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Quick answer: What used to be called the Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT) is now the Core Skills Income Threshold (CSIT) under the Skills in Demand visa – the same underlying mechanism: a minimum salary floor for sponsoring skilled overseas workers. It’s indexed each 1 July and currently sits at $79,499 (from 1 July 2026), up from $73,150 when it first crossed this figure in July 2024. |
What TSMIT/CSIT actually does
The threshold sets the minimum salary a sponsoring employer must pay a skilled visa holder – whichever is higher between the published threshold figure and the genuine market salary rate for the role. It exists to guarantee fair compensation for sponsored workers and to prevent the visa system being used to undercut local wages, protecting both the visa holder and the broader labour market.
From TSMIT to CSIT: a naming and structural change
The Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT) applied under the old Temporary Skill Shortage (482) visa. When the Skills in Demand visa launched on 7 December 2024, the equivalent mechanism for the Core Skills stream was rebranded the Core Skills Income Threshold (CSIT) – the concept carried through, but it’s now stream-specific, sitting alongside a separate, higher Specialist Skills Income Threshold (SSIT) for that pathway.
Threshold history
| Effective date | Threshold (Core Skills / TSMIT-CSIT) | Change |
| Before 1 July 2023 | $53,900 | – |
| From 1 July 2023 | $70,000 | +$16,100 |
| From 1 July 2024 | $73,150 | +$3,150 |
| From 1 July 2025 | $76,515 | +$3,365 |
| From 1 July 2026 | $79,499 | +$2,984 |
The increased salary thresholds reflect a deliberate policy push to keep the sponsored-worker salary floor closer to genuine market rates rather than a static figure eroded by inflation.
Compliance checklist for sponsoring employers
New nominations must meet whichever is higher: the current published threshold or the market salary rate for the role. Before lodging a nomination:
- Confirm the current threshold in force on the intended lodgement date, not the date you started planning the role
- Review and, if necessary, revise your salary budget for the position to meet the higher of the threshold or market rate
- Update your Labour Market Testing (LMT) evidence to reflect the correct salary band
- Check whether the role sits in the Core Skills or Specialist Skills band, since each carries a different threshold
- Confirm the change doesn’t affect any concurrent nominations for the same role at a different salary point
Getting this wrong isn’t just an administrative headache – a nomination pitched below the correct threshold is likely to be refused outright, costing the employer the application fee and the time already invested in the candidate.
Is TSMIT still the correct term to use?
Largely superseded. Since the Skills in Demand visa launched in December 2024, the equivalent Core Skills threshold is officially called the Core Skills Income Threshold (CSIT), with a separate, higher Specialist Skills Income Threshold (SSIT) for that stream.
What is the current minimum salary threshold for sponsoring a skilled worker?
$79,499 plus superannuation for the Core Skills stream, from 1 July 2026. The Specialist Skills stream requires at least $146,717.
Does the threshold or the market salary rate apply?
Whichever is higher. Employers must pay sponsored workers at least the published threshold, or the genuine market salary rate for the role – whichever figure is greater.
How often does the threshold change?
It’s indexed annually, effective each 1 July, and has increased every year since at least 2023.
Be sure to GET IN TOUCH with our team of experts if you have any questions regarding these changes
