General Skilled Migration – PR Visa Pathways

General Skilled Migration to Australia or Skilled Migration to Australia provides pathways for qualified professionals and tradespeople to apply for Australian permanent residency based on their skills, qualifications and work experience. It is a selection-based system for PR to Australia where the Australian Government or States/Territories in Australia select high ranking candidates on the basis of their age, qualifications, work experience and English proficiency. 

Skilled Migration is a category within the Australian Immigration Program that includes visas available to potential migrants who wish to migrate to Australia using their own skills and work experience and without an Employer Sponsorship. These visas are commonly known Australian skilled migration visas. So the answer to the question: ‘”Who can apply for skilled migration to Australia?”, is anyone with professional qualifications and work experience who can meet the threshold requirements set out below. 

The list of subclasses of visas that are covered in skilled migration to Australia include Skilled Independent Visa (189), Skilled Nominated Visa (190) and  Skilled Regional (Temporary) Visa (491). In addition, there is also the Skilled Permanent (Regional) Visa (191) that is the PR pathway for holders of the Skilled Regional (Provisional) Visa (491). 

There are several steps to consider for skilled migration to Australia. 

First, you need to check your skilled migration to Australia eligibility against the threshold requirements of Age and English proficiency. There is an age limit for skilled migration to Australia which is 45 years and the minimum level of English proficiency is ‘Competent’. In addition to the threshold criteria, there are other eligibility criteria that also appear in the skilled visa requirements. These include Points Test Score, Occupation Lists, Skills Assessments and Skill Select Invitations.

If you meet the core eligibility requirements, the next step is to obtain a positive skills assessment for your occupation (also called Nominated Occupation). In order to know how to get skills assessment for Australia you need to find the assessing authority in Australia that is responsible for your occupation. This can be checked from the list of occupations at the Department of Home Affairs website.

For example, if you are a computer programmer, searching for ‘Programmer’ will show related occupations and the visas available for those occupations. The last column in the list shows the assessing authority with a link to its website.

In order to be considered, they need to submit what is called an Expression of Interest (EOI). And the expression of interest is a requirement for Australian skilled visas. Details on how to apply for SkillSelect and how to submit an EOI for Australia are on the Department of Home Affairs website.

Once the EOI is submitted, the next step is to wait for a SkillSelect invitation to apply for the skilled visa. Australia PR visa invitation rounds are conducted automatically by SkillSelect at intervals determined by the Department of Home Affairs and successful candidates are informed by email with a link to lodge their application.

The final step is to then apply for the skilled visa for Australia for which the invitation has been sent.

Australia has a system for ranking potential migrants through a points allocation system also called the skilled migration points test. Under the points test system, points are allocated for various attributes of a candidates such as the level of their education, the number of years of their work experience, the level of their English proficiency etc. The SkillSelect database then generates invitations for highest ranking candidates based on their points and other settings entered in SkillSelect. An assessment of points can be made using a skilled migration visa points calculator freely available on the Home Affairs website In order to assess your points. 

There is minimum level of English proficiency required for a skilled migration visa to Australia and the minimum level is ‘Competent’. Australia recognises various English language testing systems such as IELTS and PTE and each system has its own scoring method to assess the Competent. Although ‘Competent’ English is the minimum requirement, there are two higher proficiency levels called ‘Proficient’ and ‘Superior’ that attract higher points in the points calculator. Further details about English requirements is available at the Home Affairs website . 

Australian immigration program has multiple streams and visa subclasses and selection of candidates is based on occupation lists that apply to various visa subclasses. For Migration there are three occupation lists known as the Medium to Long Term Strategic Skills List or the MLTSSL occupation list, the Short-Term Skilled Occupation List or the STSOL occupation list, and the Regional Occupation List or the ROL occupation list.

When considering eligibility, you must ensure that your nominated occupation is on the occupation list for visa 189 or the occupation list for visa 190. Although the occupations in the MLTSSL, STSOL and ROL are unique i.e. no duplication, there can be more than one occupation list applicable to a visa subclass.

The list applicable to your occupation can be checked from the List of Occupations at the Department of Home Affairs website. For example, if you are a computer programmer, searching for ‘Programmer’ will show the list (one or more) applicable to that occupatio. 

The migration skills assessment process ensures that the qualifications and work experience of potential migrants are equivalent to standards applicable in Australia. The skills assessments for Australia are done by independent bodies known as skills assessment authorities. Each skills assessment body has its own process for skills assessment, charges a fee and issues a letter confirming whether the applicant’s skills meet Australian standards.

