Australia's tech sector is growing fast and consistently short of skilled workers. If you work in IT — software development, cybersecurity, data, cloud — here's how to get there.
Is IT in Demand in Australia?
Australia's digital economy continues to grow rapidly. The technology sector consistently features among the top industries with reported skill shortages, and the federal government has identified ICT occupations as a priority area for skilled migration.
The median salary for software developers in Australia sits above AUD $100,000 in most states — significantly above the TSMIT threshold, which makes employer sponsorship readily available for the right candidates.
Which IT Occupations Are on the Australian Skilled Visa Lists?
Many ICT occupations appear on the MLTSSL (which enables the 189, 190 independent pathway and 186 permanent residency), including:
Software Engineer / Developer
ICT Security Specialist (Cybersecurity)
Database Administrator
ICT Systems Analyst
Network Engineer / Administrator
Cloud Solution Architect
DevOps Engineer
Business Intelligence Analyst
ICT Project Manager
The ACS (Australian Computer Society) is the assessing authority for these occupations.
How Does the ACS Skills Assessment Work?
The ACS assesses your:
Qualifications — compared against Australian ICT degree standards using their Qualifications Framework
Work experience — must be relevant to your nominated ANZSCO occupation and recent
Key rules:
If your degree is assessed as a "Computing Degree" (directly relevant), you typically need 1 year of post-degree work experience in the nominated occupation
If your degree is a "closely related" field, you need 2 years
If your qualification is in a non-computing field, you need 4–6 years
ACS assessments are usually processed in 4–8 weeks.
What Points Can IT Professionals Achieve?
A typical IT applicant in their early-to-mid 30s with a relevant degree and 5+ years of experience might achieve:
FactorPointsAge (25–32)30IELTS 8.0 (Superior English)20Relevant bachelor's degree158+ years work experience15State nomination (190)5Total85
This is highly competitive and would receive an invitation in most rounds.
The 482 Route for IT Professionals
If your points score is lower or your occupation isn't on the independent list, the 482 is a strong option. Australian tech companies — particularly in Sydney and Melbourne — regularly sponsor skilled developers, security analysts, and data engineers.
The pathway is: 482 → 186 (TRT stream) after 3 years = permanent residency.
Australian Tech Hubs
Sydney — financial services, fintech, large enterprise tech
Melbourne — creative/media tech, government, education sector
Brisbane — growing startup scene, government digital transformation
Perth — mining tech, resources sector digitisation
Adelaide — defence tech, cybersecurity, space sector
NWI's migration team can assess your specific ACS occupation, current points position, and the fastest route to get you working in Australia's tech industry.