If your occupation is related to information and communication technology (ICT) and is listed on the Skilled Occupation List (SOL) or the Consolidated Sponsored Occupation List (CSOL), you may be qualified for Australian Permanent Resident Visas or Temporary Resident Visas with the possibility of becoming Permanent Resident Visas.
The Australian Computer Society (ACS) is the Skills Assessment Authority for most IT and ICT occupations. At any given time, you can only have one successful Skills Evaluation submission. However, once your application has been approved, you can apply for another job in the IT (ICT) sector.
This could refer to ICT professionals who cover a variety of fields within the industry. You can keep all of the occupation classifications if all of the multiple applications were positive.
Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL)
on the list of medium and long-term skilled occupations, which qualify for a longer-term temporary visa and have pathways to permanent residency through employer sponsorship, state sponsorship, or skilled independence
- ICT business analyst – 261111
- System analyst – 261112
- Multimedia specialist – 261211
- Analyst programmer – 261311
- Developer programmer – 261312
- Software engineers – 261313
- Software and applications programmers (NEC) – 261399
- ICT security specialist – 262112
- Computer network and systems engineer – 263111
Short-term Skilled Occupation List (STSOL)
on the list of medium and long-term skilled occupations, which qualify for a longer-term temporary visa and have pathways to permanent residency through employer sponsorship, state sponsorship, or skilled independence
- ICT business analyst – 261111
- System analyst – 261112
- Multimedia specialist – 261211
- Analyst programmer – 261311
- Developer programmer – 261312
- Software engineers – 261313
- Software and applications programmers (NEC) – 261399
- ICT security specialist – 262112
- Computer network and systems engineer – 263111
Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL)
Short-term professional professions may only be eligible for a temporary visa and do not always have a path to permanent residency. Some states will offer permanent residency by state sponsorship, but there will be additional conditions you must meet.
- ICT project manager – 135112
- ICT managers (NEC) – 135199
- ICT trainer – 223211
- Web developer – 261212
- Software tester – 261314
- Database administrator – 262111
- Systems administrator – 262113
- Network administrator – 263112
- Network analyst – 263113
- ICT Quality assurance engineer – 263211
- ICT support engineer – 26212
- ICT systems test engineer – 263213
- ICT support and test engineers (NEC) – 263299
- ICT customer support officer – 313112 (TRA)
- Web administrator – 313113
- ICT support technicians (NEC) – 313199 (TRA)
Many of the above occupations are evaluated by the Australian Computer Society (ACS) to get the skills assessed, except two – ICT customer service officers and ICT support technicians (NEC), which are assessed by Trades Recognition Australia (TRA).
Visa Pathways for IT Professionals
The General Skilled Visa, which includes independent permanent visa Subclass 189, State Nominated Visa Subclass 190, and the latest temporary Regional Skilled Visa Subclass 491, may be considered for ICT professionals on the MLTSSL occupation list. If your occupation is on the short-term list, you can only apply for the state-nominated visa subclass 190 and/or the latest visa subclass 491.
Skill Assessment for IT Professionals
employment and at least 20hrs per week. Similar to all other occupations, to be considered for a general skilled visa, IT professionals are required to obtain a positive skills assessment from the Australian Computer Society (ACS) as the very first step to go through the skilled visa application process.
We get a lot of questions about what the “skills met date” on the skills evaluation result letter means. ‘The ICT job experience needed to meet the suitability requirements is NOT included as professional employment and is not qualified for points,’ according to the ACS.
The following evaluation guideline list, given by the Australian Computer Society (ACS), lists the ICT experience required in each scenario:
| Required level of AQF compatibility: | Required ICT contnet : | Required Qualification Closely Related to ANZSCO : | Require Relevant Work Experience: | Application Type: |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Bachelor Degree or higher | ICT Major | Closely Related to nominated occupaton | No Worke Experience Required | Temporary Graduate – 485 |
| Australian Bachelor Degree or higher | ICT Major | Closely Related to nominated occupaton | 1 year relevant ICT work experience completed after the completion date of the relevant Australian qualification or completion of
an ACS Professional Year ProgramPost Australian Study Skills Assessment |
post Australian Study Skills Assessment |
| Australian Bachelor Degree or higher | ICT Major | Closely Related to nominated occupaton | 2 years relevant ICT work experience completed in the last 10 years
OR |
Skills |
| Bachelor Degree or higher | ICT Major | Not Closely Related to nominated occupaton | 4 years relevant ICT work completed anytime in the last history | Skills |
| Bachelor Degree or higher | ICT Minor | Closely Related to nominated occupaton | 5 years relevant ICT work experience completed in the last 10 years
OR |
Skills |
| Bachelor Degree or higher | ICT Minor | NOT Closely Related to nominated occupaton | 6 years relevant ICT work experience completed anytime in past work history | Skills |
| Diploma Advance Diploma Associate Deggree | ICT Major | NOT Closely Related to nominated occupaton | 5 years relevant ICT work experience completed in the last 10 years
OR</br? |
Skills |
| Diploma Advance Diploma Associated Degree | ICT Major | NOT Closely Related to nominated occupaton | 6 years relevant ICT work experience completed anytime in past work history | Skills |
| Non-ICT Diploma or hgher | N/A | N/A | 6 years relevant ICT work experience completed past work history plus successful RPL application | RPL |
| N/A | N/A | N/A | 8 years relevant ICT work experience completed past work history plus successful RPL application | RPL |