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Western Australia expanded its skilled migration occupation list in August 2022 to attract overseas workers for jobs the state said were in demand. The change added more than 100 occupations, including 46 in health, taking the list to 276. It was a response to workforce needs at the time—not evidence of current eligibility for a WA nomination or Australian visa.
What changed in August 2022
On 21 August 2022, the Western Australian Government announced that it had expanded the skilled migration occupation list by around 60 per cent following industry feedback. More than 100 occupations were added, including 46 health occupations, bringing the total to 276. The announcement also said 33 newly added occupations aligned with four regional Designated Area Migration Agreements in place at that time. Those figures describe the 2022 announcement and its context; they do not establish present-day list coverage. WA Government’s 21 August 2022 announcement.
Premier Mark McGowan linked the expansion to strong economic growth and demand for skilled workers. Education and Training Minister Sue Ellery said training local residents in priority skilled areas remained the state’s long-term approach. The policy aim was therefore twofold: attract overseas workers for near-term workforce gaps while continuing to build local skills.
Why the occupation list is not the same as a visa approval
Several lists and decisions can be involved in skilled migration, and they serve different purposes. An occupation appearing on a WA workforce-planning list does not, by itself, mean a person qualifies for nomination or a visa.
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Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →| Mechanism | What it does | What it does not establish |
|---|---|---|
| State Priority Occupation List (SPOL) | Rates occupations for WA workforce planning, including informing training decisions and the state’s skilled migration list. WA says the resource is for policy planning and research, not career guidance. WA’s SPOL page. | Eligibility for state nomination or a visa simply because an occupation has priority status. |
| WA skilled migration occupation list | Identifies occupations relevant to the state’s skilled migration program for the applicable program year. | Universal eligibility across visa subclasses or program years. |
| WA state nomination | A state-level step through which an eligible applicant may be nominated to apply for a subclass 190 or 491 visa. WA offers General and Graduate streams. WA Migration Services. | A visa grant. Nomination allows an application; it does not decide the Commonwealth visa outcome. |
| Commonwealth visa assessment | The Australian Department of Home Affairs assesses visa applications under federal requirements. Home Affairs skilled occupation list. | WA nomination or an invitation from the state. |
Occupation eligibility can depend on the visa program, occupation code, caveats and assessing authority. Home Affairs also notes that skilled visa subclasses can use different ANZSCO versions. A title-level expansion in WA therefore cannot be read as permission to apply for every skilled visa.
What the temporary 2022 settings meant
Alongside the list expansion, WA announced temporary changes for the 2022–23 program year. The state said it would waive a $200 application fee, reduce the employment-contract requirement from 12 months to six months, lower sufficient-funds requirements, remove additional English requirements for professional and manager occupations, and reduce work-experience requirements. The announcement expected implementation over the following month. These were announced historical settings, not current rules.
Nomination places: historical figures, not visa grants
WA said it received 8,140 nomination places for 2022–23, 4,950 more than in the previous year. In 2025–26, Home Affairs listed 2,000 WA places for subclass 190 and 1,400 for subclass 491. These figures belong to different program years and should not be treated as evidence of current availability. Home Affairs defines allocations as the number of new primary applicants a jurisdiction may nominate; they do not determine how many visas are granted during that program year. Home Affairs state and territory nomination allocations.
Processing priority is separate from WA eligibility
Home Affairs says Ministerial Directions 121 and 122 took effect on 19 September 2026, replacing earlier processing priorities. For certain temporary and permanent or provisional skilled visa applications, the first tier prioritizes specified sectors—including construction, healthcare, teaching, agriculture, aquaculture, fishing and resources—and law-enforcement or defence interests. Other tiers use the applicant’s location at the time of application. These federal processing priorities concern the order applications are processed; they do not establish eligibility for a WA occupation list, nomination or visa. Home Affairs skilled visa processing priorities.
What to check before relying on a WA occupation listing
The 2022 expansion is useful background on why WA sought overseas workers, but it cannot answer whether a particular occupation or applicant qualifies now. The 2026–27 WA occupation lists, criteria and invitation priorities are not established here. For a current application decision, check the latest WA Migration Services criteria and occupation lists, then confirm the relevant federal visa requirements with Home Affairs. WA’s stated program focus is on skilled jobs that genuinely require overseas workers where local workers cannot be sourced.
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