Hi all,

I am looking into my options on how to relocate to Sydney, I am currently living in the UK, I have previously been the Aus on a 1 year working holiday visa however I did not complete the eligible work to apply for a second year, my occupation is on the CSOL list (job title does differs however the role description matches) and I am under 30 not married and have no kids.

From what I have read I believe that the 457 is my only option? If so what’s the first step in the process? Update CV and start applying for positions?

Or do I need to enquire if my qualification is recognised in Australia?

Advice very much appreciated.

Thank you.

An occupation on the CSOL is eligible for any of the employer sponsored visas (457 186 and 187) and also for a state sponsored visa (190) if any state governments are willing to sponsor that occupation.

If you are thinking of a skilled permanent option you have to find out if you are:

1) able to obtain a skills assessment for your occupation
2) able to score at least 60 points
3) able to be sponsored by one of the States

Until you can answer these questions it is hard to tell if the skilled permanent visa is also an option for you.

If you need any extra points, do the IELTs test.

Thank you for the advice.

I believe that VETASSESS are the body that I need to apply for a skills assessment with. They state a full skills assessment is $810 though!

I am a qualified vehicle estimator (accident repair industry) and I believe this may fall under the insurance investigator occupation on the CSOL.

Would it be better to be sponsored by a state or by an employer?

Unfortunately I doubt you will have the luxury of working out which is "better". It is going to be hard to secure either I would suspect.

At the moment insurance investigator is only on the South Australia sponsorship list and even then it has conditions which you may find difficult to meet, such as having family in the state, a job lined up to go to or a very high points score.

I think employer sponsorship would also be quite difficult in this occupation, but I guess all you can do it contact some of the larger insurers and see what happens. I'd probably go to them directly through the careers page of their websites. If you were to secure a sponsorship, it is unlikely to be for a permanent visa, certainly initially, so you would need to think about the medium to long term strategy.

$810 for a skills assessment is a drop in the ocean compared to the overall cost of emigrating, if you are balking at that, you really do have to pause and question your priorities.

Not balking at the cost and as you say a drop in the ocean compared to the the overall cost if successful, I just didn't want to waste that sort of money if it's not even relevant to me at this stage or not the first step I should be taking.

To find out if I have any chance of emigrating is a high priority of mine, as my other half is Australian and I would like the option to emigrate with her!

Thank you for the advice, I think I will start by approaching potential employers, I have seen a role advertised with one of the largest insurers.

Would you/could you qualify for a spouse visa?

Yes possibly as a de facto partner however it does state that for a Partner visa (subclass 820/801) you have to be in Australia to apply..

so get an offshore 309/100 instead!

Oh for heavens sake, now you mention an Australian OH!!

It would save a lot of time if you could provide all the relevant information up front.

Apologies, in hindsight I should have given this information upfront. I wanted to know my chances of getting in of my own back so to speak. All the advice received is very much appreciated. Thanks.

Just to be clear, in case you missed a post above, you can apply for a visa offshore ie: outside Australia. Be prepared tho, the fee is currently nearly $7000 and probably due to rise soon ...