August SkillSelect was for the Health Professionals

The August SkillSelect invitation round data has been published, showing a tiny 200 invitations issued across the Subclass 189 Skilled Independent and Subclass 491 Skilled Work Regional (Family Sponsored) visa types.

Numbers were split fairly evenly, with a slightly higher 110 invites to 189 visa applicants. Minimum point scores remained steady at 90 in this visa subclass. The points score for the 491 visa was a record-low 75 points, but this is not surprising based on who received invitations this round.

Targeted invitations

Following the trend of targeting critical skills needs in recent rounds, invitations were almost exclusively issued to health professionals. Registered Nurses made up the bulk of those invited, with 77% of quota (154 invites) across the two visa categories.

Making up the balance for this round are:

• Health and Welfare Services Managers;
• Medical Laboratory Scientists;
• General Practitioners and Resident Medical officers; and
• Other Medical Practitioners.

Pro-rata occupations:

None of the pro-rata occupations received invitations this round.

Get Organised

With the majority of applicants waiting until October 2020 when State Nomination programs reopen, now is the time to organise your documents and prepare an Expression of Interest (EOI) so you can lodge with your preferred State/Territory as soon as possible. There will be a significant amount of competition, so being prepared is your best course of action.