SkillSelect Results July-August 2016
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By Mark Webster
Wednesday, 10 August 2016
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Results are now available for the July 2016 SkillSelect Invitation Rounds as well as 3 August 2016 invitation round.
The
SkillSelect process is still full of surprises with many unexpected outcomes so far, even though we are only 3 rounds into the new program year.
Skilled Independent Subclass 189 Invitations
The minimum score to receive an invitation for a
Skilled Independent Subclass189 visa for most occupations has been 60 for the 3 invitation rounds so far this program year.
2,202 invitations were sent for the first round on 7 July, then 848 on 21 July and 1,400 on the 3rd of August.
It appears that there were some systems issues for the 21 July round and as a result, there were no invitations issued in pro-rata occupations and this most likely impacted on the number of invitations issued on 21 July.
Pro Rata Occupations
Pro-rata occupations are those where a large number of EOIs have been lodged, and the occupational ceiling would be at risk of being met early in the program year. As a result, the minimum score for an invitation in a pro-rata occupation may be higher, or the waiting time may be longer than other occupations.
The number of pro-rata occupations has been doubled from 3 to 6. This reflects a high number of invitations being issued in the occupations of Other Engineering Professionals and Computer Network Professionals in the first two rounds of the program year, as well as the addition of the Auditors, Company Secretaries and Corporate Treasurers occupational group which filled very quickly last program year.
Invitation numbers are below:
| ANZSCO | Occupation | 7 Jul 2016 | 21 Jul 2016 | 3 Aug 2016 |
| 2211 | Accountants | 104 | 0 | 208 |
| 2212 | Auditors, Company Secretaries and Corporate Treasurers | 55 | 0 | 110 |
| 2611 | ICT Business and System Analysts | 60 | 0 | 120 |
| 2613 | Software and Applications Programmers | 230 | 0 | 460 |
| 2339 | Other Engineering Professionals | 423 | 80 | 28 |
| 2631 | Computer Network Professionals | 421 | 140 | 50 |
In terms of points score, Accountants and Auditors have needed 70 points for a 189 invitation so far. ICT Business Analysts and Software Engineers currently require 65 points, and 60 points is required for Other Engineering Professionals and Computer Network Professionals. We expect the scores for Other Engineering Professionals and Computer Network Professionals to increase to 65 or even 70 when considering how close these occupations are to their occupational ceilings.
Minimum scores required for an invitation in these occupations are as follows:
| ANZSCO | Occupation | 7 Jul 2016 | 21 Jul 2016 | 3 Aug 2016 |
| 2211 | Accountants | 70 | #N/A | 70 |
| 2212 | Auditors, Company Secretaries and Corporate Treasurers | 70 | #N/A | 70 |
| 2611 | ICT Business and System Analysts | 70 | #N/A | 65 |
| 2613 | Software and Applications Programmers | 65 | #N/A | 65 |
| 2339 | Other Engineering Professionals | 60 | 60 | 60 |
| 2631 | Computer Network Professionals | 60 | 60 | 60 |
Skilled Regional Provisional Subclass 489 - Family Sponsored
This year, Immigration has announced that their policy of prioritising the Skilled Independent Subclass 189 program will continue. As a result, it will continue to be difficult to get an invitation for a
Skilled Regional (Provisional) Subclass 489 visa in the Family Sponsored stream if you have a pro-rata occupation.
The number of invitations being issued so far is 100 per invitation round - this is far higher than the 10 per month we saw for most of the 2015-16 program year. As a result, the minimum score for an invitation has now reduced to 60 as of the 3 August round. Waiting time for an invitation if you have 60 points is now 50 weeks, but we expect this to reduce in the next few months, if the current level of invitations continues.
Occupational Ceilings
As the table below illustrates, there are a number of occupations where a very high proportion of the occupational ceiling has already been filled.
This would include the occupations of:
- Other Engineering Professionals
- Computer Network Professionals
- Industrial, Mechanical and Production Engineers
- Electronics Engineers
We expect these occupations to either be put on the pro-rata list (in which case minimum points or waiting time is likely to increase) or to be filled very quickly this program year.
| ANZSCO | Occupation | 7 Jul 2016 | 21 Jul 2016 | 3 Aug 2016 | Total Invitations | Occupational Ceiling | % Filled |
| 2339 | Other Engineering Professionals | 423 | 80 | 28 | 531 | 1000 | 53.1% |
| 2631 | Computer Network Professionals | 421 | 140 | 50 | 611 | 1426 | 42.8% |
| 2335 | Industrial, Mechanical and Production Engineers | 391 | 99 | 72 | 562 | 1539 | 36.5% |
| 2334 | Electronics Engineers | 71 | 72 | 41 | 184 | 1000 | 18.4% |
| 2211 | Accountants | 104 | 0 | 208 | 312 | 2500 | 12.5% |
| 2613 | Software and Applications Programmers | 230 | 0 | 460 | 690 | 5662 | 12.2% |
| 2611 | ICT Business and Systems Analysts | 60 | 0 | 120 | 180 | 1482 | 12.1% |
| 2212 | Auditors, Company Secretaries and Corporate Treasurers | 55 | 0 | 110 | 165 | 1413 | 11.7% |
| 2633 | Telecommunications Engineering Professionals | 37 | 41 | 28 | 106 | 1000 | 10.6% |
| 2331 | Chemical and Materials Engineers | 33 | 36 | 24 | 93 | 1000 | 9.3% |
| 2332 | Civil Engineering Professionals | 59 | 74 | 57 | 190 | 2174 | 8.7% |
| 2333 | Electrical Engineers | 27 | 39 | 27 | 93 | 1254 | 7.4% |
| 2539 | Other Medical Practitioners | 14 | 13 | 23 | 50 | 1315 | 3.8% |
Conclusion
SkillSelect remains the most challenging part of the
General Skilled Migration application process.
Coming up with a strategy to give yourself the best possible chance of receiving an invitation is very important to a successful outcome.
If you would like advice on applying for general skilled migration to Australia, please book a consultation with one of our advisors through our website.
References
SkillSelect Website
