Ship's Master (ANZSCO 231213)

On the Regional Occupation List

From the official Home Affairs skilled occupation lists, as at 2026-08-12. Lists change at each government update — always confirm on the official page before acting.

Which lists is Ship's Master on?

ROL — Regional Occupation List. Occupations on the ROL are limited to the regional provisional visas — mainly the Skilled Work Regional 491 and Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional 494.

Visas this occupation can access

Being on a list makes the occupation nominatable for these visas — each visa still has its own requirements (points, age, English, a positive skills assessment, and for sponsored visas a willing employer or state).

Skills assessment

A positive skills assessment for Ship's Master comes from:

What the assessment actually involves

AMSA assesses Ship's Master against one eligible certificate: Master Unlimited (STCW Regs II/2) — the same certificate grade AMSA also lists as eligible for Ship's Officer. What separates the two nominations is not the certificate but the rank actually served: this code is for someone who served in command of the vessel. ANZSCO's own definition — controls and manages the operations of a ship or boat — carries the alternative title Ship's Captain, and lists Dredge Master, Ship's Pilot and Tug Master as specialisations under the same code, so a sea-service letter naming any of those titles still supports 231213. The sea-service letter AMSA requires must state the position actually held on board, alongside the ship's name, IMO number and dates — the field AMSA checks against the certificate and code claimed.

Where these applications come unstuck

The specific trap here is nominating this code on the strength of holding a Master Unlimited certificate without having actually served in command. Many chief mates hold the same II/2 grade as the master they serve under, one rank below command, and the certificate alone does not decide which code to nominate — the sea-service letter's stated position held does. Because AMSA cross-checks that letter against the rank claimed, a mismatch between certificate grade and actual command experience is exactly what its issuing-authority and employer verification is positioned to catch, at minimum causing delay while AMSA queries it and at worst contributing to an application closed without refund if the mismatch can't be reconciled. This is a certificate-versus-rank error, not a documentation gap.

An honest read on this pathway

Ship's Master sits on ROL only, not CSOL, but it reaches visas none of the other three AMSA codes reach directly: the 407, 491 and 494, alongside the seagoing occupations' shared 494 route. A positive assessment still isn't authorisation to work — the certificate of recognition that actually lets a master work aboard an Australian-flagged vessel is a separate AMSA process requiring its own fresh medical, a sea-service assessment that can take up to 90 days, and an oral exam. This dossier could not confirm that any current Designated Area Migration Agreement names Ship's Master on its own occupation schedule, so a sponsored pathway beyond 407/491/494 is plausible in principle but unconfirmed in any specific agreement — don't treat it as settled.

Whichever authority assesses you, the paperwork is the part applicants underestimate. The Document Vault keeps a single register of every document, what it was needed for, and what is still missing.

Talk it through with a registered agent

Whether nominating Ship's Master is your best route depends on your points, experience evidence and timing — exactly what a MARA-registered agent works through in an initial consultation. Describe your situation once through Migratio and compare real consultation quotes from registered agents, free.

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