Accountants have been on Australia's skilled migration lists for decades, and the profession's place on them explains a lot about who works in Canberra's accounting firms today. The archived Skilled Occupation List Schedule 3 from July 2010 lists Accountant (General), Management Accountant and Taxation Accountant at 60 points each, assessed by CPA Australia, the Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICAA) or the National Institute of Accountants (NIA). This article explains what those entries meant, how the four 2010 schedules fitted together for accountants, and what has changed since.

The documents linked here are archived 2010 publications of the Department of Immigration and Citizenship. They are for background only; current lists are on the Department of Home Affairs website.

The accounting occupations on the 2010 list

ANZSCO code	Occupation	Former ASCO code	Assessing authority	Points (2010)
221111	Accountant (General)	2211-11	CPA / ICAA / NIA	60
221112	Management Accountant	2211-11	CPA / ICAA / NIA	60
221113	Taxation Accountant	2211-11	CPA / ICAA / NIA	60
221213	External Auditor	2212-11	CPA / ICAA / NIA	60
221214	Internal Auditor	2212-13	VETASSESS	50

Two details stand out. First, the single ASCO occupation "Accountant 2211-11" was split into three ANZSCO occupations, which is why a 2009 skills assessment as an accountant could be mapped to general, management or taxation accountant after 1 July 2010. Second, internal auditors were assessed by VETASSESS at 50 points rather than by the professional bodies at 60, a distinction that caught some applicants by surprise.

How the four schedules applied to an accountant

• Schedule 1 – the old ASCO list, for applications lodged before 1 July 2010 and still undecided. It lists Accountant, Accountant – Corporate Treasurer, Accountant – External Auditor and Accountant – Internal Auditor, plus Branch Accountant (Financial Institution) at 40 points.
• Schedule 2 – transitional arrangements for students and Subclass 485 holders who were in Australia on 8 February 2010. An accounting graduate on a 485 visa could still apply for a 885 or 886 visa until 31 December 2012 using either list.
• Schedule 3 – the main new list, used by everyone applying from 1 July 2010.
• Schedule 4 – State Migration Plan occupations. Accountants appeared here too, and the ACT used state nomination heavily to attract accountants and auditors to Canberra's public-sector-driven economy.

Why accountants stayed on the list when so many occupations were cut

The 2010 reform removed more than 200 occupations, including most hospitality and personal-service roles that had become study-to-migration pathways. Accounting was itself a very popular course among international students, so there was real pressure to drop it. It survived because Skills Australia's analysis still showed a long-term shortage of qualified accountants, particularly outside Sydney and Melbourne. The Canberra market was a good example: federal agencies, defence contractors and a growing not-for-profit sector all needed CPAs and chartered accountants faster than local graduates could fill the roles.

The skills assessment in practice

Being on the list was necessary but not sufficient. An applicant needed a positive skills assessment from CPA Australia, the ICAA (now Chartered Accountants ANZ) or the NIA (now the Institute of Public Accountants). The assessment compared the applicant's degree against a set of core knowledge areas: financial accounting, management accounting, audit, taxation law, business law, economics, finance and quantitative methods. Applicants missing one or two areas could complete bridging units. From 2010 the professional bodies also required a competent-plus English result (IELTS 7 in each band) for a full assessment, which became one of the biggest hurdles for overseas-trained accountants.

What has changed since 2010

1. July 2011: occupation points were abolished. The 60 points shown in the schedules no longer exist; points now come from age, English, experience, qualifications and partner skills.
2. July 2012: SkillSelect introduced expressions of interest, and accountants quickly became one of the most competitive occupations, with invitation cut-offs well above the pass mark.
3. 2016–2023: accounting occupations remained on the Medium and Long-term list but with pro-rata ceilings and some of the highest invitation scores of any profession.
4. 2024–2025: the Core Skills Occupation List for the Skills in Demand visa continues to include accountants and auditors, while the points-tested streams remain highly competitive.

What this means for migrant accountants in Canberra

If you trained overseas and are now working in the ACT, the 2010 documents may be the lists your own visa was granted under, and they can be useful for understanding why your original assessment was in a particular ANZSCO code. Practically, three things matter now:

• Keep your professional membership current. CPA Australia or CA ANZ membership is still the benchmark Canberra employers look for, and it underpins tax agent registration with the Tax Practitioners Board.
• Understand the tax position of visa holders. Residency for tax purposes does not follow visa status; temporary residents, working holiday makers and permanent residents are taxed differently, and the choice of a Canberra accountant who understands this can save real money.
• Check current lists before advising family or colleagues. The 2010 schedules are history. A registered migration agent and the Home Affairs website are the only reliable sources for today's rules.

Where to find the archived documents

All four 2010 schedules are hosted as archived PDFs on Visas 4 Australia: Schedule 1, Schedule 2, Schedule 3 and Schedule 4. Together they are a compact record of how one of Australia's most important professions was treated at a turning point in skilled migration policy.