Partner points on the skilled visa: ten for single or an Australian partner, ten for a skilled partner, five for competent English

MARN 1576536

The three claims

The points test for the 189, 190 and 491 contains a partner factor with three alternative claims, of which an applicant makes the one that applies. Ten points where the applicant has no spouse or de facto partner, or where their spouse or de facto partner is an Australian citizen or permanent resident. Ten points where the applicant's spouse or de facto partner is an applicant for the same visa, was under 45 at the time of invitation, has at least competent English, and has a suitable skills assessment for an occupation on the skilled occupation list that applies to the visa. Five points where the partner is an applicant for the same visa and has at least competent English. An applicant whose partner is included and has neither competent English nor an assessment claims nothing under the factor. The claims are mutually exclusive and the maximum is ten. The points calculator includes them.

No partner, or an Australian partner

An applicant with no spouse or de facto partner claims ten points, and so does an applicant whose partner is an Australian citizen or permanent resident, who is not included in the application because they need no visa. The claim is a statement of fact about the applicant's relationship status at invitation, and it is checked: an applicant who claims to be single and is later found to have had a de facto partner at the time has overstated the score, and the visa is refused on the points. A de facto relationship that does not meet the definition, usually because it is shorter than twelve months and unregistered, leaves the applicant single for the points, and the applicant claims the ten; the partner cannot then be included in the application, and joins later by a subsequent entrant application once the relationship meets the definition.

A skilled partner

The ten points for a skilled partner require four things, all at the time of invitation: the partner is included in the application as a secondary applicant; the partner had not turned 45; the partner has competent English, evidenced by a test within the three years before invitation or by one of the exempt passports; and the partner holds a suitable skills assessment, from the authority for the occupation, for an occupation on the list that applies to the subclass. The partner's occupation need not be the applicant's, need not be related to it, and need not be one a state nominates; a nurse applying with an accountant partner claims the points on the accountant's assessment. The partner's assessment is obtained in the ordinary way, with its fee and its time, and is valid for the period the authority states, which must cover the invitation date. The partner does not need to meet the points test themselves and is not assessed on points.

Competent English

Competent English is the lowest of the three English levels in the points test: IELTS 6.0 in each of listening, reading, writing and speaking; PTE Academic 50 in each; OET grade B in each; TOEFL iBT at the Department's listed component scores; Cambridge C1 Advanced 169 in each; or holding a passport of the United Kingdom, Ireland, the United States, Canada or New Zealand, which exempts the holder from a test. The result must be from a test taken within the three years before invitation. A partner who scores higher meets it; the five-point and ten-point claims both require only competent. The English scores guide sets out each test's thresholds.

The occupation list and the assessment

The partner's occupation must be on the skilled occupation list that applies to the visa the couple are applying for. For the 189 that is the medium and long-term strategic skills list; for the 190 and the 491 it is the broader list that applies to state-nominated applicants, which includes the short-term occupations as well. A partner whose occupation is on the broader list but not the medium and long-term list supports the ten points for a 190 or 491 application and not for a 189, which is a reason some couples apply for the state-nominated visa rather than the independent one. The assessment is a suitable skills assessment as the Department defines it: a full assessment for migration purposes from the relevant authority, not a provisional or a qualification-only assessment where the authority distinguishes them. The occupation guide lists the authorities.

Spouse and de facto partner

A spouse is a person in a marriage recognised under Australian law; a de facto partner is a person in a de facto relationship as the Act defines it, which for the skilled visas usually requires the relationship to have existed for twelve months before the application, or to be registered under a state or territory relationship register, or to come within the compelling circumstances the regulations allow. A couple who have lived together for eight months are not de facto partners for the visa, the applicant is single for the points, and the partner cannot be included; a couple who register the relationship in a state that allows it become de facto partners on registration. The partner's inclusion in the application and the partner points depend on the same definition. The de facto guide sets out the definition.

At the time of invitation

The points are assessed as at the invitation, and the invitation is issued on the score claimed in the expression of interest. A partner's English result that is more than three years old at invitation, a partner's skills assessment that has expired, a partner who has turned 45, each removes the ten points at the moment they are assessed, and an invitation issued on a score that includes them produces a visa application in which the Department finds the score was lower than claimed and refuses it; the Department does not reduce the score and grant on the lower one. The expression of interest is kept current: the partner's test retaken before it ages out, the assessment renewed, the age watched, and the claim reduced to five or to nothing where the facts have changed, before an invitation issues on the wrong number. The SkillSelect guide covers updating.

When the relationship changes

A relationship that ends between the expression of interest and the invitation changes the claim: the applicant becomes single and claims ten points on that basis, and the former partner is removed from the expression of interest. A relationship that ends after the invitation and before decision leaves the applicant with the points claimed at invitation if they were true then, but the former partner is withdrawn from the application and cannot be granted the visa. A relationship that begins after the expression of interest, and meets the definition by invitation, is added, and the partner's English and assessment are claimed if held; a new partner who does not meet the de facto definition at invitation is not a partner for the points and the applicant remains single. A marriage shortly before an invitation, to a person with an assessment, is examined for genuineness like any relationship claim.

Which of you should be the primary applicant

A couple who both have skilled occupations run the points test both ways. The partner with the higher score is usually the primary applicant, but the occupation matters as much as the score: the primary applicant's occupation must be on the list for the subclass and, for the 190 and 491, nominated by a state, while the secondary partner's occupation need only be on the list. A couple where one has the higher score in an occupation no state is nominating and the other has a lower score in an occupation in demand often does better with the second as primary. The partner points then run the other way, and the secondary partner's assessment and English earn the ten points for the primary. The consultation runs the four combinations, two primaries and two subclasses, and the couple chooses the one that produces an invitation soonest. The points refusal guide sets out what an overstated claim costs.

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General information only, current at October 2026; not advice on your own case. The partner skills qualifications in Part 6D.10 of Schedule 6D to the Migration Regulations 1994, the definitions of competent English and suitable skills assessment in regulations 1.15C and 2.26B, and the definitions of spouse and de facto partner in sections 5F and 5CB of the Migration Act 1958, as in force at the date above. Outcomes depend on the Department’s assessment of each application; no registered migration agent can guarantee a result (Code of Conduct, Migration Agents Regulations). Keshab Chapagain, MARN 1576536.