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English Requirement – Subclass 482 Visa
English proficiency
If you are applying for a subclass 482 Skills in Demand visa application, you must show evidence of meeting the English language requirements unless one of the following exemptions apply:
- You hold a valid passport from one of these countries: the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, the Republic of Ireland or New Zealand.
- You have completed at least five cumulative years of full-time study in a secondary and/or higher education institution where the instruction was delivered in English. You will need to obtain evidence from the educational institution(s) confirming this. This evidence must clearly confirm the years you attended, the qualification you attained, that the course was full-time and that the medium of instruction was in English. You can download a template letter here. This letter should be accompanied by transcripts/marksheets for each year of study relied on.
- Your annual guaranteed earnings will be at least AUD96,400 and you currently work overseas for the sponsor or work for an overseas business that is an associated entity of your sponsor.
Full time study must be the standard number of contact hours that a student would undertake in that country for secondary institutions. For a higher education institution, this must be the completion of at least 3 subjects in each semester or trimester of study.
If you choose to take a test…
The first step is to check what date you took the test.
Test validity
For the purposes of a visa application, English test results are valid for 3 years.
Can you do the test at home?
No. Some test providers offer alternative versions of their tests that you can take at home or online, such as TOEFL at home, OET@Home and IELTS Indicator. The Department of Home Affairs does not accept any ’at-home’ or ‘online’ test for Australian migration purposes.
Before 13 September 2025
Approved tests
- International English Language Testing System (IELTS) – the General test is sufficient, it does not need to be the Academic but both are accepted
- Occupational English Test (OET);
- Pearson Test of English Academic (PTE);
- Cambridge C1 Advanced test
- TOEFL iBT
If your test was done before 13 September 2025, you must take the test in a single attempt, you cannot re-sit test components at different times.
Minimum scores for tests taken on or after 13 September 2025
| Test | Minimum band score | Minimum scores for test components | |||
| Listening | Reading | Speaking | Writing | ||
| IELTS test | Overall band score 5.0 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| OET | – | B | B | B | B |
| PTE | Overall band score 36 | 36 | 36 | 36 | 36 |
| CAE | Overall band score 154 | 154 | 154 | 154 | 154 |
| TOEFL iBT | Overall band score 35 | 4 | 4 | 14 | 14 |
On or after 13 September 2025
Approved tests
- International English Language Testing System (IELTS) – the General test is sufficient, it does not need to be the Academic but both are accepted
- Occupational English Test (OET)
- Pearson Test of English Academic (PTE)
- Cambridge C1 Advanced test
- TOEFL iBT
- Canadian English Language Proficiency Index Program General (CELPIP General)
- LANGUAGECERT Academic Test (LANGUAGECERT Academic)
- Michigan English Test (MET)
If you sit the test after 13 September 2025, you are allowed to re-sit a test component so you can use IELTS One Skill Retake (OSR) and MET SSR to do this. You do not need to sit the test in one take.
| Test | Minimum scores for test components | |||
| Listening | Reading | Speaking | Writing | |
| IELTS (General or Academic) | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| OET | 220 | 240 | 200 | 270 |
| PTE | 33 | 36 | 29 | 24 |
| MET | 49 | 47 | 45 | 38 |
| TOEFL iBT | 8 | 8 | 9 | 14 |
| LANGUAGECERT
Academic |
41 | 44 | 45 | 54 |