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Regional migration

Designated Area Migration Agreement

​​​Designated ​Area Migration Agreements (DAMAs) are a formal arrangement between the Commonwealth of Australia and a designated area representative (DAR). A DAR may be a state or territory government or regional body.

Under the terms of a DAMA, the designated area may be able to access a broader range of overseas workers than is available through the standard skilled visa programs by allowing variation to standard occupations and skills lists and/or negotiable concessions to visa requirements.

DAMA requests are considered on a case by case basis, and support the unique circumstances and labour market needs of the geographical region.

There are a number of factors considered for a DAMA to be approved, including there must be demonstrated efforts to recruit Australians first, ceilings on numbers of overseas workers employed annually and that local support is made available to migrant workers.

Individuals cannot directly access a DAMA. Individuals need to be sponsored:

  • by an employer operating in a designated region, and
  • for an occupation that is specified in the head agreement

For more information visit ​​Designated Area Migration Agreements.