In last week’s NSW Subclass 190 invitation round, Accountantscontinued to hold firm across multiple consecutive rounds, with the minimum invitation score remaining at 100+5 points. Meanwhile, External Auditorhas mostly seen invitations from as low as 85+5 points— a relatively accessible score.

As a result, some accounting graduates have already completed — or are considering — an additional External Auditor skills assessment to expand their options.

In the context of NSW state nomination, two questions commonly arise:

Question 1: Does the NSW Government accept an Accounting Professional Year (PY) programme as eligible to claim bonus points for an External Auditor nomination?

Question 2: The NSW Government website still states that a PY’s validity period is 4 years from the programme commencement date — not from completion. Is this still the case?

Today we can answer both questions with a real case study.

Answer to Question 1: Yes, it is accepted.

Answer to Question 2: Yes — the 4-year period runs from the date of completion.

Question 1: Does the NSW Government accept an Accounting Professional Year (PY) programme as eligible to claim bonus points for an External Auditor nomination?

Previously, an Accounting PY could not be used to claim bonus points for an External Auditor nomination. The NSW Government stipulated that PY bonus points must relate to a “closely related” occupation, which they defined as requiring the first four ANZSCO code digits to be identical. The accounting group is ANZSCO 2211; the auditing group is ANZSCO 2212. They also cited “claiming professional year points when not eligible”.

We attempted to contact the NSW Government by both email and phone, but received no clear answer.

Case Study:

In last week’s round, several of our clients with External Auditor assessments at 85+5 points received invitations.After discussing the situation with one of those clients, they agreed to try claiming the Accounting PY bonus points. The nomination was submitted on a Monday — and the official nomination was granted just one day later, on Tuesday!

When we revisited the NSW Government website while writing up this case study, we found that the NSW state nomination FAQ no longer contains the question “what is an ANZSCO unit group?” or “What is a ‘closely related’ occupation” or their corresponding answers.

Both the practical case outcome and the official website update confirm: an Accounting PY can indeed be used to claim 5 bonus points for an External Auditor nomination!

Answer to Question 2: Yes — the 4-year period runs from the completion date.

Similarly, the NSW Government has also removed from its FAQ the question regarding PY validity being calculated from the programme commencement date.

When we previously called the NSW Government directly, we were clearly informed that they are aligned with the Department of Home Affairs: the recognised PY validity period has been updated to 4 years from the date of completion.

For a full summary of last round’s NSW Subclass 190 invitation data, see: [Migration Bulletin #273] NSW 190 — Engineering/IT drops to 80 points; Finance/Marketing/HR holds at 70 bare points!

If you’re looking to get an External Auditor skills assessment, or if you’re ready to try for NSW Subclass 190 or 491, now is the time to get moving — contact us for an assessment today.

BTW: NSW also updated its Subclass 491 requirements and occupation list today.

The key change is that Pathway 1, Stream B (applications submitted to an RDA — Regional Development Australia) has removed the mandatory work experience and EOI points requirements.Under the updated requirements, applicants who have been residing in NSW (including Sydney) or overseas for at least three months, and whose occupation is on the relevant list with a completed skills assessment, can now submit a nomination application.

The Pathway 1, Stream B occupation list has also been updated. Commonly listed occupations currently include:

The bare-points threshold for Subclass 491 is significantly lower than for 190, and the number of invitations issued this financial year falls well short of the available quota — a large release of invitations may follow. In the highly competitive NSW market, if your points aren’t quite competitive enough for 190, applying for 491 as a backup option could be worth considering — especially for offshore applicants. Get in touch for an assessment ↓

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Backlog reduced by 400,000 by year-end! Is the temporary-to-permanent pathway the key reform?Tap “Original Link” — Migration Bulletin Video Edition

[NSW Confirmed] Accounting PY Scores Count for Auditor Nominations! Subclass 491 Removes All Work Experience and Points Requirements

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