What is Australian PR?
Every year, hundreds of people from across the globe immigrate to Australia on a PR visa.
With this visa, you can live and work in Australia for five years. After three years, you can apply for permanent citizenship.
The two main eligibility criteria for visas are scoring a minimum of 65 points, and your occupation should be on the Skilled Occupations List.
Eligibility
You need PR points to apply to any of the following three subclasses:
- Skilled Independent visa in Subclass 189
- Skilled Nominated visa in Subclass 190
- Territory nominated/ sponsored visa in Subclass 489
- The 65 points that you need to achieve for a PR visa are dependent on several factors.
- The table below shows how the points are distributed:
Factors
Maximum Points Age (25-33 years)
30 points
English proficiency (8 bands)
20 points
Work Experience outside Australia (8-10 years)
15 points
Work Experience in Australia (8-10 years)
20 points
Education (outside Australia) – Doctorate degree
20 points
Doctorate or master’s degree by research in Australia or similar skilled degrees
10 points
Study in a regional area
5 points
Proficient in community language
5 points
Professional year in a skilled program in Australia
5 points
State sponsorship (190 visa)
5 points
Skilled spouse (Age, Skills & English language requirements to be met)
10 points
Spouse or de facto partner with competent English (No need to meet Skills requirement or age factor)
5 points
Applicants without a spouse or de facto partner or where a spouse is an Australian citizen or PR holder
10 points
Related FAQS
- Age
- Skilled Employment
- Competent English
- Australian Education requirements
- Educational Qualifications
- Credential Community Language Qualification
- Study in Australia
- Study in Regional Australia
- Partner Skill Qualifications
- Professional year in Australia
- Nomination by State or Territory Government (visa subclass 190 only)
- Nomination by State or Territory Government or Sponsorship by an Eligible Family Member (visa subclass 490 only)
Documentation
The following documents are required when applying for Australia PR:
- Application form
- Report of Educational Credential Assessment
- Birth certificate
- Character certificate
- Proof of nomination (if any)
- Test results of IELTS or PTE exam for English proficiency
- 2 passport size photos
- Spouse Skill documents (spouse is also applying for a PR visa)
- Police Clearance Certification (PCC)
- Business reference letters
Application Process for Australian PR
Application Process for Australian PR
The main factors that determine this is your work experience, education and number of points scored.
- Find your skillset or nominated occupation in either of the Skilled Occupation Lists that is STSOL, MLTSOL, and ROL.
The work experience is valid only when you have obtained it in the last ten years before applying.
Work experience (in Years)
Points Awarded
Minimum 1 year
5
Minimum of 3 years
10
Minimum of 5 years
15
Minimum of 8 years
20
Points for work experience outside Australia:
Work experience (in Years)
Points Awarded
Minimum of 3 years
5
Minimum of 5 years
10
Minimum of 8 years
15
Points are also awarded based on your educational qualifications:
Qualification
Points Awarded
Doctorate
20
Bachelor’s degree or Master’s degree
15
Australian diploma or trade qualification
10
Awards or qualification recognized by the assessing
10
Recognized standard in the assessment of the skilled nominated occupation
10
You can prove your language proficiency by taking a recognised test. Australian immigration authorities accept scores tests like IELTS, PTE, TOEFL, etc. It is important to take the test and get a high score.
Language competency is a vital fact which is taken into account. Your score will determine your points in the points calculator.
Try to score eight or more per band in each category to receive good points:
Proficiency in the English language
Points awarded
Superior English or an IELTS score of 8 or more per band in each group
20
Proficient English or an IELTS score of 7 or more per band in each group
10
Competent English or an IELTS score of 6 or more per band in each group
0
Get your skills assessed by the Skills assessment authority which is an organization that will assess your skills, education and work experience based on Australian standards.
For getting a PR visa in the General Skilled Migration Program, all candidates get nominations based on Medium and Long Term Strategic Skills List (MLTSS) or sponsorship based on Consolidated Sponsored Occupations List (CSOL).
