Skilled – Recognised Graduate (subclass 476) visa permanently closed from 1 July 2024
As was announced as part of the Migration Strategy the Skilled- Recognised Graduate (Sc 476) visa is seen as no longer aligning with policy priorities and will be abolished on 1 July 2024.
Therefore, no further visas will be granted under this subclass and applicants who have applied but have not had their visa granted should have received an email from the Department informing them how to request a repayment of the Visa Application Charge (VAC).
Skilled Recognised Graduate Subclass 476 visas – extensions of 24 months for those engineering graduates who lost time due to border restrictions. This equates to the usual 18 months plus another 6 months.
The 476 visa has been capped. This means any 476 visa already lodged won’t be finalised before 1 July 2024. Any new application before then will be invalid.
“The visa was intended to specifically support the mining and minerals sector in attracting highly sought after engineering graduates, however internationally trained engineers have alternative and preferred pathways to work in Australia. The program is now under review as part of the broader Migration Reform and capping grants of the visa in this financial year is a preliminary measure to winding down and future repealing of the visa.”
Features
This visa allows:
- recent engineering graduates of recognised institutions to gain up to 18 months of skilled work experience.
Eligibility
You must:
- be under 31 years of age
- have completed an engineering degree at a recognised institution in the past two years
- not have been the primary visa holder of a subclass 476 or 485 visa.
Length of stay
18 months
Cost
From AUD 465
The process
Processing time
| 75 per cent of applications processed | 90 per cent of applications processed |
|---|---|
| 14 months | 17 months |
Eligibility
Who could get this visa
You might be able to get a Skilled — Recognised Graduate visa (subclass 476) if:
- you are younger than 31 years of age
- you have completed an eligible engineering qualification from a recognised institution in the past two years
- you have not held a Skilled — Recognised Graduate visa (subclass 476) or a Temporary Graduate (subclass 485) before (unless you were a member of the family unit)
- you can demonstrate your English language ability
- you meet health and character requirements.
Your engineering qualifications
In the two years before you apply, you must have completed one of the following qualifications in engineering:
- bachelor’s degree
- master’s degree
- doctoral degree
- postgraduate diploma.
Your qualification must contain a major sequence of study or specialisation in engineering, such as:
- civil engineering
- structural engineering
- chemical engineering
- environmental engineering
- electrical and electronics engineering
- mechanical, production and plant engineering
- mining and material engineering.
Recognised institutions
You must have completed your engineering qualification at a recognised educational institution. Study at an institution or college that is affiliated with a recognised institution does not satisfy this requirement.
English language ability
If you are a citizen of the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, the United States of America or the Republic of Ireland or you hold a valid passport from one of those countries, you are considered to meet the English language requirement for this visa. Otherwise, you must provide evidence of having achieved the following scores from one of the specified English language tests. You must complete your English language test before you apply.
| Test | Score |
|---|---|
| International English Language Testing System (IELTS) | Overall score of at least 6 with a minimum score of 5 for each of the 4 parts |
| Test of English as a Foreign Language internet-based Test (TOEFL iBT) | Total score of at least 64 with a minimum score of 4 for listening, 4 for reading, 14 for writing and 14 for speaking |
| Pearson Test of English Academic (PTE Academic) | Overall score of at least 50 with a minimum score of 36 for each of the 4 parts |
| Occupational English Test (OET) | At least B for each of the 4 parts |
| Cambridge C1 Advanced test | Overall at least 169 with a minimum score of at least 154 in each of the 4 test components |
About this visa
The Skilled — Recognised Graduate visa (subclass 476) allows recent engineering graduates of eligible universities to gain up to 18 months of skilled work experience in occupations. It is a temporary visa.
Your family can also apply to join you in Australia after the visa is granted.
What you can do
This visa allows you and your family stay in Australia for up to 18 months. While in Australia, you can:
- travel
- work
- study
Location
You may be inside or outside Australia when you apply for this visa however you must be outside of Australia when the visa is decided, unless you are a New Zealand citizen who holds a Special Category visa (subclass 444). A New Zealand citizen who holds a Special Category visa (subclass 444) can be in or outside Australia when the visa is decided.
Recognised educational institutions
Washington Accord institutions
Any institution offering an Engineering qualification accredited under the Washington Accord is a recognised institution. The Washington Accord is an international agreement among bodies responsible for accrediting engineering degree programmes. It recognises the substantial equivalency of programmes accredited by those bodies and recommends that graduates of programmes accredited by any of the signatory bodies be recognised by the other bodies as having met the academic requirements for entry to the practice of engineering.
Other recognised institutions
Alternatively, your engineering qualification must be from one of the following institutions:
Argentina
Catholic University of Argentina
Brazil
Federal University of Minas Gerais
Chile
- Universidad Catolica del Norte Catholic University of Chile—Antofagasta
- University of Chile
- University of Concepcion
Finland
HUT, Helsinki
Germany
- RWTH, Aachen
- Technical University of Berlin
- Technical University of Clausthal
- TU Bergakademie Freiberg
- University of Hannover
Hungary
University of Miskolc
India
- Anna University—Chennai
- Baranas Hindu University—Varanasi
- Indian Institute of Science—Bangalore
- Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur
- Indian School of Mines—Dhanbad
Iran
- Amir Kabir University of Technology
- University of Tehran
People’s Republic of China
- Beijing Normal University
- Beijing Petroleum University
- Beijing University of Chemical Technology
- Beijing University of Technology (formerly Beijing Polytechnic University)
- China University of Mining andTechnology—Beijing
- Guangzhou University
- Shanghai University of Engineering Science
- Shanghai Jiaotong University
- Tongji University
- Tsinghua University
- University of Science and Technology—Beijing
Philippines
University of the Philippines
Poland
Wroclaw University of Technology
Slovakia
TU Kosice
Sweden
Lulea University of Technology
Tanzania
University of Dar es Salaam
