Moving to Australia as a Teacher

The Two Tracks, and Why They're Not the Same Thing

A migration skills assessment answers one question: does your qualification and background meet the bar for the occupation you're nominating on your visa application. AITSL is explicit that its skills assessment for teachers is qualifications-based — work experience before or after your initial teacher education is not considered as part of the assessment itself.

A teacher registration answers a different question: are you approved to be employed as a teacher in a specific state's schools. Registration is administered separately by each state and territory authority — the same body model as trades licensing — and while many of the requirements overlap with AITSL's assessment, they are legally distinct applications with their own paperwork, timelines and fees. You generally need both: the AITSL or ACECQA assessment supports your visa application; state registration is what actually lets you work once you're here.

Which Occupation Code Are You? Primary, Secondary or Early Childhood

These are three separate ANZSCO occupations, not one code with different labels, and which one you fall under determines which visas are open to you:

- Secondary School Teacher (241411): sits on the occupation lists that reach the points-tested subclass 189, as well as 190, 491, 482 and 186. Assessed by AITSL.
- Early Childhood (Pre-Primary School) Teacher (241111): also reaches the 189, alongside 190, 491, 482 and 186. Assessed by ACECQA, not AITSL — a distinction worth getting right, since applying to the wrong body wastes weeks.
- Primary School Teacher (241213): does not reach the 189. Available through 190 (state nomination), 491 (regional), 482 (employer sponsorship) and 186. Assessed by AITSL.
- Special Needs Teacher and related specialist codes (241511, 241512, 241513, 241599): reach the 189 as well as 190, 491, 482 and 186. Assessed by AITSL.
- Middle School Teacher (241311): does not reach the 189, same shape as primary. Assessed by AITSL.

Check your own occupation entity page — /occupations/241213-primary-school-teacher, /occupations/241411-secondary-school-teacher or /occupations/241111-early-childhood-pre-primary-school-teacher — for the current list membership, since occupation lists are reviewed periodically and a code's status can change.

The AITSL Skills Assessment

AITSL assesses your teaching qualification and professional standing against Australian requirements for migration purposes. Because the assessment is qualifications-based, the core of what you submit is your teaching degree, transcripts and evidence it meets the required standard — not a record of years taught. AITSL does not take phone enquiries or respond to requests for updates by phone, so track your application through its own online portal rather than trying to call for a status check.

English language requirement: an Academic IELTS Test Report Form showing at least 7.0 in both Reading and Writing, and at least 8.0 in both Speaking and Listening. Academic IELTS results are accepted for three years from the test date. Applicants who completed a full initial teacher education qualification — including supervised teaching practice — entirely in English at a recognised English-speaking country may meet the English requirement without a test; check AITSL's current list of qualifying countries and conditions directly, since this exemption has specific conditions attached.

The ACECQA Skills Assessment for Early Childhood Teachers

If your occupation is Early Childhood (Pre-Primary School) Teacher, your migration skills assessment goes to ACECQA, not AITSL — a different authority entirely. ACECQA assesses across three dimensions: your qualification (generally at least four years of higher education — a relevant bachelor's degree, or a bachelor's plus a graduate diploma in early childhood education), your practicum (a supervised teaching placement of a minimum length, split across specific age groups), and English language proficiency where your qualification wasn't already gained in English. If your qualification isn't already on ACECQA's list of approved qualifications, it goes through an individual equivalence assessment first.

State Teacher Registration Is a Separate Application

Once you're in Australia — or sometimes before, depending on the state — you apply for registration with the relevant state or territory teacher regulator: NESA in New South Wales, VIT in Victoria, QCT in Queensland, TRBWA in Western Australia, and TRB in South Australia, with equivalent bodies in the remaining states and territories.

Queensland's own published guidance gives a sense of what's involved: overseas-qualified applicants without current Australian or New Zealand registration need their qualification assessed as equivalent to an approved Queensland teaching qualification, on top of identity, suitability and English language checks, with the college itself citing up to 12 weeks for an overseas application and English exemptions only where a full four-year teaching qualification was completed entirely in English in one of a specific list of countries. Victoria's regulator similarly runs its own pre-assessment of overseas qualifications as a distinct step from anything AITSL has already done. Treat each state's registration process as its own project, with its own timeline, rather than assuming your AITSL assessment automatically satisfies it.

English Language Requirements: Two Different Bars

AITSL's skills-assessment bar (Academic IELTS 7.0 reading/writing, 8.0 speaking/listening, or equivalent) is not automatically the same bar your state registration authority applies — some states set their own English proficiency requirements and exemption lists for registration, separate from AITSL's. Confirm your target state's current English requirement directly with its regulator rather than assuming the AITSL score alone clears both hurdles.

Working With Children Check

Every state requires a Working With Children Check (or equivalent) before you can be employed around children, run separately from both your skills assessment and your teacher registration. It's a background and identity check, and while requirements and timeframes vary by state, expect this to be a distinct application with its own processing time — start it once you're settled on a state, not as an afterthought.

Choosing a Visa Once Your Occupation Track Is Clear

Secondary, early childhood and specialist teachers with a competitive points score can pursue the subclass 189 directly, with no state or employer sponsor needed. Primary and middle-school teachers, or anyone below a competitive 189 score, typically look at the subclass 190 (state nomination, adds 5 points, each state runs its own occupation priorities) or the subclass 491 (regional, adds 15 points, leads to permanent residency via the subclass 191). An employer-sponsored 482, leading eventually to the subclass 186, is the route if a specific school or system wants to sponsor you directly rather than you applying independently.

The 485 Graduate Route

If you complete your teaching qualification in Australia on a student visa, the subclass 485 (Temporary Graduate) gives you time after graduation to pursue registration and a skilled or sponsored visa without leaving the country.

Getting Professional Advice

Because the visa pathway genuinely depends on which of these occupation codes you fall under, and because AITSL, ACECQA and each state registration body are all separate processes with separate timelines, teacher migration is one of the harder occupations to plan without help. A MARA-registered migration agent can confirm which occupation code and visa combination actually fits your qualification and state target — get matched with one for free through Migratio.

What's the difference between a teacher skills assessment and teacher registration?

The skills assessment (AITSL, or ACECQA for early childhood specifically) supports your visa application and checks your qualification against Australian standards. Teacher registration is a separate process run by the state or territory where you'll actually work, and is what legally allows you to be employed in a school there.

Does teaching experience count toward my AITSL skills assessment?

No. AITSL's skills assessment for teachers is qualifications-based — teaching experience before or after your initial teacher education qualification is not considered as part of the assessment.

Can primary school teachers apply for the subclass 189?

No. Primary School Teacher (241213) does not sit on the occupation list that reaches the 189. It's available through state nomination (190), the regional pathway (491), employer sponsorship (482) or the 186 — but not the independent points-tested 189.

Are early childhood teachers assessed by AITSL?

No. Early Childhood (Pre-Primary School) Teacher migration skills assessments go to ACECQA, a different body from AITSL, which assesses school teachers generally. ACECQA checks qualification, supervised practicum and, where relevant, English.

What English score do teachers need for migration?

AITSL's skills assessment requires Academic IELTS 7.0 in Reading and Writing and 8.0 in Speaking and Listening, or an accepted equivalent test, with limited exemptions for a full teaching qualification completed entirely in English in specific countries. Your state's separate teacher registration authority may apply its own English requirement on top of this.

Do I need a Working With Children Check to teach in Australia?

Yes, in every state, as its own separate background check distinct from your skills assessment and your teacher registration. Requirements and processing times vary by state.