Yes, applications can be made by individuals as well as migration agents.

Yes. All documents submitted must be officially certified as true copies of the original document (letters of good standing from Profressional Accounting bodies must be originals). Please do not have your tertiary institution(s) or accounting body send your documents directly to us unless otherwise requested by us. As we do not return documents, please ensure that you are aware of what documents need to be submitted with your application to the Department of Immigration & Citizenship once you receive your skills assessment. Note: photocopies of certified documents will not be accepted.

The person/agent certifying your documents must confirm that they have seen and compared the original to the copy that they are certifying and that it is a true copy. The full name, address, signature and title of the person/agent certifying the documents must be included as part of the certification. Accepted authorities for certifying documents in Australia: Australian Chartered Accountant/Australian CPA (must include membership number) Australian embassy/consulate/high commission staff University official (must include university stamp in addition to signature) Notary public Solicitor, legal practitioner, Magistrate Justice of the Peace Commissioner for declarations Commissioner for affidavits Commissioner of oaths Migration agent, registered with the Migration Agents Registration Authority (must included registration number) Police office (in Australia only) Pharmacist (in Australia only) Postal Manager (in Australia only) For overseas authorities please refer to the public notary within your country. Please note that the Institute reserves the right to request original documentation if required or deemed necessary.

Most universities keep information about their courses. If you have not retained your course outlines you must contact your university and ask them to provide you with the description of the subjects. If you studied in recent years, the information may also be available on the university website and you may print out the relevant sections, providing you include the website address on all the pages of the downloaded handbook. If the years and subject names on your statement of academic record do not correspond to those of the handbook information, documentation from the university must be supplied to state that the information applies to the years in which you completed your study. Without course outlines we cannot fully assess your qualifications, as we cannot determine what you studied. We cannot accept a statutory declaration in lieu of course descriptions certified by the university.

You must have formal tertiary qualifications to be considered as a skilled Accountant for the purpose of migration to Australia. If you do not have tertiary qualifications, which are assessed as comparable to at least the level of an Australian Bachelor degree your qualifications will be assessed as unsuitable for the purpose of migration under your skilled migration occupation. For example, if you have completed an Australian TAFE diploma only, you should not apply for skills assessment with the Institute.

No. The Institute is unable to start assessing an application without all the relevant documents. If you are missing documents we will advise you what is required to finalise your assessment. The processing time is calculated from the date the application is received, provided all required documents have been received.

The first requirement to be recognised for skilled migration is that a person holds qualifications which are assessed as comparable to at least the level of an Australian Bachelor degree. This may be in any discipline. Next, the person’s individual subjects are examined to determine coverage of core knowledge areas required for the nominated occupation. Generally, if you have a non-accounting Bachelor degree recognised by the Institute, you can qualify by completing an accredited conversion course or Masters Course through an Australian university to satisfy the minimum core knowledge areas. If your Bachelor degree is assessed by the Institute and/or AEI-NOOSR as not being comparable to an Australian Bachelor degree, you can only qualify by completing an Institute accredited Masters degree through an Australian university. In this case, the degree must consist of at least 12 units and these must include all the subjects listed in the accredited tertiary listing on our website. Please note that you should only apply for migration when you have finished the 12 subjects, and the Masters degree has been awarded to you.

Yes. The Institute lists all accredited universities and accredited courses/subjects on the website.

Before applying for a skills assessment with the Institute applicants holding Chinese degree awards and academic transcripts must have their educational documents verified through the Vocational Educational Training and Assessment Services (VETASSESS). This includes Bachelor degree certificate, graduation certificate and academic transcript. The original VETASSESS verification report should be sent together with your application directly to the Institute for assessment. Note: Documents in languages other than English must be accompanied by an English translation completed by a certified translator. You must include a certified copy of the original language documents as well as a certified copy of the translated document with your application. For more information about the Chinese verification service, please visit the VETASSESS website.

If you would like your degree/relevant qualification noted on your skills assessment letter, you must provide evidence of your degree completion (a degree certificate or a note on your academic transcript noting that you have completed all the requirements of the degree). Note: If you have exemptions from subjects of the overseas accounting body which are from another institution, you will need to supply a certified copy of the transcript of the other institution's subjects that you have completed.

Yes. Documents in languages other than English must be accompanied by an English translation completed by a certified translator. You must include a certified copy of the original language documents as well as a certified copy of the translated document with your application. Applicants residing in Australia must enclose an English translation completed by a translator accredited by the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI). Please refer to the Yellow Pages or NAATI website for a list of available translation services in your state/territory. Applicants residing outside Australia must enclose an English translation completed by a translator who is certified by the appropriate authorities of the applicant’s country of residence. The translation must include the full name of the translator, his/her contact details, the name of the company/department the translator works for (if applicable) and certification number (and/or stamp) of the translator (if available).

Applications are processed in the order of date received of all required documents and in accordance with the chosen processing time. The Institute is continuously receiving a large number of applications. It would be unfair to complete your application ahead of other applicants in the queue. We will do our best to attend to applicants with special circumstances quicker than the usual assessment time (for example if the applicant is nearing an age restriction).

No. The Institute does not award points for skills or work experience. The points are administered by DIAC. For information about the current number of points attributed to a particular occupation please refer to the DIAC website.