Destination · Outside the EU and EEA

Working in Australia,
permit by permit.

Australia is outside the European Union and the European Economic Area, so free movement never applies here. Everyone needs authorisation to work, EU citizens included.

Permits sourced
3
Professions answered
1
Official sources
10
Last checked
2026-08-03

Recognition

Whether Australia has to
approve your qualification.

Only some professions are regulated, and the difference is not a detail: a regulated one needs a decision from a named authority before you may hold the job at all. These are the professions we can answer for Australia today, and no others.

No licence decision

Software developer

Not regulated · no recognition decision required

No authority approves this qualification before you take the job in Australia. That is a sourced finding, not an absence of research.

All destinations for this profession →

Work authorisation

Every permit we can source
for Australia.

Every permit we source →

Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482)

Department of Home Affairs

Checklist
Salary floor
AUD 79,423 a year (2026 figure)This is the Core Skills Income Threshold (CSIT), the floor for the Core Skills stream, in force for nomination applications lodged between 1 July 2026 and 30 June 2027. It replaced the Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold on this visa when the Skills in Demand visa itself replaced the Temporary Skill Shortage visa. A separate, higher Specialist Skills Income Threshold of AUD146,576 (same 2026–2027 cycle) applies instead to the Specialist Skills stream, open only to occupations in ANZSCO Major Groups 1, 2, 4, 5 or 6. Both figures are indexed every 1 July; check the figure in force on the date you lodge. In every case your pay must also meet the Annual Market Salary Rate for the role — whichever of the two is higher.
Qualification
At least 1 year of relevant work experience in your nominated occupation or a related field, plus a skills assessment from the occupation's assessing authority where your occupation requires one.
Processing time
Not published as a single national figure — the Department publishes a visa processing time guide tool instead
Visa validity
Up to 4 years (up to 5 years for Hong Kong passport holders)
Visa application charge
From AUD4,015.00 — concessions apply in limited circumstances; use the Department's Visa Pricing Estimator for your own figure
The procedure, step by step →

5 steps · 3 possible outcomes · 5 official sources

Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189) — Points-tested stream

Department of Home Affairs

Points-based
Qualification
Your nominated occupation must be on the relevant skilled occupation list for this visa, and you need a suitable skills assessment for it from the occupation's own assessing authority.
Processing time
Not published as a single national figure — the Department publishes a visa processing time guide tool instead
Visa validity
Permanent
Visa application charge
From AUD6,135.00 — concessions apply in limited circumstances; use the Department's Visa Pricing Estimator for your own figure

Scored, not checked off. We explain the factors and link the official calculator — we never produce a score, because a score reads as a prediction.

The procedure, step by step →

4 steps · 3 possible outcomes · 5 official sources

Employer Nomination Scheme visa (subclass 186) — Direct Entry stream

Department of Home Affairs

Checklist
Salary floor
AUD 79,423 a year (2026 figure)The Core Skills Income Threshold (CSIT) applies to Employer Nomination Scheme nominations lodged on or after 7 December 2024, at the same figure as the Skills in Demand visa's Core Skills stream. AUD79,423 is the figure in force for nominations lodged between 1 July 2026 and 30 June 2027; it is indexed every 1 July, so check the figure in force on the date of nomination. Your pay must also meet the Annual Market Salary Rate for the role if that figure is higher.
Qualification
At least 3 years of relevant work experience, unless you are exempt, and a positive skills assessment from the occupation's assessing authority before you lodge, unless you are exempt.
Processing time
Not published as a single national figure — the Department publishes a visa processing time guide tool instead
Visa validity
Permanent
Visa application charge
From AUD6,140.00 — concessions apply in limited circumstances; use the Department's Visa Pricing Estimator for your own figure
The procedure, step by step →

5 steps · 2 possible outcomes · 5 official sources

Written out in full

Guides for Australia.

Each of these takes one profession into Australia and runs both branches end to end, including the paperwork your country of qualification adds.

Verified route

Australia Work Visa for Software Developers

skilled independent visa 189 software engineer

Read this one →
Verified route

Australia Work Visa for Indian Software Developers

Australia work visa for Indian software engineers

Read this one →

Evidence

Every claim on this page, and where it came from.

10 official pages, each with the jurisdiction it speaks for and the date a human last opened it. The oldest of them is 2026-08-03, and that is the date this page is only as fresh as.

Your case, not the general case

What Australia asks of you specifically.

Which permit fits and what your country of qualification adds to it both depend on where you qualified. The planner only offers combinations it can answer.

Check my path →All destinations