The Highly Skilled and Talented stream provides opportunities and pathways for highly skilled migrants who can contribute their demonstrated talent and/or support innovation in South Australia. Candidates may include skilled migrants living in South Australia, other Australian states and territories, and offshore.

The Highly Skilled and Talented stream also allows the South Australian Government to nominate applicants who can contribute to the state’s critical priority sectors. Successful applicants will demonstrate how they bring new ideas, skills, and innovation to South Australia.

How to register your interest

  • If you meet the eligibility guidelines below for the Highly Skilled and Talented stream, you are encouraged to submit a Registration of Interest via the Skilled & Business Migration portal
  • After your Registration of Interest (ROI) is reviewed, you may receive an invitation to submit a General Skilled Migration (GSM) application for state nomination

Please note: State nomination is a competitive process. There is no guarantee of receiving an invitation to apply for state nomination after lodging a Registration of Interest, even if you meet the eligibility guidelines. South Australia cannot indicate the likelihood of invitation or answer enquiries on this matter.

Eligibility guidelines – general

To be eligible under the Highly Skilled and Talented stream, you must:

  1. Currently live and work in South Australia, interstate, or overseas
  2. Be under 45 years of age at time of state nomination is approved
  3. Have a valid and positive skills assessment for your nominated occupation
  4. Have at least Competent English (Note: Passport holders or citizens of the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada or New Zealand do not need to provide an English language test result)
  5. Score at least 65 points in the Department of Home Affairs’ points test (including state nomination points)
  6. If you are working or offered a position in South Australia, your employer must:
    • Have been an existing business for at least 12 months. Your employer must have had a premise located and operating in South Australia for the past 12 months.
    • Have annual turnover of at least $4 million. Please note:
      • start-up companies may be exempt from the annual turnover requirement.
      • businesses that operate in outer regional South Australia may be exempt from the annual turnover requirement.
      • businesses that support the Defence sector may be exempt from the annual turnover requirement.
    • Be a business of good standing and there must be no adverse information about the business

Applicants with Hi-Tech or Digital industry experience 

In addition to meeting the general eligibility requirements above,

You must:

  • Have at least two years’ experience in one of the critical technology professions listed below. Your experience can be from South Australia, interstate, or overseas.
    • Artificial Intelligence (AI) Specialist
    • Cybersecurity Analyst
    • Data Scientist
    • Robotics Engineer
    • Cloud Architect
    • Internet of Things (IoT) Specialist
    • Blockchain Developer
    • Renewable Energy Engineer
    • Augmented Reality (AR) / Virtual Reality (VR) Developer
    • Biotechnology Researcher
    • Quantum Computing Scientist
    • 5G Network Engineer
    • Advanced Manufacturer

Applicants with Defence or Space industry experience

In addition to meeting the general eligibility requirements above, you must meet the requirements listed below.

If you are in South Australia:

  1. Have already commenced employment in South Australia in an organisation that directly operates in or is an integral part of the supply chain supporting the Defence or Space industry.
  2. Be currently working full-time (at least 30 hours per week) in South Australia.

If you are overseas or interstate:

  1. Demonstrate that you have experience working in a high skilled role in the Defence or Space industry.
  2. Intend to relocate to South Australia to work in the Defence or Space industry.

Further information

For further information on South Australia’s nomination requirements, please refer to our Frequently Asked Questions. To contact us, please lodge an enquiry through the Skilled and Business Migration portal.