Is your job on Australia’s skilled occupation list in 2026?

You have pictured the lifestyle already. Sunday roasts swapped for weekend barbecues, commuting by tram in Melbourne, or finishing work early enough to catch the surf in Sydney. The only thing standing between you and that next chapter is a small but very important question: does Australia actually want what you do for a living?

That is exactly what the Skilled Occupation List is there to tell you. The list was refreshed in March 2026, and if you are planning your move from the UK, you will want to know where your role sits before you start booking shipping quotes.

What is the Skilled Occupation List?

The Skilled Occupation List, often shortened to SOL, is a set of official lists published by Australia’s Department of Home Affairs. Each list groups together the occupations that Australia considers important for its economy and labour market at any given time.

If your job appears on one of these lists, you may be eligible to apply for a skilled migration visa. If it does not, most of the points-based visa pathways will be closed to you, and you would need to look at employer sponsorship or another route entirely. In short, checking the list is the first sensible step for anyone thinking about a long-term move to Australia for work.

Every occupation on the list is tied to an ANZSCO code, which is the Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations. Think of it as your job’s official ID card in the Australian system. Getting that code right matters, because a single digit in the wrong place can change your visa pathway entirely.

The four lists you need to know

Australia does not use one single list. There are several, and each one supports different visas. The four you will come across most often are:

• Core Skills Occupation List (CSOL):

  The centrepiece of the current system. The CSOL supports employer-sponsored visas including the Skills in Demand (SID) visa and the Employer Nomination Scheme (Subclass 186). It currently covers around 456 eligible occupations.

• Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL):

  Used for the Skilled Independent visa (Subclass 189), the Skilled Nominated visa (Subclass 190), and the Skilled Work Regional visa (Subclass 491). If your job is here, the strongest permanent residency pathways are open to you.

• Short-term Skilled Occupation List (STSOL):

  Covers roles needed for shorter periods, most often through state nomination or selected employer-sponsored pathways.

• Regional Occupation List (ROL):

  Used mainly for the Subclass 491 regional visa, supporting jobs needed outside the major metropolitan areas.

Your visa options depend on which list your occupation appears on, so once you find your job, the next question is always, “which list is it on?”

What changed in the March 2026 update?

The March 2026 refresh is part of a wider reshuffle that began in late 2024, when Australia consolidated its older overlapping lists into the more flexible CSOL framework. The direction of travel in 2026 is clear: the government is prioritising what it calls “outcome-based migration,” which means focusing on roles that solve genuine, measurable workforce shortages.

According to the 2025 National Occupation Shortage List, around 29 per cent of assessed roles in Australia remain in acute shortage, and 139 occupations have been in persistent shortage every year from 2021 to 2025. Those findings have shaped this year’s priorities in five key sectors:

Healthcare and aged care

Demand has stayed high for five years running. Registered nurses, aged care workers, GPs, midwives, and allied health professionals continue to sit at the top of almost every state priority list. If you work in healthcare, your pathway to Australia is arguably stronger now than at any point in the last decade.

Construction and trades

Trades are the single biggest contributor to Australia’s skill shortages, accounting for roughly 51 per cent of persistent shortfalls. Electricians, carpenters, plumbers, bricklayers, and construction project managers are in demand across both metropolitan and regional areas as Australia tackles a national housing shortage.

Education

Early childhood teachers, primary teachers, and secondary school teachers (especially in maths, science, and special education) are listed in shortage across every state and territory. If you hold UK qualified teacher status, this is worth looking into seriously.

Engineering

Civil, mechanical, electrical, and structural engineers continue to feature prominently, driven by infrastructure projects and the country’s net zero transition. Mining and resources engineering also remains a consistent area of need.

Information and communications technology

ICT business analysts, software developers, cybersecurity specialists, and data professionals are firmly on the priority list. Australia’s digital infrastructure push means tech roles are not going anywhere soon.

How to check if your job is on the list

The process sounds technical, but it breaks down into four straightforward steps.

