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Skilled Occupations Lists for 2017-18 Released
The Skilled Occupations lists for the 2017-18 program year have been released. This article explains how the new lists work and which occupations have been added and removed.General Skilled Migration
Prior to 1 July, a single MLTSSL applied to both Employer Sponsored and General Skilled Migrationprograms, and also a single STSOL.
However, the lists are different between the two programs from 1 July and are best thought of as:
- IFSOL: Occupations for Skilled Independent Subclass 189 visas and Family Sponsored Skilled Regional Provisional Subclass 489 visas - we refer to this as the IFSOL (Independent and Family Sponsored Occupations List) in the table below.
- STNOL: Occupations for state and territory nominated 190 and 489 visas - referred to as the STNOL below (State/Territory Nominated Occupations List).
6 occupations have been removed from the list for Skilled Independent and family sponsored 489 visas as compared to the pre 1 July MLTSSL. Removed occupations include Sea Transport Professionals and Psychotherapists (removed entirely) and the occupations of Production Manager (Mining) and Anaesthetists which are still available for State/Territory Nomination.
13 occupations have been removed from the approved lists entirely - these include Senior Managers, Statisticians, Economists, Mining Engineers, Engineering Professionals NEC and Chemists.
16 occupations have been added to the State/Territory Nominated list which were not previously available - these include Air Transport Professionals, ICT Support Staff, Butchers and Retail Buyers.
Employer Sponsored Visas
The 457 visa and the ENS Direct Entry Stream share the same occupations list. The list is split into MLTSSL occupations and STSOL occupations. MLTSSL occupations result in a 457 visa valid for up to 4 years, whereas the maximum duration of a 457 visa in an STSOL occupation is only 2 years.
In the table below, these occupations are listed under the ESOL (Employer Sponsored Occupations List) column and we have indicated whether they are on the MLTSSL or STSOL.
Compared to the lists prior to 1 July, 18 occupations have been removed entirely - these include marine transport professionals, psychotherapists, medical administrators and property associate professionals.
27 occupations have been added to the approved lists including R&D Managers, life scientists, air transport professionals, ICT Support roles, butchers, Music professionals, metallurgists and horse trainers.
22 occupations have been moved from the STSOL to the MLTSSL including senior management positions, environmental scientists and university lecturers. 2 occupations have moved from the MLTSSL to the STSOL.
Caveats which previously applied only to 457 visa applications will now apply to ENS Direct entry applications as well - these may specify the type of business, nature of the role or minimum salary required for approval.
Conclusion
Changes to the occupations lists have been quite major - on balance more occupations have been added than removed, but applicants in certain occupations may be adversely affected.
If you would like an assessment of your eligibility for Employer Sponsored or General Skilled Migration or how the changes to the occupations list affect you, please book a consultation with one of our advisors.
