Temporary Graduate Visa Subclass 485 for international student graduate of an AASW accredited social work course in Australia

Temporary Graduate Visa Subclass 485 for international student graduate of an AASW accredited social work course in Australia

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Temporary Graduate Visa Subclass 485 for international student graduate of an AASW accredited social work course in Australia

On behalf of the Australian Government, as a nominated assessing authority, we assess academic social work qualifications by assessing your qualification for migration purposes.

This application form can be used by social workers who would like to apply for an assessment of their AASW accredited social work qualification/s for a Temporary Graduate Visa Subclass 485.

  • Temporary Graduate Visa

The Temporary Graduate (485) visa has 2 streams:

The AASW as an Assessing Authority accepts applications for this visa subclass to complete a skills/qualification assessment which applicants can use as part of their temporary visa application to the Dept Home Affairs.

The Post-Study Work Stream is for international students who have recently graduated with a degree or higher qualification (Australian Bachelor or Masters degree, three years for a research-based Master’s Degree, and four years for a PhD or Doctorate), regardless of their field of study, from an Australian CRICOS approved institution. This stream is available only to persons who applied for, and had been granted, their first student visa on or after 5 November 2011. This ensures that all Post-Study Work stream applicants have been subject to Genuine Temporary Entrant provisions assessment. Applicants for this stream do not need a skills assessment. Applications can be made direct to Dept. Home Affairs.

There are Two Criteria which must be met for a positive assessment for Temporary Graduate Visa Subclass 485 for international student graduate of an AASW accredited social work course in Australia purpose:

Criterion 1: Proof of identity and evidence to verify this. 

Criterion 2: Successful completion of an AASW accredited social work qualification in Australia and evidence to verify this. 

Download Assessment of Australian Association of Social Workers accredited social work qualifications for the Temporary Graduate Visa (subclass 485) form.

If you think there has been an error at any stage of your AASW skills assessment process, you have the option to an internal review, if you meet the requirements.

  • An internal review can be lodged when an applicant receives an unsuccessful outcome and when they believe error/s have been made in the qualification assessment or in administration of the application.

An internal review of an assessment is related to an assessment of:

  • an assessment of a Temporary Graduate Visa Subclass 485 AASW accredited social work qualification application gained in Australia.

Subject to meeting the criteria you can request an internal review of your assessment outcome within 30 days of receiving the email with your outcome letter. Internal reviews are conducted by an AASW staff member, not previously involved in the original application.

An internal review is fee-free and can only be undertaken once by an applicant.

The process for an internal appeal is:

  1. When an applicant receives an unsuccessful outcome, they are informed of the decision in writing in the form of an outcome letter. The applicant is provided with recommendations to be undertaken to achieve a successful outcome.
  2. An internal review process involves a more senior AASW staff member who was not involved in processing the original application, reviewing the original qualification assessment decision to determine that no errors have been made in the qualifications assessment or administration of the application.
  3. The applicant is required to email AASW at [email protected] explaining the reason they are requesting an internal review. The email should include details as to the error/s that have been made in the qualifications assessment or administration of the application. The applicant will receive confirmation from AASW verifying receipt of their internal review request.
  4. If an applicant is unsuccessful with their internal review, the decision is final for a Temporary Graduate Visa Subclass 485 application decision.

Please allow 2-3 weeks for your application to be processed.

Assessment fee if correspondence address is outside Australia AU $381.81
Assessment fee if correspondence address is within Australia AU $420 (includes GST)

Please mail your application form, supporting documentation and assessment fee to:

Postal address:

Australian Association of Social workers
MEA Program
PO Box 2008
Royal Melbourne Hospital VIC 3050

Courier address

Australian Association of Social workers
MEA Program
Level 7
14-20 Blackwood Street
North Melbourne VIC 3051

You will receive email notification acknowledging the receipt of your application.