Always verify current criteria before applying
Australia

Telecommunications Network Engineer Visa Pathway Australia

Telecommunications Network Engineer appears on the points-tested, employer-sponsored and post-study routes, and three of the six states and territories that list by occupation include it. It is not rated in shortage. The sections below set out what each requires. It was invited in the most recent published round.

ANZSCO 263312Published 31 March 2026Last updated 23 September 2026Read time 13 min
Overview

The facts that shape your strategy

Start with the four signals that affect pathway choice. Detailed evidence and caveats remain available below.

Occupation code263312Telecommunications engineering professionals unit group
Skills assessmentEngineers AustraliaThe Institution of Engineers Australia
Visa access7 routes186, 189, 190, 482, 485, 491 and 494
Typical earnings$2,904Average weekly cash earnings, unit group
Duties

What Telecommunications Network Engineer does

Your duties—not your job title—are what determine whether ANZSCO 263312 is the right code for your assessment.

Two ANZSCO versions apply to this occupationThe summary and duties below follow your selection.
Official occupation summary

“design, construct, install, service and support telecommunications equipment, systems and facilities”

Unit group 2633
Official occupation summary

“Plans, designs, and monitors complex telecommunications networks and associated broadcasting equipment.”

Occupation 263312
  • planning, designing, building, configuring and commissioning telecommunications devices, networks and systems, such as voice, radio, two-way, data, microwave, satellite and digital data systems, and ensuring telecommunications systems interconnect with equipment from different manufacturers, service providers and users
  • compiling engineering project proposals to define goals, identify scope, background and need, and ascertain cost of equipment, parts and services
  • evaluating and procuring new products and services from vendors
  • ensuring compliance with laws, regulations, policies and procedures in the provision of telecommunications systems
  • selecting and developing new telecommunications sites by locating sites, filing documents, drawing up documents for approval, drafting construction drawings and following through to approval
  • determining appropriate configurations of telecommunications hardware and software, ensuring desired performance of telecommunications equipment
  • preparing and interpreting specifications, drawings and regulations for the use of telecommunications equipment
  • determining the type and arrangement of circuits, transformers, circuit-breakers, transmission lines and equipment
  • identifying and analysing problems and needs of existing telecommunications systems, such as interference, intelligibility and clarity, to determine the most appropriate means of reducing, eliminating and avoiding current and future problems and improve communications
  • monitoring telecommunications systems to assess need for updates, upgrades, enhancements, preventive maintenance and new systems
  • assessing performance levels of system hardware and software to project future needs, and developing short- and long-terms plans for updating equipment, adding capabilities, enhancing existing systems and providing improved telecommunications

Default edition — 27 June 2013

  • planning, designing, building, configuring and commissioning telecommunications devices, networks and systems, such as voice, radio, two-way, data, microwave, satellite and digital data systems, and ensuring telecommunications systems interconnect with equipment from different manufacturers, service providers and users
  • compiling engineering project proposals to define goals, identify scope, background and need, and ascertain cost of equipment, parts and services
  • evaluating and procuring new products and services from vendors
  • ensuring compliance with laws, regulations, policies and procedures in the provision of telecommunications systems
  • selecting and developing new telecommunications sites by locating sites, filing documents, drawing up documents for approval, drafting construction drawings and following through to approval
  • determining appropriate configurations of telecommunications hardware and software, ensuring desired performance of telecommunications equipment
  • preparing and interpreting specifications, drawings and regulations for the use of telecommunications equipment
  • determining the type and arrangement of circuits, transformers, circuit-breakers, transmission lines and equipment
  • identifying and analysing problems and needs of existing telecommunications systems, such as interference, intelligibility and clarity, to determine the most appropriate means of reducing, eliminating and avoiding current and future problems and improve communications
  • monitoring telecommunications systems to assess need for updates, upgrades, enhancements, preventive maintenance and new systems
  • assessing performance levels of system hardware and software to project future needs, and developing short- and long-terms plans for updating equipment, adding capabilities, enhancing existing systems and providing improved telecommunications

Employer nomination only — 482, 186, 187

Salary

Salary context for this unit group

This is a unit-group benchmark, not a promise of individual earnings. Location, experience, employment type and overtime all affect pay.

