Even though the Skilled Occupation List (SOL) is potentially just days away from being officially released, that hasn't stopped rumours flying within the Australian immigration community about exactly which occupations will appear on the final list.

To give a little background regarding the new Australian SOL (although I imagine the majority of Australian visa applicants will be all too familiar with it!), it is set to act as a tool to determine both the occupations that Australia is in demand of and the order in which Australia visa applicants will be processed.

As a result, it will become a fairly critical part of the Australian visa application process, essentially determining which workers will and won't be eligible to be granted a skilled visa.

It's sparked a number of news reports, one of which was published recently in 'The Weekend Australian'.

The article focusses on the future of skilled migration to Australia as part of the re-vamped migration process and includes a number of quotes from Philip Bullock, the head of Skills Australia (which is the organisation that has been given the responsibility of forming the new SOL and presenting it to the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) for approval.)

As part of the printed version of this article, a table titled 'SKILLS WE NEED' was included, which we presume includes a number of the occupations set to be on the new SOL.

See below for this list, but once again, please understand that this is NOT the final SOL, and THERE IS NO GUARANTEE THAT ANY OF THESE OCCUPATIONS WILL APPEAR ON THE NEW SKILLED OCCUPATION LIST WHEN IT IS FORMALLY ANNOUNCED LATER IN APRIL 2010.

Construction managers Engineering managers Computer systems analysts Software and applications programmers Telecommunications and electrical engineers Civil engineering draftspersons and technicians Telecommunications technical specialists Air transport professionals Automotive electricians Marine transport professionals Motor mechanics Architects and landscape architects Urban and regional planners Aircraft maintenance engineers Chemical and materials engineers Bricklaters and stonemasons Industrial, mechanical and production engineers Carpenters and joiners Mining engineers Electronics trades workers Wood machinists and other wood trades workers Sign writers

Childcare centre managers Health and welfare services managers School principals and teachers Other education managers Registered nurses Psychologists Social workers Teachers of English to speakers of other languages Dental hygienists, technicians and therapists Optometerists and orhoptists Pharmacists Surgeons Other medical practitioners Lawyers Judicial and other legal professionals Accountants Auditors Actuaries Fire and emergency workers Police Veterinarians

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

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