Small Engine Mechanic (ANZSCO 321214)
On the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills 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 Small Engine Mechanic on?
MLTSSL — Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List. The widest list — occupations on the MLTSSL can access the points-tested permanent skilled visas including the Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189), which needs no state nomination or employer.
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).
- Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189) — Permanent, points-tested, no sponsor needed · all occupations for the 189
- Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190) — Permanent, state or territory nominated · all occupations for the 190
- Skilled Work Regional visa (subclass 491) — Provisional, regional, points-tested · all occupations for the 491
- Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482) — Temporary, employer sponsored · all occupations for the 482
- Employer Nomination Scheme visa (subclass 186) — Permanent, employer sponsored · all occupations for the 186
- Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional visa (subclass 494) — Provisional, regional employer sponsored · all occupations for the 494
- Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) — Temporary, recent Australian graduates · all occupations for the 485
- Training visa (subclass 407) — Temporary, workplace training · all occupations for the 407
Processing priority
Small Engine Mechanic 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 Small Engine Mechanic comes from:
- Trades Recognition Australia (TRA) (official site) · our guide to the TRA process
What the assessment actually involves
Small Engine Mechanic sits in ANZSCO unit group 3212 Motor Mechanics alongside Motor Mechanic (General), Diesel Motor Mechanic and Motorcycle Mechanic, sharing the full MLTSSL/CSOL, eight-visa spread. Its scope covers small engines — the kind found in equipment like mowers and outdoor power tools rather than full motor vehicles — a narrower and more specific duty set than the general code in the same unit group. TRA's own evidence criteria for this occupation specifically could not be verified in this research, since its website did not resolve during this session.
Where these applications come unstuck
As with the other motor-trades codes in this family, the practical risk is not a visa-list trap — Small Engine Mechanic shares the identical full visa reach with its unit-group siblings — but an evidence-accuracy one: applying under this code, or under the general Motor Mechanic code, without the employment evidence clearly documenting which category of engine work the applicant actually did. This research could not confirm TRA's own threshold for how specifically that evidence needs to be scoped.
An honest read on this pathway
Small Engine Mechanic reaches the full eight-visa spread shared across unit group 3212, so the visa-list position matches Motor Mechanic (General) exactly. State-level licensing or registration requirements specific to small engine mechanic work were not confirmed in this research, and this occupation, like the rest of the motor trades in this family, has no dedicated Construction or Trades industry labour agreement to draw on — sponsorship runs through standard employer sponsorship or a regional DAMA where one applies.
Going through Trades Recognition Australia? TRA pathways lean heavily on documented work history and evidence of on-the-job experience. The Employment History Builder reconstructs it with gap detection, so the record you submit holds together.
Talk it through with a registered agent
Whether nominating Small Engine Mechanic 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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