Skills Assessment FAQs

It is your responsibility to choose the occupation for which you believe you are qualified and experienced. You can conduct a self-assessment using the assessment criteria or contact a migration agent for assistance. We can provide general advice related to the skills assessment criteria if you email assessments@communitywork.org.au; however, we are unable to confirm the suitability of claims without undertaking a formal assessment.

The skills assessment criteria are there to guide you. You can conduct a self-assessment using the detailed information in the assessment criteria. Our advice is to review the requirements of your nominated occupation very carefully, and based on the available information, ask yourself: 

• Does my qualification meet the minimum educational level for assessment, and is it relevant to my nominated occupation? 
• How can I demonstrate my proficiency in English? Do I need to submit an English test score? 
• Does my work experience meet the minimum skill level requirements for my nominated occupation? We suggest checking the ANZSCO search engine on the Australian Bureau of Statistics website to ensure your work experience aligns with the occupation you intend to nominate. Do the tasks and position title match those listed? Does my position description show that the role I work in operates at an appropriate level? Have I been working in my role for long enough to satisfy the post-qualification employment duration requirement? 
• Do I meet the currency requirement? Can I satisfy this criterion with my qualification, or do I need to demonstrate industry currency in my work experience? 

If you are unsure about whether you meet the assessment criteria, we suggest that you speak with a registered migration agent. 

Unfortunately, we are unable to provide pre-assessment advice. Analysis of your qualifications or work experience makes up part of the skills assessment process and is not something we can advise on without a formal assessment.

It is the responsibility of the applicant to determine their suitability for assessment by using the criteria on our website, performing a self-assessment, or contacting a migration agent for assistance.

You can submit multiple IELTS tests only, but they must have been obtained within a period of 12 months. This includes IELTS One Skill Retake test results (please refer to the IELTS website for eligibility requirements for IELTS One Skill Retake).

We do not accept combined English language test results for other test types for skills assessment purposes. 

You are responsible for providing evidence to support your claims. All assessments are evidence-based. Without sufficient evidence, we cannot accept the claim. 

We do not accept contracts, contract variations, offers of employment, or job ads in place of the required evidence. We can accept these types of documents as supporting evidence, however. Review our document checklist for skills assessments.

If your employer is unable or unwilling to provide the required documents to assess work experience claims, we can accept a statutory declaration which includes all of the required information; however, we must be able to verify any claims made. Unverifiable evidence will not be accepted for skills assessment. 

If your employer has ceased trading or no longer exists, please email assessments@communitywork.org.au for further advice.

Yes, you must provide all documentation for the underpinning qualifications, such as a bachelor’s degree, including any non-relevant qualifications. This information is important when we assess your qualification comparability. Review our document checklist for a complete list of documents you need to submit for a skills assessment. 

Yes, you can still apply for assessment as long as you meet all other assessment criteria. Provisional accreditation is treated the same as full accreditation for the purpose of migration skills assessments. 

Provisional accreditation is given by Community Work Australia to newly accredited courses and courses that need to demonstrate compliance with Community Work Australia’s course accreditation guidelines.

Skills assessment applications must be submitted via our skills assessment portal. Applicants can create an account to get started. 

When creating your account, please ensure you use an active and accurate email address, as all updates related to a skills assessment application will be sent to the email used to create your portal login. 

Note: We do not accept skills assessment applications via email. If you are experiencing any issues accessing the skills assessment portal or submitting your application via the portal, please email the skills assessment team at assessments@communitywork.org.au.

If you would like to appoint your migration agent to submit your application on your behalf, your agent must use the same portal as independent applicants by creating their own portal login. 

If your migration agent is submitting your application on your behalf, they must include a filled and signed Agent Authorisation Form with your application. A copy of the form can be found here.

For further information on submitting an application via a migration agent, please visit our ‘For Migration Agents’ page.

We can only accept requests for fast-tracking after an application has been formally submitted. Fast-track requests must be sent via email to assessments@communitywork.org.au and are considered on a case-by-case basis. We cannot guarantee that your fast-track request will be granted. Read more on our processing times page.

Yes, at the end of the form you will have the option of saving the form as a draft or lodging your application with payment. 

To save a draft of your application, you will need to fill in some mandatory fields to get there, including uploading a resume. You can attach a stand-in/substitute document to enable you to progress to the end — just remember to replace this with the correct document before you formally lodge your application. 

Please note that documents attached to a draft application may not remain attached if you save the application as a draft and exit the application. We encourage applicants to submit their application in one go to ensure their application is submitted with all the required details and evidence. 

If you are submitting a new skills assessment application, you do not need to apply separately for Points Test Advice. All Skills Assessments outcomes from July 2020 onwards include qualification comparability and work experience claims.

If you have already received a suitable skills assessment outcome and want to include additional work experience or qualifications not included in the initial assessment, you may contact assessments@communitywork.org.au and include the required evidence for the claims you want assessed. Migration Points Test Advice outcomes are issued as an annexe to a previously issued skills assessment outcome. 

Note: To apply for Migration Points Test Advice, applicants must hold a valid skills assessment. Skills assessment outcomes are valid for 3 years from the date of issue, which is located at the bottom of the outcome letter.  

Yes, you can email assessments@communitywork.org.au to change your nominated occupation if the status of your assessment has not yet been updated to ‘in progress’ on the skills assessment portal. After this time, it is up to the discretion of the Assessment Officer whether your nominated occupation can be altered, as the assessment may be nearing completion, and therefore your application will have already been assessed against the occupation selected when applying. 

Your application must be decision-ready at the time of application. If there are additional documents you want to include with your application that cannot be uploaded with your application, you may email these to assessments@communitywork.org.au after you have submitted your application. Make sure you include the application ID number with your email. Once an application ‘in progress’, we are unable to accept additional documents. 

You are entitled to submit a review application if you receive an unsuitable outcome due to insufficient evidence, however, this incurs a fee and additional processing time. You may be asked to submit additional evidence as part of the assessment process.  

Yes, you can email assessments@communitywork.org.au to submit additional claims if the status of your assessment has not yet been updated to ‘in progress’ on the skills assessment portal. After this time, it is up to the discretion of the Assessment Officer whether new claims can be added to your application.

Yes, you can change or remove your migration agent at any time. To update this information, complete Form 956 or our Agent Authorisation Form, selecting the revoke authorisation check box, and email it to assessments@communitywork.org.au. You must include your skills assessment application ID in the subject line. 

A skills assessment is valid for 3 years from the date of issue. If your outcome letter has expired, you will need to submit a new application under the current guidelines. 

If you are looking to renew a skills assessment which is close to expiring, please email assessments@communitywork.org.au for further instructions.  

You can log in to the applicant portal to download a copy of your outcome letter. If you are unable to access your outcome via the portal, you can request a copy via email from assessments@communitywork.org.au. However, reissuing an outcome letter may incur a service fee. 

Note: We retain records for a maximum of 5 years. If your outcome was issued over 5 years ago, it is unlikely we will be able to reissue the outcome letter.

Skills assessment applications are kept for 5 years only, in line with our record-keeping policy. If you made an application within the past five years and would like a copy of your documents, please email assessments@communitywork.org.au with your Application ID in the subject line to arrange this. A service fee will apply. 

We have a fair and equitable process for managing reviews and appeals. If you are not satisfied with your skills assessment decision, you have the right to review and appeal. If you disagree with your unsuccessful skills assessment outcome, you can ask for a review of the decision. If you believe the review decision is incorrect, you may appeal the decision. Please visit the Review and Appeals page for more information.