Some examples include Australian Nursing & Midwifery Accreditation Council (ANMAC) for nurses, Australian Computer Society (ACS) for computer professionals, Engineers Australia (EA) for engineering professionals, Vocational Education and Training Assessment Services (VETASSESS) for various professional and trade occupations, Trades Recognition Australia (TRA) for trade occupations and Institute of Managers and Leaders (IML) for managers. 

Australia has a database called SkillSelect that records interest from candidates seeking to migrate to Australia. Candidates need to submit an Expression of Interest or an EOI in order to be considered. The information needed to lodge an EOI includes all details of an applicant’s qualification, work experience, skills assessment and English proficiency. As the details are entered in the EOI, the link between information in the EOI and the points test enables a calculation of the candidate’s total points. These points are then used for ranking of invitations. 

How often are invitation rounds issued by Home Affairs is the million-dollar question as there is no public information about when the next invitation round would be conducted. To find information on invitation rounds you need to visit the Skill Select page on the Home Affairs website where the information is available under the Invitation Rounds tab. 

The decision on which skilled migration visa is right for you will depend on your individual circumstances rather than a personal preference based on which PR visa is the easiest to get or which visa is the fastest to process. Some of the considerations are discussed below. 

You occupation may be on a list that restricts you to a particular subclass. For example, if your occupation is a Community Arts Worker, this occupation is only on the ROL so the only option is the Provisional Visa 491.

A points score of less than 65 on the Australia skilled visa points calculator does not meet the minimum required 65 points for visa 189, however, additional 5 points can be claimed if applying for the visa 190 and an additional 15 points can be claimed if applying for visa 491

Although the core eligibility requirements are similar for Australia visa 189 (Skilled Independent), visa 190 (Skilled Nominated Visa) and visa 491 (Skilled Regional (Provisional), there is one requirement unique to visa 190 and visa 491 that does not apply to visa 189. This requirement is nomination by an Australian State or Territory and is explained in detail under Skilled Nominated Visa (190) and Skilled Regional (Provisional) visa (491).

Additionally, selecting visa 190 in the EOI on SkillSelect results in the points test calculator adding an extra 5 points to the points score whereas selecting visa 491 adds 15 points to the points total. In terms of total cost, although visa 189 is slightly cheaper than visa 190, it cannot be said that it is the fastest. In fact, it may take a long time to get a SkillSelect invitation for visa 189. Visa 491 is also a provisional visa which means that it is initially a temporary visa that can later be converted to a permanent visa.

Although in most cases the selection of correct visa subclass may be decided based on skilled migration points score or skilled migration occupation lists, in some instances all three visa subclass may be available such as for the occupation of a Registered Nurse. The decision would then depend on an analysis of individual circumstances

The skilled migration processing times for Australia depend on two factors. The first is the time it takes to receive the invitation to apply for the visa and depends heavily on occupation ceilings, invitation round frequency and the applicant’s total points score. The second is the time taken by Home Affairs to process the visa application after it has been lodged and this can change regularly depending on the resources allocated by the Department to process applications. It is not therefore possible to tell how long it takes to get skilled PR to Australia or which is the fast visa for skilled migration to Australia. 

The total PR costs for Australia under Skilled Migration include the fees for various processes including the skills assessment fees, the fees for application for State/Territory nomination if applying for visa 190 or visa 491 and visa application fee or visa application charge that is payable to Home Affairs. As a rough guide, total PR costs for Australia under skilled migration for a single adult would be expected to be between $6,000 to $8,000 depending on the visa subclass. 

Permanent migration to a new country can be very demanding emotionally and financially so it is critical that that every step in the process is completed carefully and without any mistakes. Despite best intentions of applicants, mistakes commonly occur and can sometime affect prospects very adversely. Below are some common mistakes to avoid.

1. I ncorrect selection of visa subclass – if all three visas (189, 190 and 491) are available for your occupation (Nurse for example) but the EOI is submitted with only subclass 491 (temporary) selected, there will be no invitations for subclass 189
2. Partner points claimed incorrectly – if you are single then the skilled migration points calculator gives you 10 points however if you have a partner, there are certain requirements to be met before claiming partner points. If the correct option is not selected, the EOI cannot be changed and the application will fail
3. Work experience claimed incorrectly – the requirements for claiming points for work experience are very specific so any mistakes in points incorrectly claimed will result is the application being refused. 

Given the significant amount of time, emotion and money required for skilled migration to Australia, it is important that you consider availing the services of a registered migration agent in Australia just as you would take professional advice from a doctor on matters of your health. The person you should look for should be an Australian immigration consultant, also called an immigration agent or a visa consultant.

They should be registered with the Office of Migration Agents Regulatory Authority (OMARA), evidenced by their seven-digit registration number and be a visa agent with good independent reviews. A registered migration agent can also help identify issues before an invitation is triggered or a visa application is lodged.