1. Find your ANZSCO code. Search the ANZSCO classification for your job title and match it to the description that best reflects your actual duties. This is the bit most people rush, and it is also the bit that causes the most refusals.
2. Check which list it appears on. Head to the Department of Home Affairs website and look up your ANZSCO code against the CSOL, MLTSSL, STSOL, and ROL. Your options for the next step depend entirely on where your role sits.
3. Identify your assessing authority. Every occupation has a designated authority that checks your qualifications and experience against Australian standards. Engineers Australia handles engineering roles, VETASSESS handles many business and professional roles, the Australian Computer Society handles ICT, and so on.
4. Check state nomination priorities. Even if your job is on a federal list, individual states and territories publish their own priority lists. New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, and South Australia all run their own state-nominated programmes with slightly different priorities.

Visa pathways linked to the Skilled Occupation List

Once you know where your job sits, you can match it to the right visa. The most common pathways UK applicants take are:

• Subclass 189 (Skilled Independent): Points-based, no sponsorship required. Your occupation needs to be on the MLTSSL.
• Subclass 190 (Skilled Nominated): Requires nomination by a state or territory. Your job must be on the relevant state list as well as a federal list.
• Subclass 491 (Skilled Work Regional): A regional visa with a pathway to permanent residency after three years of living and working in a designated regional area.
• Skills in Demand (SID) visa: The employer-sponsored route, which replaced the Subclass 482. The Core Skills stream requires an occupation on the CSOL and a sponsoring employer who meets the income threshold.

For more context on visa, check our guide on Can Brits move to Australia?

Your job is on the list. What next?

• Finding your role on the Skilled Occupation List makes the move to Australia smooth. Here is a sensible order to tackle it in:
• Book a skills assessment with the relevant authority for your occupation.
• Take an approved English language test such as IELTS or PTE Academic, even if English is your first language. It is still required.
• Calculate your points using the official points test. The pass mark is 65, but competitive occupations often need more.
• Submit an Expression of Interest through SkillSelect and wait for your invitation to apply.
• Gather your supporting documents, including qualifications, work references, and proof of experience.
• Start planning the practical side of the move, including how you will get your life across the world. And that’s where we come in.

Once the visa process is in motion, the next big question is everything you own: the furniture you have built a home around, the bicycles, the kitchen you have spent years kitting out, and the photo albums you will not trust to anyone else.

At Anglo Pacific, we have been moving people from the UK to Australia for more than 40 years. Whether you need a full international removal for a family home, a smaller baggage shipment for a single career move, or just honest advice on what you can realistically take with you, our team will help you plan it properly.

You can request a free no-obligation quote and speak to someone who actually understands the difference between shipping to Perth and shipping to Brisbane.

Frequently asked questions

How often is the Skilled Occupation List updated?

The list is reviewed regularly, usually at least once a year, based on labour market data and advice from Jobs and Skills Australia. Under the current “demand-led” approach, occupations can also be moved or removed between formal reviews if a sector hits its quota.

What happens if my occupation is removed after I apply?

Generally, changes to the list do not apply retrospectively to visas that have already been granted. If you have lodged a valid application, it is usually assessed against the rules in place at the time of lodgement. Renewals and future PR applications can be affected, though, so planning ahead matters.

Can I apply if my job is not on the list?

In most cases you will need an occupation on one of the lists to apply under skilled migration. The main exception is employer sponsorship through certain pathways, or family and partner visas if you have an Australian partner or close family member.

Do I need a job offer before I apply?

Not for the Subclass 189 Skilled Independent visa, which is points-based and does not require sponsorship. You will need a sponsoring employer for the Skills in Demand visa and the Subclass 186.

How long does the whole process take?

Realistically, from first skills assessment to visa grant can take anywhere from six months to well over a year, depending on your occupation, the visa subclass, and how organised your paperwork is. Start your shipping research early so you are not scrambling at the last minute.

Ready to start planning your move?

If you have checked the list, found your job, and are starting to think about timelines, the next step is understanding what it will actually take to get your belongings to Australia safely and affordably. Our Australia shipping guides cover transit times, costs, and the practical decisions that make the biggest difference, and our team is on hand whenever you want to talk it through.

Request a free quote today and take the first proper step towards your Australian chapter.