{"id":858,"date":"2026-08-26T17:36:03","date_gmt":"2026-08-26T12:06:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cosmosimmigration.com\/blog\/five-questions-skilled-migration-eligibility\/"},"modified":"2026-08-26T17:36:03","modified_gmt":"2026-08-26T12:06:03","slug":"five-questions-skilled-migration-eligibility","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cosmosimmigration.com\/blog\/five-questions-skilled-migration-eligibility\/","title":{"rendered":"Five Questions to Check Skilled Migration Eligibility"},"content":{"rendered":"

You can find out whether skilled migration is realistic for you before you pay a consultant, sit a language test or order a credential assessment. Five questions cover it. They are the same five that a registered consultant checks in the first ten minutes of a proper assessment, and if you answer them honestly you will know whether the points-based routes to Canada, Australia or Germany are open to you, or whether the honest answer is that they are not. This matters because a large share of the enquiries we receive from the UAE are from people who would have saved money and disappointment by asking these questions first.<\/p>\n

Question 1: Do you hold a recognised qualification of two years or more?<\/h2>\n

Points-based programmes are built around formal qualifications. Canada’s Express Entry scores education after an Educational Credential Assessment confirms your foreign qualification is equivalent to a Canadian one. Australia’s skilled visas require a positive skills assessment, and most assessing authorities need a qualification at a specific level for your occupation. Germany’s Opportunity Card requires a degree or a vocational qualification of at least two years that is state-recognised where you earned it.<\/p>\n

A secondary school certificate on its own does not open any of these routes. Short online certificates do not count as qualifications. A completed diploma, higher diploma, bachelor’s degree or a formal trade certificate with a two-year programme does.<\/p>\n

Score yourself:<\/strong> 2 points for a bachelor’s degree or higher, 1 point for a two- or three-year diploma or trade certificate, 0 for anything less.<\/p>\n

Question 2: Do you have skilled work experience that matches your qualification?<\/h2>\n

“Skilled” has a technical meaning. Canada classifies occupations by TEER level, and Express Entry counts experience in TEER 0 to 3 (management, professional, technical and skilled trade roles). Australia uses ANZSCO, and each visa occupation list names the codes that qualify. Warehouse operative, delivery driver, kitchen helper, security guard, cleaner and shop assistant are not classified as skilled under either system, however hard the work is.<\/p>\n

The experience also has to be provable. Reference letters on company letterhead listing your duties, hours and dates, plus payslips or bank statements, are the standard evidence. Experience that cannot be documented is treated as if it did not happen.<\/p>\n

Score yourself:<\/strong> 2 points for three or more years of documented skilled experience in a role related to your qualification, 1 point for one to three years, 0 for none or for unskilled roles only.<\/p>\n

Question 3: Can you pass the language test at the required level?<\/h2>\n

Canada’s Federal Skilled Worker Program needs Canadian Language Benchmark 7 in all four abilities, which is roughly IELTS General Training 6.0 in each band, and your score rises sharply with CLB 9 and above. Australia’s skilled visas need at least Competent English (about IELTS 6.0 in each band) to apply, but the points come at Proficient (7.0 in each band) and Superior (8.0 in each band). Germany’s Opportunity Card needs German A1 or English B2 as a minimum.<\/p>\n

If you have not sat a test, be realistic. Working in English in Dubai is not the same as scoring 7 in writing under exam conditions. A practice test costs little and tells you a great deal.<\/p>\n

Score yourself:<\/strong> 2 points if you have, or are confident of, IELTS 7.0 or above in every band, 1 point for 6.0 to 6.5 in every band, 0 if below or unknown.<\/p>\n

Question 4: How old are you?<\/h2>\n

Age is the factor nobody can improve and the one most people underestimate. Canada’s Comprehensive Ranking System awards maximum age points to candidates in their twenties and reduces them each year after 30, reaching zero at 45. Australia’s points test gives its highest age score to applicants aged 25 to 32 and will not invite anyone aged 45 or over for the 189, 190 or 491 visas. Germany’s Opportunity Card gives two points under 35 and one point from 35 to 39.<\/p>\n

Being older does not always close the door, but it raises the bar on everything else. A 42-year-old with a master’s degree, ten years of experience and IELTS 8 can still be competitive. A 42-year-old with a diploma and IELTS 6 usually cannot.<\/p>\n

Score yourself:<\/strong> 2 points if you are under 33, 1 point for 33 to 39, 0 for 40 and over.<\/p>\n

Question 5: Do you have the settlement funds and the money for the process?<\/h2>\n

Canada requires proof of settlement funds for Federal Skilled Worker applicants, at an amount IRCC publishes and updates annually based on family size. Germany requires proof that you can support yourself during the Opportunity Card search year, usually through a blocked account or a declaration of commitment. Australia’s skilled visas do not have a formal settlement-funds test, but states may ask for evidence of funds for nomination.<\/p>\n

Separately, the process itself has government and third-party costs before any consultant fee: language tests, credential or skills assessments, medical examinations, police certificates and visa application charges. These are published on the official sites and they are not small.<\/p>\n

Score yourself:<\/strong> 2 points if you have documented savings that comfortably cover both the settlement requirement and the process costs, 1 point if you have one but not the other, 0 if neither.<\/p>\n

Reading your score<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Total (out of 10)<\/th>\nWhat it usually means<\/th>\nSensible next step<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
8 to 10<\/td>\nYou are a genuine points candidate for at least one of Canada, Australia or the Opportunity Card<\/td>\nRun the official calculators, then book a document review<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
5 to 7<\/td>\nBorderline. A state nomination, a better language score or a category-based round may make the difference<\/td>\nRun the calculators and ask a registered consultant which single factor to improve first<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
0 to 4<\/td>\nThe points routes are not realistic today<\/td>\nConsider study routes, or improving your qualification, before paying for any migration service<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

A zero on Question 1 or Question 2 is decisive regardless of the total. No amount of English or savings replaces a recognised qualification and skilled experience.<\/p>\n

What a real assessment includes<\/h2>\n

Self-scoring gets you to the right door. A professional assessment then checks whether the door will actually open for you. At Cosmos Immigration that means:<\/p>\n