How to Migrate to Australia as a Software Engineer

During the height of the Covid-19 pandemic in Australia, the Department of Home Affairs introduced a Priority Migration Skilled Occupation List for occupations with critical skills required to boost Australia’s economic recovery. Any skilled applications submitted to the Department with an occupation on this list is given priority processing. Initially, there were only 17 occupations on the list, but it has now increased to 44 occupations within the critical sectors of health, construction, IT as well as tourism and hospitality. Some of these priority occupations include Veterinarians, Accountants, Structural Engineers, Psychiatrists, Software Engineers and Chefs.

The demand for skilled professionals in the IT sector has greatly increased due to Covid-19 and the resulting rise in the work from home model in many workplaces to manage health risks. Many businesses have become reliant on IT professionals to ensure their online systems are safe, secure, functional and can be accessed remotely by their employees. One of these critical IT occupations include Software Engineers who specialise in developing, implementing, and supporting software applications and systems.

Software Engineers are an eligible occupation for several skilled Australian visas. Should the skilled migrant meet all relevant criteria, the relevant types of visas a Software Engineer could apply for include the following:

• Temporary Graduate (subclass 485) - Graduate Work
• Training visa (subclass 407)
• Temporary Skill Shortage (subclass 482) – Medium Term Stream
• Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (provisional) (subclass 494) - Employer sponsored stream
• Employer Nomination Scheme visa (subclass 186)
• Skilled Nominated (subclass 190)
• Skilled Work Regional (provisional) visa (subclass 491) State or Territory nominated

Depending on the visa that the skilled migrant intends to apply for, a positive skills assessment may be a requirement. The relevant assessing authority for IT professionals in Australia is the Australian Computer Society. It can be quite challenging to obtain a positive skills assessment because of the strict skills assessment guidelines and complex assessment process. Many skilled migrants do choose to engage our services to assist with this first but very critical step in their migration journey, where relevant. The skills assessment application generally takes between 8 – 10 weeks to be finalised so it is important to take this into account if you are onshore and your visa is expiring soon.

Some visa applications will require the skilled migrant to have a minimum of at least 6 months or 2- or 3-years relevant full-time post-qualification work experience in the nominated occupation of Software Engineer. According to National Employment Standards, full-time work is considered to be 38 hours per week. You must be able to provide evidence of paid full-time employment in the occupation in support of your visa application, where it is a requirement.

Many visa applications will also require the skilled migrant to have achieved a certain level of English to be eligible. It’s possible that you may be required to demonstrate a minimum level of at least Vocational or Competent English. The skilled migrant will need to undertake an English test and provide a report with the required scores, where relevant. These results are only valid for three years from date of issue.

Another requirement for some of these skilled visas would be an employer sponsor. The skilled migrant would need to seek an Australian employer that is willing to sponsor them to work within their business as a Software Engineer, where the position is available and there is a genuine need. If sponsoring business is in a designated regional area, the skilled migrant may be eligible to apply for a regional skilled visa which would allow them to live, work and study in designated regional areas of Australia for 5 years.

If you are a skilled migrant with qualifications and experience as a Software Engineer and would like to explore your Australian migration pathway options, please do not hesitate to contact No Borders Law Group to assess your eligibility and next steps.  

NO BORDERS LAW GROUP: #1 TRUSTED MIGRATION LAWYERS

Email: service@noborders-group.com

Tel:  +61 7 3876 4000

Consultation:  https://www.noborders-group.com/form/free-consultation

We will help you by exploring visa options and securing the application. As part of our services, we will assess the eligibility of the application for a partner visa and help you to get out of the abusive relationship and provide you with detailed advice on your chances of success. If you would like to discuss your visa options and evaluate the pathway to permanent residency, please make an enquiry  or  book a consultation to get expert advice with one of our knowledgeable and experienced Migration Agents/Lawyers on 07 3876 4000 or email: service@noborders-group.com.