Skills Assessment

Understanding Skills Assessments

To be eligible for most of the skilled visas, an applicant’s nominated occupation usually needs to be found on one of the several skilled occupation lists that Australia uses, with most occupations assigned a specific skills assessing authority. It is essential to have a skills assessment issued by the relevant authority recognised for your occupation. As an applicant, it is your responsibility to contact the appropriate assessing authority for your occupation and obtain the necessary skills assessment if it's required for your visa application. Each authority has its own set of procedures, timeframes, and fees, making it important to thoroughly understand and prepare for the assessment process.

Importance of Skills Assessments

A suitable skills assessment is mandatory for certain visa subclasses and streams, and it might be requested for others. Before applying, you should carefully review all available information about the visa to determine if a skills assessment is necessary and when it should be obtained.

Visas Requiring Skills Assessments

Skills assessments may be required if you are applying for the following visas and streams:

• General Skilled Migration visas
• Employer Sponsored visas
• Temporary Skill Shortage visa
• Temporary Graduate visa

Obtaining a Skills Assessment: Key Steps

Step 1: Contact the Assessing Authority

• Identify and contact the relevant skills assessing authority for your nominated occupation. It’s crucial to arrange your skills assessment well before applying for the visa. Each authority will have distinct procedures and may charge different fees. The time taken to assess qualifications and experience can vary significantly between authorities.

Step 2: Receive Your Assessment Outcome

• After receiving your skills assessment, you will need to provide a scanned copy with your visa application. Note that if your skills assessment result is not positive, you will not be able to apply for a skilled visa that requires a skills assessment.

Understanding and navigating the skills assessment process is essential for successfully applying for visas that require confirmation of occupational competencies. Early preparation and adherence to the specified procedures can enhance the likelihood of a favorable outcome. Our lawyers at Maison Chen Law Group are here to help you find the best way to kickstart your journey tostay in Australia by assessing which nominated occupation may apply to you and which skills assessment you may need. We provide clear strategies to enable you to achieve your Australian Dream.”