Chef (ANZSCO 351311)

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 Chef 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).

Skills assessment

A positive skills assessment for Chef comes from:

What the assessment actually involves

CORRECTED 2026-09-04. This entry previously said TRA expects "photographic or video evidence of you working" in most pathways. A verified 44-source pass across TRA's whole captured site found no support for that: the only mentions of photographs anywhere are photo IDENTIFICATION. What TRA's Migration Skills Assessment actually asks for is the passport identity page, the qualification and its transcripts, an Employer Template form and pay evidence covering each employment period. TRA is explicit that a qualification alone is not enough — and equally explicit that experience alone cannot replace one: "TRA does not accept work experience as a substitute for a qualification."

Where these applications come unstuck

The most common failure is employment evidence that does not corroborate itself — references describing duties the payslips and tax records cannot support, or periods claimed at full time that the financial record shows as casual. TRA also draws a firm line between Chef (351311) and Cook (351411): applying under the wrong code because it appears on a better list is a refusal, not a technicality.

An honest read on this pathway

Chef is on both the MLTSSL and the CSOL, so the pathway is genuinely open — and Chef alone among the food trades reaches 189 and 485, because ANZSCO puts it a full skill level above Cook, Baker and Butcher. It is also one of the most heavily scrutinised trade assessments, and the evidence burden is higher than most applicants expect at the outset.

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.

We've also written a full pathway guide for this occupation: read the Chef pathway guide.

Talk it through with a registered agent

Whether nominating Chef 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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