Vehicle Painter (ANZSCO 324311)
On the Regional 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 Vehicle Painter 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.
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 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
- Training visa (subclass 407) — Temporary, workplace training · all occupations for the 407
Processing priority
Vehicle Painter 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 Vehicle Painter comes from:
- Trades Recognition Australia (TRA) (official site) · our guide to the TRA process
What the assessment actually involves
Vehicle Painter goes through the same six TRA programs as the rest of the family, chosen by occupation, passport country, place of study and visa sought, and it sits outside the compulsory OSAP/TSS licensed-occupation list. TRA has no per-occupation page for this code, so no qualification level or specific evidence list can be confirmed. ANZSCO defines the trade narrowly as surface finishing — preparing surfaces, matching and mixing colours, applying primer and finishing coats by spray-gun, sanding between coats — distinct from Panelbeater's structural repair work.
Where these applications come unstuck
This is the code in the family where a nomination mistake costs the most. ANZSCO itself notes a panelbeater "may spray-paint vehicles," so day-to-day work can genuinely support either code — but Panelbeater sits on the MLTSSL and Vehicle Painter on the ROL, and picking Painter when Panelbeater fits removes the entire points-tested route, not just one or two visas. A 2009 forum account of a UK spray painter shows the assessing body has covered this occupation since at least then, for anyone tempted to trust an outdated source over a current check.
An honest read on this pathway
Vehicle Painter sits on the ROL and CSOL, reaching only five visas — no 189, no 190, no 485 — meaning no points-tested skilled visa reaches this occupation at all. Its whole migration reach runs through employer sponsorship on 482 or 186, the 407 training visa, or a state 491/494 nomination; if a 482 sponsorship collapses, there's no independent fallback the way Motor Mechanic or Panelbeater keep through 189.
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 Vehicle Painter 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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