vixmony

After much thought have had a sleepless night's as well as would want to move to Australia. Have been reading a lot but now at complete meltdown. I want to migrate with my wife but we not sure what visa to go for and where to start.
My wife is 35 and she has a diploma in adult nursing with 11 years experience.
I am 35 and have a diploma in mental health nursing with 9 years experience and a BA in social work with 3 years experience. Based on this information what visa should we apply for and where do we start please?

Dorothy

Unfortunately in order to pass the nursing skills assessment for Australia you will need a degree. You could try the social work route, if that's still on the list.

However, the first place to start is Australian Government Department of Immigration and Border Protection to see what visa you think you could qualify for. Have a play on the visa wizards and if you have specific questions come back and we'll be more than happy to help.

verystormy

Social worker is available on the long term list, which means independent skilled visas are an option. That is good news.

So, you need to look at who is the assessing authority for it. I "think" it is AASW. But, if you look at the occupation list, it will specify. Then, you need to check what the requirements are from them for passing a skills assessment.

If you are happy you can pass a skills assessment then the next step is points. You need a minimum of 60 points to apply. At this stage, many people find they are short of points and the most common way of getting extra is by taking English exams such as ilets. Though some occupations like yours need ilets anyway as part of the skills assessment.

Once you have researched, you apply for and obtain a positive skills assessment. At the same time undertaking ilets if needed.

Once you have completed everything, you can lodge an expression of interest (eoi). You then wait for an invite and once received you can apply. You will be subsequently asked for medicals and police checks.

One very important thing you need to be aware of is that your wife will not be able to work as a nurse in Australia as things stands. She would need to return to university and top up her diploma to a degree in order to gain proffessional registration and work.

vixmony

Many thanks, yes for social work it's AASW and I seem to meet there requirements. So now do I register with AASW first?

old.sparkles

If you think you can pass the assessment, check and see if you can pass the points test for a visa before going further. Also check if you need IELTS (for assessment or points or both).

verystormy

As Old Sparkies says, make sure you have enough points and things before anything else.

Then, it won't just be a matter of registering, you will need to do a skills assessment which will be assessed by them. This will involve them looking at your qualifications, probably including full university transcripts, all your work experience and probably detailed references.

vixmony

I have done a self assessment and scored about 85. So I suppose now I should be contacting the registration board for my chosen pathway which is social work? So just to confirm definitely a nursing diploma is not applicable now?

Dorothy

85? Could you please break that down for us, as 85 seems excessively high.

And yes, a nursing diploma is not valid for migration purposes. Also bear in mind that in Australia a diploma trained nurse is not an RN, but an EN. An EN works under the supervision of the RN and is limited in what they can do.

old.sparkles

Agreed - if going on the social work qualification, my guess would be 40-45 without IELTS (25 for age, 15 for degree, and if experience counts another 5 points).

Can be done though. Max IELTS would mean 65 and possible 189. If only manage 10 from IELTS, would need to look at state sponsorship.

vixmony

Just checked again my breakdown is actually 65 for 189 and 190 it's 75. I scored 25 for age,15 general education, 20 for English and 5 for partner.

Now what should be my next step. Would it be to apply for a skills assessment via aasw? And in the mean time start the English tests. How long do the English tests take to complete and how necessary are these for the skills assessment and to apply for the actual visa?

old.sparkles

To claim points for English, you will need to sit IELTS or one of the other approved English tests.

To claim partner points, they need to meet all the criteria for a skilled visa in their own right, which for nursing requires a degree I believe. But 60 points would be enough to apply for a 189.

You need to check if the AASW have a language requirement to their skills assessment that would required you to sit IELTS and if they require Academic IELTS. If they do, you would need to do that first.

If they do not require it, you might still want to do it first to ensure that you can get the rating you need. If it is only for points, you can sit the general test if preferred.

carcajou

Vixmony, I think caution is called for here, before you get excited thinking that you qualify to come to Australia, since based on what you have written that is not at all clear.

This is a long process with lots of bumps in the road.

When you receive a positive skills assessment and get your IELTS scores back, and still have over 60 points, then you can get excited. Lots of people think they qualify for migration, but then find out later they don't because of one reason or another, quite often in regards to profession and the skills assessment.

So, your first step is to go to the web site of your skills assessment assessor, read their requirements, and see if you can round up all of the documentation they need and send off to them. The skills assessment is a difficult step and not a formality. They have precise definitions of who qualifies as what category of nurse, and those requirements are not bendable. They do not just accept your word on it, and "close" doesn't cut it. If they say you require a university degree in Field X and you do not have that - you will not get a positive skills assessment. So, read the requirements, interpret them precisely, and if you are in doubt, find a MARA-registered agent and use their expertise. It could be a good idea to use the agent even if you do feel you understand the requirements.

Second, book your IELTS, and don't assume you have the 20 points in the bag just because you are a native speaker. While many have no problem with it, some struggle.

Finally . . . 60 points does not guarantee you a visa, it just means, you can get into the pool. Every draw is a ranking based on points total and so if there are a lot of other applicants in your field with a higher points total, they get drawn ahead of you, and you may not get drawn at all despite being on 60 (but, don't overclaim thinking you will cut the queue - that is an automatic rejection).

This isn't to pour cold water on you, but just to be realistic. Have a good read of the skills assessment requirements, and if you still qualify, go from there, and forumites will be able to help with other questions as well.

verystormy

A lot of these points are not currently available.

To claim English points, you need to take one of the tests such as ILETS. To claim 20, will require a high score. You will need to review for this. Don't assume it is a given because you are English. Far from it. It is an odd test in which I have seen a bricklayer sail through it and someone with a PhD in English fail repeatedly. There are good revision resources available.

You can only claim points for your partner if she has a positive skills assessment. Something she can't get with a diploma, so these points are not available.

You only claim extra points for a 190 if a state agrees to sponsor you. Not all states have your occupation available for sponsorship and others would only do so if you have a job offer for that state.

You need to be VERY careful with points. If you overclaim a single point it can lead to a refusal, which means loss of the fee, so a very expensive mistake, and also a ban from reapplying

vixmony

Hello many thanks for your sound advise. I had asked this in another thread but I suppose should keep it on my own one. So as my wife does not meet the criteria can she still move if I do meet the criteria myself or I would have to go first then invite and arrange for her to come?
At the moment I have 25 points for age, 15 for qualifications, and hoping to get the 20 for ilets. Now according to the aasw application forms if I pay an extra $250 I get a skills assessment done. How many extra points will this be please?

verystormy

Yes, you wife can be included in your occupation and would be granted a visa. But she would still not be able to work as a nurse in Oz.

I don't believe you get any extra points for a positive skills assessment.