Ahhhh the coveted permanent residency 🤗
It’s not that simple to become an Australian citizen...
There are a lot of eligibility requirements. Do you know what they are?
Today, we’re digging into the ins and outs of how to find out if you’re already eligible, what to do next if you are, and also what to do to become eligible if you aren’t already.
First things first.
Do you have an eligible skill?
In order to be able to apply for a skill-sponsored visa or under the general skilled migration program, you need to make sure that your relevant occupation is on the Skilled Occupation List.
The Skilled Occupation List names all the professions that can earn you a skilled sponsored or skilled visa - a possible permanent residency in Australia.
The List is created by industries reporting to the Australian Government that they find it difficult to find Australians with the right skills to suit the position. They ask the Government to create an immigration stream for that occupation so that they can look for overseas nationals to fulfil these roles.
The list is updated regularly based on skill shortages and will vary depending on location.
You can search the list based on your occupation, or browse through the options and take a peek at the eligible occupations here
Right!
So what happens if your occupation isn’t on the list, if you don’t have the correct qualifications or you wish to change career to something that offers permanent residency?
Don’t worry!
It is still possible to get yourself a work visa or residency in Australia by getting yourself equipped with the right qualifications and experience by studying certain trade/vocational or higher education courses!
As you browse through the occupation list and find an occupation that interests you, check the eligibility criteria! For example:
The ANZSCO code provides information on a particular occupation. Under the link you may check what sort of course you would have to undertake to be eligible for a work or permanent visa.
The occupation may require a bachelor’s degree or a trade course to be finalized. Some occupations for example require a Bachelor’s degree plus 1 year experience in the industry, whereas others might require a diploma and 2 years of experience.
The Assessing Authority is the organisation that will asses your skills. A skills assessment is required for most occupations. Remember that you need to satisfy both the immigration and assessing body requirement to be eligible for particular visa. And sometimes their requirements may be different to each other, therefore we recommend checking both of these before beginning your journey.
Sometimes experience can be used in place of a qualification so your best chance of understanding your eligibility is to talk with a registered migration agent. Book a free consultation.
After checking these requirements, you should know what sort of course you could undertake.
‼ Word to the wise:
The Skilled Occupation List changes regularly so it’s always a little gamble to pick something on the list to try and become eligible for residency.
You run the risk of coming to the end of your course and your occupation has been taken off the list.
We have no way of knowing for sure what will still be on the list in a yew years’ time, but we can take an educated guess.
Occupations placed on the MLTSSL list are occupations that are likely to be in ‘strong’ demand and if you are planning on studying something – you should choose something from that list.
As well as publishing information on which occupations are on the list, the Government also publishes which is likely to be in strong, moderate or soft demand in the future.
Occupations estimated to be in strong demand in the future or in short supply now are also put on the Priority List.
We can also use the following lists to get a good idea of what will be in strong demand in the future:
The National Skills Commission (NSC) provides a detailed view of shortages as well as the future demand for occupations across Australia.
This list provides the backbone piece of labour market analysis on occupations that will be a key input to a range of Australian Government policy initiatives, including targeting of skilled migration, apprenticeship incentives and training funding.
You can see the future demand here
It’s not fool proof, but it will give us a good indication of what might be a safer bet for the future.
Want some help discussing your options, ideas for which occupations and trades have lower entry requirements or want to know what your next steps are?
Get in touch with us, all our services and advice is FREE!
Happy Visa-ing!
Education and Visa Agency Team