through it clearly and practically.
Most employers have never had the difference explained in a way that connects to their business reality.
When someone says, “Oh yes, we’ve worked with agents before,” it usually means they’ve experienced migration at the surface level — forms, lodgements, emails — but haven’t been shown the framework underneath.
They don’t see:
That’s not a criticism. You didn’t start a business to study professional regulation frameworks. You started a business to hire good people and keep operations running.
The goal here is simply clarity — so you can choose the right support for what your business actually needs.
A registered migration agent:
They are authorised to provide immigration assistance and advice under the Migration Act and migration regulations.
There is no formal supervised-practice period built into that profession once registration is granted.
To become a lawyer, a person must:
To operate a law practice, further requirements apply, including holding a principal practising certificate.
Lawyers can offer legal-professional privilege.
Lawyers are trained beyond migration law.
They are trained to identify legal risk and give advice that may span:
Migration often intersects with these areas.
If you are simply lodging a visa within an existing structure, that may be one type of engagement.
If you are designing workforce structures, navigating compliance risk, or dealing with complex personal or commercial circumstances, broader legal training can become relevant.
It’s similar to the difference between an accountant and a bookkeeper.
Both are important.
Both deal with financial matters.
But their scope and regulatory framework are not the same.
When you sponsor staff, you don’t just provide a résumé.
You provide:
If you are working with a lawyer, your communications for the purpose of legal advice are protected by legal professional privilege.
This means:
This protection does not extend in the same way to registered migration agents.
That does not mean migration agents disregard confidentiality. They are bound by privacy obligations and professional standards.
However, legal professional privilege is a specific legal protection that only applies to lawyers acting in their legal capacity.
For some employers, this distinction may not be critical.
For others — particularly those operating in commercially sensitive industries or with higher litigation exposure — it may be very important.
It is something you should understand clearly before deciding who to engage.
The most common mistake businesses make is treating sponsorship as reactive.
Someone finds a strong candidate. The question becomes: “Can we sponsor them?”
If that is the only time sponsorship enters the conversation, you are always playing catch-up.
Sustainable workforce planning requires stepping back and asking structural questions:
These are not form-filling questions.
They are structural planning decisions.
A Standard Business Sponsorship allows your business to sponsor eligible occupations for a set period.
A DAMA may provide access to additional occupations or concessions for regional employers.
Different types of labour agreements — industry, company-specific or project-based — can support larger workforces or occupations not covered under standard programs.
Each of these is a legal instrument.
They shape:
Without the right structure in place, sponsorship feels complicated and risky.
With the right structure, it becomes repeatable and strategic.
In business, you might work with both an accountant and a bookkeeper.
The accountant helps design the overall structure — entities, tax planning, long-term strategy.
The bookkeeper works within that structure, ensuring the day-to-day compliance is correct.
Both are valuable.
But they serve different functions.
Workforce planning that includes sponsorship is similar.
You need:
Once that foundation exists, your HR team, recruiter, or migration practitioner can operate far more effectively inside it.
Without that structure, sponsorship can feel confusing or “too hard.”
With it, sponsorship becomes part of business as usual.
In this episode, we covered:
Understanding these distinctions doesn’t mean one profession replaces the other.
It means you can engage the right support for the right stage of your business.
If this episode highlighted gaps in how you’ve been approaching international hiring, the first step is understanding whether your business is even eligible.
You can complete the 60-second business eligibility check
👉 https://www.solvi.com.au/hire-international-workers-eligibility-checklist
Or, book a consultation to discuss a specific scenario.
👉 https://www.solvi.com.au/book-a-consult
Clarity first. Decisions second.