• General Practitioner Pathway to PR

General Practitioner Pathway to PR

For general practitioners who want to migrate to Australia, we have outlined the procedures involved in applying for a permanent residency visa in Australia.

Requirements

  1. Complete a qualification and training in the relevant field.
  2. Apply for registration.
  3. Upon registration you can proceed to apply for a visa in Australia.
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Skills Assessment – Medical Board of Australia

To be able to apply for a permanent residency visa, you are required to have a skills assessment. For medical practitioners, the skills assessing authority is the Medical Board of Australia (MedBA).

For medical practitioners, you will need to show that you have an unconditional or general medical registration or conditional specialist registration – which allows you to practice only in your speciality with no further training or supervision. That means, once you have general registration or a conditional specialist registration, you will have essentially a positive skills assessment.

General registration can be granted to:

  • Medical and New Zealand medical graduates
  • Medical practitioners who have previously held general registration in Australia
  • International medical graduates in the competent authority pathway
  • International medical graduates with the Australian Medical Council Certificate

Medical and New Zealand Graduates

You can apply for a general registration on completion of intern training. There are different requirements depending on where you have completed your training.  If you have completed your training overseas, you will have to complete 12 months of full-time supervised practice in Australia before you are eligible to apply for a general registration.

Medical practitioners who have previously held general registration in Australia

If you currently hold a non-practicing certificate, you have fewer evidentiary documentation. More information can be found here.

International medical graduates in the competent authority pathway

This pathway is available to those who have met the eligibility criteria for the competent authority pathway and have completed an approved supervised practise in Australia. More information on the competent authority pathway can be found here.

International medical graduates with the Australian Medical Council Certificate

General registration can be granted to holders of Australian Medical Council Certificate (AMC) in the standard pathway and who have completed a period of approved supervised practice in Australia. This pathway is suitable for medical graduates who hold a qualification recognised by the Australian Medical Council and the World Directory of medical Schools. You can find out more here.

Mandatory registration standards

Depending on the pathways, you will need to show that you also meet the mandatory registration standards for:

  • English Language
  • Recency Practice
  • Professional Indemnity Insurance
  • Continuing Professional Development
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Potential PR Pathway

General Practitioner is on the medium and long-term strategic skills list. This means there are more potential PR visas that you can apply for.

Skilled visas:

Points will be given to you based on the following:

Subclass 189 – Skilled Independent Visa

This visa allows you to live, work and study in Australia permanently. It is a points tested visa. The minimum score to apply is 65 points. However, based on the previous round of invitation, you would need to achieve a score of at least 90 points to increase your chance of obtaining an invitation.

Subclass 190 – Skilled Nominated Visa

Similar to the Subclass 189 visa, this visa allows you to live, work and study in Australia permanently too. It is also a points tested visa. The minimum points to be eligible to apply is 65 points. For the subclass 190 visa, you must have a state who is willing to nominate you. States have their own occupation list. If general practitioner is on the state occupation list and you meet all the state’s eligibility criteria, you can apply to the state to nominate you.

Subclass 491 – Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) Visa

Although this visa is not permanent. It can lead to a permanent visa (Subclass 191 – Skilled Regional Visa). The Subclass 491 visa allows you to live, work and study in a designated regional area of Australia. It is also a points tested visa. The minimum points to be eligible to apply is 65 points. Another criterion of this visa is that you are nominated by a state or sponsored by an eligible relative. To be nominated by the state, you must check the state’s occupation list and meet all the state’s requirements. To be sponsored by your eligible relative, your relative must be a usual resident in a designated regional area of Australia.

Employer Sponsored Visas:

Subclass 494 – Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional Visa)

You can apply for subclass 494 if you have a regional employer who is willing to sponsor you. To be eligible for this visa, you must have at least 3 years of working experience in your nominated occupation and have a relevant skills assessment. With this visa, there is a requirement that you must work for the employer who is sponsoring you.

Subclass 191 -Permanent Residence Skilled Regional Visa

This visa will come into effect on 16 November 2022. It is for people who holds a Subclass 491 visa or Subclass 494 visa who have lived, worked or studied in the designated regional area for at least 3 years with a taxable income at or above $53,900. This visa will allow you to live work and study in Australia permanently.

Subclass 186 – Employer Nomination Scheme Visa

If you have an employer who is willing to sponsor you, you may be eligible for a Subclass 186 visa. This visa is permanent and will allow you to live, work and study in Australia indefinitely. To be eligible for this visa, you need to have at least 3 years of working experience in your nominated occupation and a positive skills assessment. Alternatively, if you are a holder of a Subclass 457 or TSS visa, you can apply for Subclass 186 after working for your employer for at least 3 years.

491 Skilled Regional Visa (Provisional)

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