Re-test strategically
We model whether a PTE retake to Superior, a NAATI credential or a Professional Year gives the fastest points-per-rupee improvement for your specific profile and deadline.
Australia · Permanent residence
The points test, category by category
Permanent residence through General Skilled Migration is scored out of a theoretical maximum most applicants never reach. Sixty-five points is the entry threshold. What matters is where your score sits against the people invited in your occupation this year.
- 65
- Minimum to lodge an EOI
- 30
- Maximum age points (25–32 years)
- 20
- Superior English points
- 15
- Maximum overseas experience points
Age
Age is assessed at the date of invitation, not the date you submit your EOI. If you are approaching a band boundary, that date drives the entire strategy.
| Age at invitation | Points |
|---|---|
| 18–24 years | 25 |
| 25–32 years | 30 |
| 33–39 years | 25 |
| 40–44 years | 15 |
| 45 years and over | 0 — ineligible for most skilled visas |
English language ability
Moving from Proficient to Superior is the single cheapest 10 points available to most applicants. For candidates sitting at 80–85 points, it is usually the difference between an invitation and another year of waiting.
| Level | IELTS (each band) | PTE Academic | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Competent | 6.0 | 50 | 0 — required minimum |
| Proficient | 7.0 | 65 | 10 |
| Superior | 8.0 | 79 | 20 |
Scores must be achieved in a single sitting and be valid at invitation.
Skilled employment experience
| Years of skilled experience | Overseas | In Australia |
|---|---|---|
| Less than 3 years | 0 | 0 |
| 3–4 years | 5 | 5 |
| 5–7 years | 10 | 10 |
| 8–10 years | 15 | 20 |
Combined overseas and Australian experience points are capped at 20.
Only experience after the date your skills assessment recognises as skilled counts. ACS deductions of two to four years routinely remove the very years applicants assume will score.
Education, partner and additional points
- Doctorate from an Australian or recognised overseas institution — 20 points
- Bachelor or Masters degree — 15 points
- Australian diploma or trade qualification — 10 points
- Recognised qualification or award relevant to the nominated occupation — 10 points
- Australian study requirement met (two academic years) — 5 points
- Specialist education qualification, a Masters by research or doctorate in a STEM field — 10 points
- Professional Year in Australia in accounting, ICT or engineering — 5 points
- Credentialled community language (NAATI) — 5 points
- Study in regional Australia — 5 points
- Skilled partner with a positive assessment and Competent English — 10 points; Competent English partner only — 5 points; single applicant or partner is an Australian citizen or PR — 10 points
- State or territory nomination (Subclass 190) — 5 points
- State, territory or eligible family sponsorship in a regional area (Subclass 491) — 15 points
How we lift a score in practice
Fix the assessment, not the claim
A reference letter that fails to evidence duties and hours costs assessed years. We rebuild employment evidence before the assessment rather than appealing after it.
Use partner points properly
Ten partner points require a positive skills assessment in an occupation on the same list, plus Competent English. Where that is not achievable, we check whether the partner should be the primary applicant instead.
Nomination as the real lever
Five points from a state or fifteen from a regional sponsorship outweighs almost any other single improvement. We track which states are open for your occupation through the programme year.
Continue reading
Talk to a case manager
Forty-five minutes that tells you exactly where you stand
Your consultation covers a full points or CRS projection, the two or three routes worth pursuing, the documents you will need, realistic timelines and a written fee breakdown. INR 2,000, credited in full against your service fee if you proceed with us.
- Named case manager assigned before you pay a service fee
- Written eligibility report within 48 hours of the call
- Fee schedule and refund terms issued in writing
- Sessions available in English, Hindi, Punjabi and Marathi
- Office consultations at Netaji Subhash Place, Pitampura, or on video