457 Visa Skill Requirement

Employees seeking to obtain a 457 visa must meet the required skill level.

The skill requirement depends on which occupation is being filled by the employee:

PROFESSIONALS AND MANAGERS In general, if the occupation is a professional or management position, then the employee would need to show that they have either:

  • A bachelor degree or higher; or
  • 5 Years of relevant work experience

For some professional occupations, a relevant bachelor degree is essential, as well as registration or licensing.

ASSOCIATE PROFESSIONALS Associate professionals include:

  • Intermediate service and facility managers
  • Technicians
  • A limited number of administrative occupations (eg Program or Project Administrator)

Associate professionals require either a diploma-level qualification or at least 3 years of relevant experience.

GENERALIST OCCUPATIONS The Department of Immigration announced in July 2013 that certain “generalist occupations” will require skills assessment in all cases. The affected occupations are:

  • Specialist Manager (Not Elsewhere Classified)
  • Program or Project Administrator

Not all 457 applicants will be eligible for skills assessment in these occupations – in particular work experience in the specific occupation would in general be required. Skills assessment can take several months and cost over $500 so employers will need to take this into consideration.

TRADES Most trades require that the visa applicant hold a qualification equivalent to either:

  • An Australian Certificate IV; or
  • An Australian Certificate III with at least 2 years of on-the-job training

In some cases, 3 years of relevant work experience can suffice instead of formal qualifications.

Many trades also require a formal skills assessment – this is in general a trade test which requires applicants to demonstrate that they have a certain level of qualification and work experience, as well as practical skills. Whether a formal skills assessment is required depends on the occupation and passport country of the visa applicant.

REGISTRATION OR LICENSING

 

Some occupations require registration in Australia. In this case, the employee must be eligible for the necessary registration or licensing to be granted their visa. In addition, they will be in breach of their work condition 8107 if they work without holding the necessary registration.

Examples of occupations requiring registration include:

  • Medical staff such as doctors and nurses
  • Allied Health Professionals – physiotherapists, pharmacists, psychologists etc
  • Construction professionals such as architects or building project managers
  • Teachers
  • Finance Professionals such as financial planners, stockbrokers etc
  • Certain trades such as electricians