$2,904average weekly total cash earnings
Lower-paid unit groupsHigher-paid unit groups

Telecommunications engineering professionals, all employees — May 2025 survey. The bar shows the unit group’s relative position across the ABS earnings survey.

Official source: ABS, Employee Earnings and Hours, Australia.
Visa pathways

Compare routes by how they work

Visa numbers alone are hard to interpret. Grouping them by applicant goal makes the shortlist easier to understand.

Choose your pathway type

These are occupation-level possibilities, not a personal eligibility result.

189Skilled IndependentNo state or employer sponsorPermanentMLTSSL
190Skilled NominatedRequires state nomination+5 pointsMLTSSL
491Skilled Work Regional (Provisional)State or family nomination+15 pointsMLTSSL
482Skills in Demand — Core Skills streamEmployer sponsorship, temporarySponsoredCSOL
186Employer Nomination Scheme — Direct Entry streamEmployer-sponsored permanent residencePermanentCSOL
494Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) — Employer Sponsored streamEmployer-sponsored, regionalSponsoredMLTSSL
485Temporary GraduateFor eligible recent Australian graduatesTemporaryMLTSSL
Points test

What the 95-point figure means

Two different scores get called “the minimum”. Here is which is which.

Latest published round
95points

Subclass 189 — Skilled Independent — June 2026 · lowest score invited, not a pass mark.

What the record shows

Subclass 189 — Skilled Independent

between 85 and 95, most recently 95.

Round-by-round recordLowest score invited

  • June 202695
  • November 202590
  • August 2025—
  • November 202485
  • September 202490
  • June 202495

— not listed in that round’s published results. DHA publishes the occupations invited in each round, not the ones that were not, so this does not mean nobody with this occupation was invited.

Minimum to lodge an EOI:65 points

Scores move between rounds. The most recent result does not set the next one.

🔒 Points check — Telecommunications Network EngineerBuilt from SkillSelect’s published invitation rounds and the Schedule 6D points test
FREE WITH POINTS CHECK
📈
Where your score sits against the last published roundThe lowest score invited for this occupation, from SkillSelect’s published round results — not a prediction
📅
Which rounds named this occupationThe published invitation rounds that list it, with the date and minimum for each
⚖
What the points test actually awards youYour score built from Schedule 6D, factor by factor, so you can see what moves it
See where you would rank

Takes about two minutes. No obligation.

Check my points →
EOI pool

Expressions of interest lodged in SkillSelect

How many expressions of interest name this occupation, and the scores they hold.

Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189) - Points tested stream

A permanent visa for invited workers with skills Australia needs, to live and work anywhere in the country.

326expressions of interest · August 2026
90+39 (12%)
80–8992 (28%)
70–79105 (32%)
60–6981 (25%)
under 609 (3%)

Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190)

A permanent visa for skilled workers nominated by a state or territory.

691expressions of interest · August 2026
90+109 (16%)
80–89211 (31%)
70–79252 (36%)
60–69115 (17%)
under 604 (1%)

Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491)

A provisional visa for skilled workers who want to live and work in regional Australia, nominated by a state or territory.

765expressions of interest · August 2026
90+254 (33%)
80–89282 (37%)
70–79205 (27%)
60–6924 (3%)
under 600 (0%)

Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491)

A provisional visa for skilled workers who want to live and work in regional Australia, sponsored by an eligible family member.

23expressions of interest · August 2026
90+4 (17%)
80–899 (39%)
70–798 (35%)
60–692 (9%)
under 600 (0%)

⚠ These pools are counted separately by visa subclass and are not additive — one expression of interest can name more than one subclass.

Source: Australian Government SkillSelect data, August 2026. Counts EOIs with a submitted or lodged status.

Application plan

Your first four decisions

A shorter, action-led sequence replaces the original seven-step list. Later lodgement steps only matter once the pathway is confirmed.

1Confirm your code

Match your actual duties—not only your job title—to Telecommunications Network Engineer 263312.

2Check Engineers Australia evidence

Map qualifications, employment proof and practical experience.

