Assessing authority assurance

The department has a quality assurance role in ensuring that skills assessments are migrant-centric and delivered optimally in terms of process, standards, timeframes, industry requirements and cost. The department oversees Australia's skilled migration assessing authorities, ensuring adherence to conditions imposed on their approval, and promoting continual improvement and alignment to Best Practice Principles and Standards (BPPS). The department also:

• assesses applications from entities seeking to become an assessing authority and makes recommendations to the Minister for Skills and Training for consideration
• monitors assessing authorities’ performance
• provides skills recognition policy advice to assessing authorities
• liaises with the Department of Home Affairs, Jobs and Skills Australia, and other Australian Government agencies
• ensures demonstration of Australia’s international obligations in skills recognition.

The department works with assessing authorities to promote, support and monitor their conformance with the Guiding Principles and Standards for Skilled Migration Assessing Authorities (the Guide). To support this function, the department may seek information from assessing authorities about their processes and practices.

The department has no authority under the Migration Regulations 1994 to intervene in individual skills assessments, direct how occupational assessment standards are applied, overturn assessment outcomes or require assessing authorities to refund fees to an applicant.

Conditions

Under subregulation 2.26B(1BC) of the Migration Regulations 1994, conditions will apply to approved assessing authorities from 1 January 2027.

These conditions set out the requirements that assessing authorities must meet. They cover governance, integrity, quality assurance, data reporting, procedural fairness, and providing services that support skilled migration pathways for migrants.

The conditions are designed to improve transparency, accountability, and confidence in the skills assessment system.

An assessing authority that does not meet the conditions may have its approval revoked under subregulation 2.26B(1BG) of the Migration Regulations 1994.

The conditions are consistent with the requirements in the Guiding Principles and Standards for Skilled Migration Assessing Authorities (the Guide).

Best Practice Principles and Standards

The Best Practice Principles and Standards (BPPS) have been informed by consultations with assessing authorities, public submissions to a discussion paper (including submissions from peak bodies and unions), and the evaluation findings of pilot projects undertaken by the department. They are a central point of reference for both assessing authorities and case managers. The BPPS aim to raise the integrity, quality and timeliness of migration skills assessments and are embedded in the Guide.

The Guiding Principles and Standards for Skilled Migration Assessing Authorities

The Guide provides guidance to assessing authorities for conducting skills assessments in line with the Best Practice Principles and Standards. The Guide also sets out how the government conducts assurance and sets the expectations for assessing authorities to continue to meet the conditions for which they have been approved to deliver skills assessments under the Migration Regulations 1994.