How to get Permanent Residency in Australia after completing higher education in Australia
The burning question of how to get permanent residency in Australia has been in the mind of many internationals as Australia gained popularity as the destination for international students. In this post, we have laid out the procedure in the simplest way possible in this post for your convenience.
Skilled migration program Australia – What is it?
The Skilled migration program of Australia is designed to attract migrants from particular fields who make a significant contribution to the Australian economy, and stimulate economic growth. There are various streams of skilled migration programs such as Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189), Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190), Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491), etc.
In this post, we will shed light on the pathway to Australian Permanent Residency (PR) via skilled Independent Visa (subclass 189) with an example of an international student who has completed an IT degree in Australia. Nevertheless, the process is fairly similar and can be used for other occupations in the skilled list as well.
To be eligible for any skilled migration program, your nominated occupation must be an eligible skilled occupation in Australia or be closely related to it. You can check that on the official Department of Home Affairs website. Similarly, you must understand how the points system works in Australian migration programs. Skilled independent visas are based on points systems where you get a certain number of points for each category such as age, education, relevant work experience, your English language proficiency, etc.
Migration points Assessment Table – Permanent Residency Australia
The following table lists out how these migration points are allocated.
Please note that the points are assessed at the time of invitation for the visa.
| Criteria | Range | Points |
| Age | 18 – 24 years | 25 |
| 25 – 32 years | 30 | |
| 33 – 39 years | 25 | |
| Qualification (Overseas or Australian) *You will receive points for your highest qualification only. Qualifications must be recognized in Australia. | Doctorate degree | 20 |
| Bachelor or Masters | 15 | |
| Diploma | 10 | |
| A qualification recognized by relevant assessing authority for your nominated occupation | 10 | |
| Australian study requirement (ASR) | 92 weeks course & met other ASR | 5 |
| Study in regional Australia | Have at least 1 degree, diploma, or trade qualification from an Australian educational institution while obtained while living and studying in an eligible area of regional Australia | 5 |
| Specialist education qualification | Masters by research or Doctorate (at least 2 years) from an Australian educational institution in a relevant stream. | 10 |
| Relevant Work experience in the last 10 years | Outside Australia Less than 3 years 3 – 5 years 5 – 7 years At least 8 years | 0 5 10 15 |
| Inside Australia Less than 1 year 1 – 3 years 3 – 5 years 5 – 7 years At least 8 years | 0 5 10 15 20 | |
| English Proficiency IELTS/PTE or equivalent TOEFL, OET, Cambridge test. | Competent IELTS at least 6 in each component PTE at least 50 for each component. Proficient IELTS at least 7 in each component PTE at least 65 for each component. Superior IELTS at least 8 in each component PTE at least 79 for each component. | 0
10
20 |
| Completion of Professional year in Australia | The professional year must have been in a nominated or closely related occupation in the last 4 years before you are invited to apply for the visa. | 5 |
| Credentialled Community Language | Hold a recognized qualification in a credentialled community language | 5 |
| Partner Skills | Your partner is also an applicant for this visa & meets the age, English, and skill criteria | 10 |
| Your partner is also an applicant for this visa & has competent English | 5 | |
| Your partner is an Australian citizen or permanent resident | 10 | |
| You are single | 10 |
The procedure to 189 visa – Simplified
Step 1: Gather relevant documents and take an English test ( PTE or IELTS or any other equivalent test) to maximize your points.
Step 2: Get your skill assessed by the Australian Computer Society (ACS)
To be able to secure points from your ICT qualification and/or your work experience in the nominated occupation, you must get them assessed from ACS. Some occupations in the skilled list are ICT Business Analyst, Systems Analyst, Analyst programmer, Developer programmer, Software engineer, etc.
Similarly, different occupations have different assessing bodies that assess the corresponding qualification and work experience. Every occupation has different criteria to fulfill which can be found on the website of the relevant skills assessment body.
For IT Skills Assessment, in particular, the major criteria is 1 year of relevant ICT work experience completed after the completion date of the relevant Australian qualification. Work experience after completion of an ACS Professional Year Program is also acceptable.
Step 3: Lodge an Expression of Interest (EOI)
Once you have received your skill assessment certificate, you can lodge an expression of interest via the Skillselect online portal. No documents are required to be attached at this point. After you have lodged your EOI, you simply wait for the invitation for the visa.
The time of wait depends on your nominated occupation and your total points. The minimum bar set by the department to get an invite is 65 points. Logically, the higher your points, the sooner you may get the invite. It can take anywhere from a few weeks to months or even a year. However, please note that due to the high volume of applications and competition, lodging an EOI does not guarantee that you will receive an invitation to apply for the visa.
Step 4: Lodge Visa application
In case you receive an invitation, you will have 60 days from the date of the invitation to lodge your visa application. You will be required to submit supporting documentation such as, passport, English test report, qualification, proof of skilled experience, skill assessment certificate, etc. Likewise, you will also need to fill in many other details such as your travel history, residential history, family information, etc.
Further, during the visa processing, you will be required to present police clearance certificates and go through a medical examination.
And, that’s it! Then you wait for your visa outcome.
Please note that this is a general guideline on how you can apply for permanent residency in Australia. Every case is different, and we highly recommend getting assistance from a registered migration agent if you are unsure of anything.
We provide all education and migration-related services, and also provide assistance to apply for skill assessments. If you have any related queries, please feel free to contact us.
Looking for ways to increase points for migration? Check out our post on 5 ways to increase your points for migration to Australia.