3Compare pathways

Compare the routes above side by side before committing to one.

4Build your application

Improve English and points, then pursue the strongest route first.

Skills assessment

The Institution of Engineers Australia

Engineers Australia decides whether your skills and experience meet the Australian standard for Telecommunications Network Engineer 263312.

Assessing authorityEngineers AustraliaSets its own fees and timing
  • A skills assessment is tied to the occupation you nominate — the code on this page is what gets assessed, not your job title
  • Requirements, fees and timing are set by the assessing authority, not by the Department
  • A positive assessment does not by itself produce an invitation or a visa
  • Most skilled visa applications need it decided before you lodge, so start early
State nomination

Published list snapshot

Select a state or territory to inspect its published-list status. Always confirm on the nominating body's own page.

On published listNot on published listNo list published
Choose a jurisdiction

Select a region on the map — or use Tab and Enter — to see its published-list status.

Select a region for details · Use Tab + Enter with a keyboard

  • NSWNot on published list
  • VICNo list published
  • QLDNot on published list
  • SANo list published
  • WAOn published list
  • TASOn published list
  • NTNot on published list
  • ACTOn published list
Labour agreements

Employer-led alternatives

Some employers can sponsor workers under an agreement negotiated with the government. Whether one is open to you depends on the employer, the industry and the terms of that agreement.

10 industry labour agreements are currently published.

There is no published list of which occupations each agreement covers, so this page cannot tell you either way. Only the employer holding the agreement can.

Career pathways

Where these skills sit

Related roles may share duties, but a migration assessment is always against the single occupation you nominate.

Current groupTelecommunications engineering professionalsUnit group 2633
Skill neighboursComputer Network Professionals · ICT Support and Test EngineersCompare duties first
FAQs

What applicants usually need clarified

This page names a skills assessing authority. Does that body decide my visa?

No. A skills assessing authority assesses whether your qualifications and experience meet the Australian standard for the occupation, and issues an assessment. The Department of Home Affairs decides the visa. A positive assessment is one requirement among several — it does not create an entitlement to a visa and it does not bind the Department’s decision. Which body assesses a given occupation is set by legislative instrument; it is not a choice you or we make.

This occupation is listed for a visa on this page. Does that mean I qualify for it?

No. A listing means a legislative instrument specifies this occupation for that visa. That is one criterion. Each visa has its own separate requirements — which may include age, English, a skills assessment, nomination or sponsorship, work experience, and in some cases a points score — and those are assessed against your circumstances, not against the occupation. A listing tells you a door exists. It does not tell you that you can walk through it.

Why does this page show two sets of duties, and does the code I nominate matter?

ANZSCO — the occupation classification — has more than one edition, and different migration instruments designate different editions. The Skills in Demand and Employer Nomination instruments specify ANZSCO as in force on 23 November 2022. Both editions appear here because which one applies depends on the instrument governing the visa you are applying for.

The code matters. Visa routes are specified per code, so two codes describing similar work can carry different routes. Establishing the correct code before you apply is not a clerical step.

Free with a points check

See where you stand against everyone else applying in this occupation

Check my points →

Takes about two minutes. No obligation.

General Information Only

This page provides general information only and does not constitute migration, legal or other professional advice. It is not tailored to your individual circumstances and must not be relied upon as the basis for any decision, action, or omission.

Migration law, visa conditions, and skilled occupation lists change frequently — occupations may be added to or removed from lists by ministerial direction, and visa conditions on your grant letter are the operative document.

Every figure on this page comes from an official source. While we endeavour to keep content current, immi.tv makes no representation that any information is accurate, complete, or up to date at the time you read it. Where this page and the official source differ, the official source prevails. Always verify independently before acting.

No client or adviser relationship is created by your use of this site. To the maximum extent permitted by law, immi.tv expressly disclaims all liability for any loss or damage — including visa refusals, cancellations, condition breaches, application costs, and consequential loss — arising from reliance on this content. See our full Terms of Use.

For advice specific to your circumstances, consult a registered migration agent or immigration consultant. MARN 2518872 (AU) · RCIC R705748 (CA).
Check my points →