The announcement made last week that Australian immigration will be switching to the ANZSCO skills classification on 1 July, 2010 is an issue set to have a huge impact on the General Skilled Migration (GSM) program, as it essentially redefines the occupations and skills that are in demand by Australia.

We've been investigating the impact of the changes through speaking to the skills assessing bodies who will also be affected by this change. The latest comments we've seen have come from the Australian Computer Society (ACS), who provided the following information:

"Applicants who hold, or are about to hold, an assessment outcome letter with an ASCO code issued by the ACS prior to 1 July 2010, are advised to apply for a review of assessment outcome and follow application for review process that will be publicised on the ACS website once the framework, in which new SOL would be applied, is introduced by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC).

• Up to and including 30 June 2010, assessment outcome letters will be issued in ASCO codes only.
• From and including 1 July 2010, assessment outcome letters will be issued in ANZSCO codes only."

In many ways, ACS is the assessing body that we most wanted to hear comment on the changes as many of the ASCO computing professional occupations they currently assess do not have a direct match on ANZSCO.

As a result, if an applicant has previously completed an assessment with ACS but was unable to lodge their Australian visa application before the GSM program was temporarily suspended, it will be advisable for these applicants to apply for a "review of assessment outcome and follow application for review process".

Further details aren't yet available as to how this review process will work or how long it will take, but more information is expected to be made available on the ACS website soon.

- Lauren Mennie is Casework Department Manager for the Australian Visa Bureau.

©Visa Bureau 2003-2010

Visa Bureau takes no responsibility and cannot be held accountable for action taken as a result of any information or comment provided on this blog, and we recommend that you always seek a number of opinions before making a decision regarding your migration or visa application. Please refer to the Visa Bureau terms of use for more information.