Potential applicants who have their specific nominated occupation in MLTSS are eligible for the following PR visa categories and subclasses:
- Graduate Temporary Visa (subclass 485)
- Skilled Regional Visa (subclass 887)
- Skilled Independent Visa (subclass 189)
Potential applicants who have their occupations nominated under CSOL are eligible for the following PR visa categories and subclasses:
- Skilled Nominated Visa (Subclass 190)
- Skilled Nominated or Sponsored Provisional Visa (Subclass 489)
- Temporary work visa (Subclass 457)
The next step is to submit a form online through their Skill Select website. This involves answering questions on your skills based on the visa sub--class you are applying under.
There are three visa subclasses that you can look at:
- Skilled Independent Visa Subclass 189
- Skilled Nominated Visa 190
- Skilled regional (provisional) Subclass 491
Provided you meet all the requirements, you will now get an invitation to apply.
Once you receive an ITA, you must submit a completed application within 60 days. This should have all the supporting documents attached to it.
There are two main clearance certificates that you must submit. These would be your police and medical clearance certificates.
Related FAQS
Age is one of the main factors considered in the points system for a PR visa. Although people above 45 years of age are not eligible for a Skilled visa, different points are allotted for different age groups.
They are as follows:
Age groups
Points
18-24
25
25-32
30
33-39
25
40-44
15
If you complete a degree course from an Australian affiliated institute, you get 5 Australia immigration PR points. The course may offer you a degree, diploma, or trade qualification. However, you get those points only if the course is two years or more.
Any kind of course that you take up for at least two years in the regional parts or low population density metropolitan areas of Australia rewards you with five skilled migration points.
If your partner is moving with you to Australia, several factors can help gain five immigration points. These factors are age, language proficiency, and skills assessment based on the Skills Occupation Lists.
You can get 5 Australian Immigration points in this category. Australia’s National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI) acknowledges every interpreter level skill in a community language. This is an essential skill that will award you with valuable immigration points.
A professional year program is a program that combines education and workspace experience in one year. This course is offered at the end of the course. Taking a professional year program can help you gain industry-specific knowledge and reward you with five points.
Applicants who are applying for subclass 489 and 190 receive points for being state-sponsored by an Australian state or territorial Government.
The following table categorically divides points that you receive for the different types of nominations.
Sponsorship or nomination
Points
Nomination by a State or territory government under a State Migration
5
Plan for a Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190) application
Nomination by a State or territory government under a State Migration
10
Plan, or an eligible relative, to a designated area for a Skilled
Nominated or Sponsored visa (Provisional) (subclass 489) application
The following table will give you a basic idea on PTE score that is required for Australian PR:
English language proficiency level
Test component
PTE Academic Score
Functional
Overall score
30
Vocational
Listening
36
Reading
36
Writing
36
Speaking
36
Competent
Listening
50
Reading
50
Writing
50
Speaking
50
Proficient (for points tested Skilled visas)
Listening
65
Reading
65
Writing
65
Speaking
65
Superior (for points tested Skilled visas)
Listening
79
Reading
79
Writing
79
Speaking
79
Cost
The cost of applying for Australia PR varies. It changes periodically, and largely depends on a few factors. You would need to pay Skill Assessment tests, Language Proficiency tests and for state sponsorship. This varies with the tests taken, and the streams applied through.
Before immigrating, you need to pay the following:
- Fee for Immigration agents
- Fee for Visa application
- Fee for English language proficiency test fee
- Fee for Skills assessment
- Fee for Health check-up
- Fee for a police report on character-check
- Fee for relocating to Australia
Processing Time
This entirely depends on the visa category you have applied to, as well as other factors, like document submission.
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Other Important FAQs
You need to achieve a minimum of 65 immigration points to get an Australian PR visa nomination or sponsorship. These points depend on various factors like age, educational qualification, skills assessment test, and language proficiency to name a few.
You have a chance of qualifying for an Australia pr visa with 65 points and more. However, it depends on the volume of applications for your particular ANZSCO code.
An applicant with 65 points may qualify only if there are very few applications for that specific occupation. For example - 65 points may be adequate for a marine engineer to get a PR visa.
Yes, you can migrate to Australia without a job offer. However, a job gives you leverage over others and increases your chances of becoming a permanent resident in Australia on the basis of the points-based system.
Australia is a pretty expensive place to reside in. Therefore, you need enough finances to settle there. Other than that, you also need to provide the Australian Government with evidence that you have surplus capital essential for settling there.
The usual processing time for applications of Australian PR extends from 12 months - 20 months. It may be more, depending on the circumstances and procedure.