A VEVO check for employers is a free online lookup, run through the Department of Home Affairs, that shows whether a visa holder can work for you and on what conditions. VEVO stands for Visa Entitlement Verification Online. Run it with the worker's permission before their first shift.
Home Affairs says you must check that the person you hire can legally work in Australia. A Medicare card, a tax file number or a driver licence is not enough on its own to show that a non-citizen can work.
Who can run a VEVO check on a casual worker?
Only a registered organisation that has the visa holder's permission can run a VEVO check on that person. Home Affairs lists employers and labour suppliers among the organisations that register for VEVO through an ImmiAccount, and the organisation needs an Australian Business Number (ABN) to register.
Choose the work entitlements category when you register. The department approves all access requests, so name the two or three supervisors who will run checks.
VEVO only checks non-Australian passport holders, and Home Affairs says you cannot use VEVO to confirm citizenship. For a citizen, ask to see an Australian passport or a citizenship certificate instead.
How to do a VEVO check, step by step
A VEVO check takes six actions, following the Home Affairs instructions for organisations.
- Get the worker's permission to use their travel document details. VEVO accepts a passport, ImmiCard, Convention Travel Document, Document for Travel To Australia or PLO56 Evidence Card.
- Log in to VEVO through your organisation's ImmiAccount.
- Enter the visa holder's name as it appears on the travel document.
- Select the document type, then enter the date of birth, document number and nationality. An ImmiCard or PLO56 Evidence Card does not need a country.
- Accept the VEVO terms and conditions, check the details and submit.
- Read the result and save the PDF.
If VEVO is unavailable when you try, Home Affairs says to record the time and date. Its hiring guidance also lets you ask the person to email you their current visa details from VEVO.
What does a VEVO result show, and what does it leave out?
A VEVO work entitlements result shows whether the person has unlimited work rights, limited work rights with a description of the conditions, or no work rights. It also gives the visa grant and expiry dates.
Home Affairs says to hire someone only if all of the following are true.
- Their visa is in effect and has not expired or been cancelled.
- The conditions do not say 'No work'.
- They will not breach any other visa condition.
- They are allowed to do the type of work you want them to do.
The result has limits. VEVO only holds current visa information for people whose details are in the department's systems, and someone who migrated before 1990 and has not travelled out of Australia since may have no searchable record. VEVO also lists visa details and conditions, not the hours a person has worked for you or anyone else.
Hour limits are easy to get wrong when employing casual workers on visas. A student visa allows work up to 48 hours a fortnight while the course is in session, and a fortnight is 14 days starting on a Monday. The total counts across every job the student holds, so a student who works 30 hours in one week and 30 in the next, for example, is over the limit. Our post on visa restrictions in the casual workforce covers how visa policy changes affect the casual labour pool.
When do you need to repeat a VEVO check?
Repeat the check when Home Affairs says to: within 2 days of the visa expiry, whenever you know the worker's visa circumstances have changed, and every 3 months for a bridging visa where VEVO shows no expiry date. Put the expiry date from the first result into your roster or HR system the day you run the check, with a reminder ahead of the date, not on it.
Ask casuals to tell you if they renew or change visa, and run a fresh check each time.
What should you record after each check?
Save the PDF of the VEVO result for every worker. Home Affairs recommends it and says its compliance officers may request it on field inspections. A short record per worker is enough for most sites:
- the PDF of the result, with the date you ran it and who ran it;
- a note that the worker gave permission;
- the visa expiry date and your reminder date;
- any work condition, such as an hour limit, and how you will count hours against it.
Home Affairs also says you do not need to keep a copy of the worker's travel document.
Who runs the check when labour hire supplies the worker?
Agree in writing with your labour hire provider who runs the check and who holds the record, rather than assuming it was done. Home Affairs says employers face penalties for allowing illegal work, and that this includes workers that recruitment or labour hire companies source. Its page for employers and labour hire organisations suggests a contract clause requiring the provider to use VEVO.
Before the first shift, ask the provider to confirm the check date, the visa expiry date and any work conditions that affect your roster. Our post on fast labour hire covers having licence and visa checks on file before an order, and the post on legal considerations when hiring blue collar workers covers the wider employer duties.
Chandler Personnel provides labour hire and permanent recruitment for warehousing and logistics employers, and you can send a staff request through the request staff form.
What are the penalties if a casual works without work rights?
It is a criminal offence to employ, refer, coerce or contract a non-citizen who does not have the right to work in Australia, and Home Affairs says all penalties are for each worker. For example, for allowing an unlawful non-citizen to work, the civil penalty for a company is 1,200 penalty units (A$436,800) and the criminal maximum fine for a company is 1,800 penalty units (A$655,200), with higher figures for aggravated offences, based on a penalty unit of A$364 from 1 July 2026.
Separately, employers found to have seriously, deliberately or repeatedly exploited migrant workers can be declared prohibited employers, banned for a period from hiring more temporary visa holders, with the business name and ABN published. Visa holders have the same workplace entitlements as other employees, as the Fair Work Ombudsman fact sheet on visa holders explains.
This is general information, not legal advice. Check the linked government pages, or get advice for your own situation, before you rely on any figure here.
Related Resources
- Home Affairs: how organisations use VEVO
- Home Affairs: hiring someone in Australia
- Home Affairs: work-related contraventions and penalties
- Visa restrictions in the casual workforce
- Legal considerations when hiring blue collar workers
- Fast labour hire with checks on file
- Request staff
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a VEVO check free for employers?
Yes. Home Affairs describes VEVO as a free online system for checking a potential employee's visa work conditions. You still need an ABN and an organisation ImmiAccount.
Do I need the worker's consent to run a VEVO check?
Yes. Home Affairs says only registered organisations that have the visa holder's permission can check their visa details.
Can I check an Australian citizen in VEVO?
No. VEVO cannot be used to confirm citizenship, so ask to see an Australian passport or a citizenship certificate.
How often should I repeat a VEVO check?
Home Affairs says to check within 2 days of the visa expiry, or if you know the worker's visa circumstances have changed. For a bridging visa where VEVO shows no expiry date, check every 3 months.
What does VEVO show for a student on a casual roster?
The result shows the visa status, the expiry date and the work condition attached to the visa, such as the 48 hours a fortnight limit while the course is in session. It does not count hours worked, so track those on the roster.
Can a casual start before the VEVO check is done?
Home Affairs says to hire someone only if their visa is in effect and the conditions allow the work, which you cannot confirm without the check, so run it before the first shift. If VEVO is unavailable, Home Affairs says to record the date and time, and its hiring guidance lets you ask the worker to email their current visa details from VEVO.
Check work rights before the first shift
A VEVO check for employers is a short, free step that confirms what work a visa holder is allowed to do. Get permission, run the check, read the conditions, save the PDF and diary the expiry date. Start this week by listing every visa holder on your casual roster and confirming that each one has a saved result and a reminder date.
