Migration of Medical Practitioners under the General Skilled Migration Programme
On this page:
Changes to immigration arrangements have been made that will assist medical practitioners who wish to migrate to Australia. The changes, made as part of the enhancements to Medicare, allow Medical Practitioners to migrate to Australia under one of the General Skilled Migration visa categories.
Inclusion of Medical Practitioners on the Skilled Occupation List
On 20 May 2004, the following Medical Practitioner occupations were added to the Skilled Occupation List:
| Occupation | ASCO code |
|---|---|
| Professionals | |
| Medical Practitioner - General Medical Practitioner | 2311-11 |
| Medical Practitioner - Anaesthetist | 2312-11 |
| Medical Practitioner - Dermatologist | 2312-13 |
| Medical Practitioner - Emergency Medicine Specialist | 2312-15 |
| Medical Practitioner - Obstetrician and Gynaecologist | 2312-17 |
| Medical Practitioner - Ophthalmologist | 2312-19 |
| Medical Practitioner - Paediatrician | 2312-21 |
| Medical Practitioner - Pathologist | 2312-23 |
| Medical Practitioner - Specialist Physician | 2312-25 |
| Medical Practitioner - Psychiatrist | 2312-27 |
| Medical Practitioner - Radiologist | 2312-29 |
| Medical Practitioner - Surgeon | 2312-31 |
| Medical Practitioner - Specialist Medical Practitioners (not elsewhere classified) | 2312-79 |
60 points are awarded for the occupation of 'Medical Practitioner' under the 'skill' part of the General Skilled Migration points test.
Skills assessment process
If your nominated occupation is 'Medical Practitioner', you must do both of the following:
- meet the Australian Medical Council (AMC) requirements
- make an application for full medical registration to the Medical Board in the State or Territory in which you intend to practise.
Evidence of full medical registration constitutes a skills assessment for the occupation of 'Medical Practitioner' for the purposes of migration under the General Skilled Migration program.
The department will accept one of the following certificates issued by the State or Territory Medical Board as evidence of full registration:
- full/unconditional/general medical registration
- conditional specialist registration - this registration allows you to practise only in your particular speciality, with no further training or supervision requirements.
Full/unconditional/general medical registration
Under current legislation, full, unconditional or general medical registration will only be available to you if:
- you are a graduate of an Australian or New Zealand Australian Medical Council accredited medical school and have completed an approved period of intern training
or
- you hold a primary medical qualifications obtained overseas, and meet all of the following:
- you have successfully completed the Australian Medical Council examination -including both the multiple choice questionnaire and the clinical examination
- you have been awarded the Australian Medical Council Certificate
- you have completed a period of supervised training approved by a State or Territory Medical Board.
Further information on the Australian Medical Council examination process is available.
See: Australian Medical Council
Once you have met the requirements outlined above, you must apply to the Medical Board in the State or Territory in which you intend to practise for full/unconditional/general medical registration, which entitles you to practise in Australia.
For locations and contact details for the State/Territory Medical Boards see DoctorConnect.
See: DoctorConnect
Conditional Specialist registration
If you are an overseas trained specialist whose primary medical qualifications are not recognised in Australia, you must apply through the Australian Medical Council/Specialist Medical College procedures to have your specialist training and qualifications assessed. This assessment will determine whether your training and qualifications are equivalent to those of Australian trained specialists currently entering the Australian workforce.
Further information regarding the procedures for conditional specialist registration is available.
See: Australian Medical Council
For details of Specialist Medical Colleges and their contact details see DoctorConnect.
See: DoctorConnect
Once you have received recognition by an Australian Specialist College, you must apply to the Medical Board in the State or Territory in which you intend to practise for conditional registration in your specialist field of practice. A list of locations and contact details for the State/Territory Medical Boards is available on the DoctorConnect website.
See: DoctorConnect