Software Tester (ANZSCO 261314)

On the Short-term Skilled Occupation List and Core Skills 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 Software Tester on?

STSOL — Short-term Skilled Occupation List. Occupations on the STSOL can access state-nominated and regional skilled visas (190/491), but not the Skilled Independent 189.

CSOL — Core Skills Occupation List. The employer-sponsorship list — occupations on the CSOL can be nominated for the Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482) and the Employer Nomination Scheme 186.

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).

Processing priority

Software Tester isn't in any of the ANZSCO groups that Directions 121 and 122 list for the priority sectors. Some of the first group is defined by the job rather than the code: a nominated position directly involved in agriculture, aquaculture or fishing, one that directly supports mining, oil and gas or coal production, or one related to defence. Otherwise the application is processed after the priority sectors. For the permanent and provisional skilled visas, applicants who were in Australia when they applied come next, then those who applied from outside Australia. For the 482, Specialist Skills stream applications come before both.

Priority changes the order in which lodged applications are looked at, not whether they are granted. Who is invited to apply through SkillSelect is decided separately. See all 202 occupations in the priority sectors.

Skills assessment

A positive skills assessment for Software Tester comes from:

What the assessment actually involves

ACS assesses Software Tester, and this is the one code in the 2613 group with a genuinely distinct published definition: specifying, developing and writing test plans and test scripts, producing test cases and carrying out regression testing. That makes it easier to evidence than its siblings, because the work described is not the work the other four codes describe. The usual ACS experience matrix applies, keyed to your qualification level and how closely its ICT content relates to testing.

Where these applications come unstuck

The trap is directional. Developers who write their own unit tests as part of building features are not doing what this definition describes, and a reference letter full of feature delivery will not evidence the code however much testing it mentions. The reverse also catches people: testers who moved into development mid-career need the periods separated clearly, because ACS counts only one job per overlapping period toward the total even when both roles are accepted as suitable.

An honest read on this pathway

This is the one code in the family on the STSOL rather than the MLTSSL, which narrows the visa range compared with Software Engineer or Developer Programmer even though it remains on the CSOL. That difference is worth checking against your intended visa before you commit, because it is a genuine structural difference rather than a matter of competitiveness. It is listed on the Adelaide City Technology and Innovation DAMA at skill level one alongside the rest of the family.

Assembling an ACS application? ACS wants employment evidence that lines up exactly with the dates and duties you claim elsewhere. The Skilled Visa EOI Organiser keeps your claims consistent across the skills assessment, EOI and Form 80 — inconsistencies between them are a common cause of delay.

Talk it through with a registered agent

Whether nominating Software Tester 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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