Australia Skilled Occupation List: MLTSSL, STSOL, ROL and the Core Skills List

What each list is for

If your occupation appears only on the CSOL, you need an Australian employer willing to sponsor you; if it appears on the MLTSSL you can pursue permanent residence on points alone, without a job offer. Our Australia Skilled Migration from UAE (Subclass 189/190/491) page explains the points test that sits on top of these lists, and our Australia points calculator gives you a first estimate.

Source: Department of Home Affairs, Skilled occupation list page (list-to-visa mapping and ANZSCO versions), accessed 26 August 2026.

Occupations UAE residents nominate most, and who assesses them

The table below is drawn from the occupations most often nominated by Dubai and GCC-based applicants. It shows the list each occupation has sat on under the current instrument and the authority that assesses it. Treat it as a starting point: list membership is confirmed against the instrument in force on the day you lodge, and a change to the instrument can move an occupation between lists.

Indicative only: list membership and assessing-authority assignments are taken from the legislative instrument that has governed the points-tested visas since 2019 and were cross-checked against the Home Affairs skilled occupation list page on 26 August 2026. Confirm the current instrument before relying on any row. Fees are set by each authority and are not reproduced here.

Why the national list is only half the answer for 190 and 491

For the nominated visas, each state and territory publishes its own occupation list and criteria on top of the national MLTSSL, STSOL and ROL. A state may exclude occupations that are on the national list, require a job offer or a period of residence in the state, or set a higher points threshold than the federal 65-point floor. New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia each run different systems and open and close streams during the program year.

In practice this means a UAE applicant with an STSOL occupation should check the state lists before investing in a skills assessment: an occupation that no state is nominating in the current year cannot lead to a 190 or 491 invitation, however strong the profile. The comparison of subclass 189, 190 and 491, including how nomination points work, is on the Australia skilled migration page.

How to use the lists before you spend anything

1. Match your real duties to an ANZSCO 2013 occupation. Read the task list for the code, not just the title; UAE job titles rarely map one-to-one.
2. Find that occupation in the current legislative instrument. Note which lists it is on and therefore which of 189, 190 and 491 are open to you.
3. If it is STSOL or ROL, check state nomination lists. Confirm at least one state is currently nominating the occupation and read its criteria.
4. Identify the assessing authority and its evidence rules. Our skills assessment for Australia guide covers ACS, Engineers Australia, VETASSESS, AITSL and ANMAC, and the UAE employment-evidence problems that cause refusals.
5. Estimate your points. Use the Australia points calculator; 65 is the floor to lodge an Expression of Interest, and recent invitation rounds have favoured higher scores.

How we check your occupation from Dubai

Every Australian matter at Cosmos Immigration is handled with a named MARA-registered agent, written into your engagement letter before any fee. The agent confirms your ANZSCO code against your actual duties, checks the current instrument and the relevant state lists, and tells you which visa subclasses are realistically open before you pay an assessing authority. Decisions on nomination, assessment and the visa itself rest with the states, the assessing authorities and the Department of Home Affairs. You can verify the agent’s registration on the public registers listed on our verification page.

Occupation list questions from UAE residents

Is there one official Australia skilled occupation list I can download?

No. The occupations for each visa are set out in a legislative instrument, and the Department of Home Affairs points applicants to the instrument rather than a single consolidated table. The MLTSSL, STSOL and ROL govern the points-tested visas and use the 2013 ANZSCO dictionary; the Core Skills Occupation List governs the Skills in Demand and Employer Nomination Scheme visas and uses the 2022 dictionary. Third-party tables, including the one on this page, are convenience summaries and should be checked against the instrument in force on the day you lodge.

My occupation is on the STSOL. Can I still get permanent residence?

Yes, through subclass 190 or, after living and working in a regional area on a 491, through subclass 191. The STSOL does not open the independent 189 visa, so you depend on a state or territory nominating you. Check which states currently list your occupation and what they require, because a state can pause an occupation mid-year. A 190 nomination adds 5 points to your score and a 491 nomination adds 15, which is often what lifts an STSOL profile to a competitive total.

What is the difference between the MLTSSL and the Core Skills Occupation List?

The MLTSSL is for points-tested skilled migration: you apply without an employer, on your own qualifications, experience, English and age. The Core Skills Occupation List was introduced for the Skills in Demand subclass 482 and the Employer Nomination Scheme subclass 186, both of which require an Australian employer to sponsor you. An occupation can appear on both lists, on one, or on neither. If yours is only on the CSOL, your route runs through a job offer rather than SkillSelect.

Which ANZSCO version should I use to find my code?

Use ANZSCO 2013 for the MLTSSL, STSOL and ROL, which cover subclasses 189, 190 and 491, and ANZSCO 2022 for the Core Skills Occupation List used by the 482 and 186 programs. Home Affairs states that the 2022 revision reclassified or split some occupations, so a code that describes your job under one version may not exist under the other. Select the code whose tasks and responsibilities match your actual work, and make sure the assessing authority assesses you against the same code you use in SkillSelect.

How often do the lists change?

Whenever the legislative instrument is amended. Major restructures are announced with the annual migration program settings, but individual occupations can be added or removed at other times, and state nomination lists change far more often, sometimes several times in a program year. Because a skills assessment can take months and a positive outcome is typically valid for three years, applicants should confirm the list position both before applying for the assessment and again before lodging an Expression of Interest.

My UAE job title is not on any list. What now?

Job titles are not what the lists contain; ANZSCO occupations are. A “Business Development Executive” may fit an ANZSCO sales or marketing occupation, an “IT Officer” may be an ICT Support Engineer or a Systems Administrator, and a “Site Engineer” is usually a Civil Engineer. Start from the task list of the candidate codes and compare it honestly with your daily work; an assessing authority will do the same with your reference letters. If no code genuinely fits, that is worth knowing before you spend money on an assessment.

Cosmos Immigration is a private consultancy, not a government body. Occupation lists, nomination criteria and program settings are set by the Department of Home Affairs and the states and territories, and change without notice; the facts above were checked against the Home Affairs published pages on 26 August 2026.

Check your eligibility with a named MARA-registered agent, starting with whether your occupation is on the right list.