Skilled employment points: count eligible time, not job titles
Work-experience points depend on eligible employment in the nominated or a closely related skilled occupation during the ten years before invitation. The arithmetic is simple; proving the occupation relationship, dates, duties and paid work is often the harder part.
Key points
- Overseas employment currently awards 5 points from 3 years, 10 from 5 years and 15 from 8 years in the ten-year window.
- Australian employment currently awards 5 points from 1 year, 10 from 3 years, 15 from 5 years and 20 from 8 years.
- Overseas and Australian employment points are capped at 20 combined.
- The skills assessment and visa points assessment are separate; preserve independent evidence for every period claimed.
Current employment bands
| Eligible employment in the 10 years before invitation | Overseas points | Australian points |
|---|---|---|
| Less than 1 year | 0 | 0 |
| At least 1 but less than 3 years | 0 | 5 |
| At least 3 but less than 5 years | 5 | 10 |
| At least 5 but less than 8 years | 10 | 15 |
| At least 8 years | 15 | 20 |
If separate overseas and Australian bands would total more than 20, Schedule 6D reduces the combined award to 20. The total is not increased by having multiple simultaneous jobs.
Build a defensible employment timeline
- List every role by exact start and end date, country, hours and paid or unpaid status.
- Map duties to the nominated or closely related occupation.
- Record any date the assessing authority treats the applicant as skilled.
- Remove periods outside the ten years before the expected invitation date.
- Flag overlaps, leave, self-employment and periods with weak payment evidence.
- Recalculate when another complete month or year changes a band.
Evidence should tell one consistent story
An employer reference is stronger when supported by independent records. Depending on the country and employment type, these may include contracts, payslips, tax assessments, bank credits, pension or social-insurance records, business registration, invoices and client evidence. Translations and certification must meet the application instructions.
Titles, dates, hours and salary should align across the skills assessment, EOI, nomination and visa application. Explain genuine discrepancies rather than silently changing them.
Closely related employment is not a casual label
Similar industries do not automatically make occupations closely related. Consider the ANZSCO unit group, career progression, duties and assessing-authority treatment, then seek registered advice for borderline periods. Claiming one extra band is not worth making the invitation score unsupportable.
Connect the timeline to the EOI
The score must be true at invitation. Keep the EOI updated when a verified period reaches a new band, but do not claim a future anniversary early. Use the EOI guide to audit the dates.
Official sources to check before acting
These pages control over any summary on this website. Recheck them when you submit an EOI, accept a nomination or lodge a visa application.
Important Notice: The content on this page is for general information only. Australian visa policies and requirements are subject to change at any time. Always refer to the official Department of Home Affairs website for the most current and accurate information.