190 Skills Assessment Evidence 2026: Full Assessment, Not Provisional

Short answer: for a Subclass 190 (Skilled Nominated) visa, the skills assessment evidence must be a full assessment for permanent migration in your nominated occupation — a provisional or Temporary Graduate (subclass 485) assessment is not suitable. According to the Australian Department of Home Affairs’ Skilled Nominated visa (Subclass 190) official page (as of July 2026), your application must declare a suitable skills assessment for the nominated skilled occupation at the time of invitation; the assessment must have been obtained in the 3 years before the date of invitation, or within any shorter period stated on it that has not passed; and delegates will also accept a suitable assessment obtained within the 60-day invitation period as a result of Thapa v Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs [2021] FCCA 686. That the assessment must be a full permanent-residence assessment rather than a provisional or 485 assessment is set out in the Department's PAM3 guidance for Subclass 190.

What does “full assessment, not provisional” mean here?

A suitable skills assessment for the 190 visa is the assessment issued by the relevant assessing authority for your nominated occupation for permanent skilled migration. It is not the limited or provisional assessment made for the subclass 485 Temporary Graduate stream. The Department's PAM3 guidance for Subclass 190 states the assessment must be a “full” assessment aimed at permanent residence, and it lists a 485 provisional or pre-assessment as a reason an assessment is unsuitable. On the official page, the corresponding requirement is simply that the assessment be “suitable” for the applicant’s nominated skilled occupation, which is why the type of assessment matters as much as its date.

What does the Home Affairs page require of the assessment itself?

The official Subclass 190 page sets out these assessment rules:

You must declare a suitable skills assessment for your nominated skilled occupation at the time of invitation, and provide a copy with your application.
The assessment must have been obtained in the 3 years before the date of your invitation. If the assessment was issued for a shorter period, that shorter period must not have passed.
Delegates will now also accept a suitable assessment obtained within the 60-day invitation period, because of Thapa [2021] FCCA 686; the page notes the Minister administers the Migration Regulations 1994 in accordance with Thapa but reserves the right to argue in a court that it was wrongly decided.
If the assessment was based on a qualification you obtained in Australia while you held a student visa, the qualification must come from a course registered on CRICOS.
Your occupation must be on the relevant list of eligible skilled occupations for the 190 visa.

How can I tell if my assessment is the right type before I lodge?

Use this evidence check against the sources above:

Issuing authority: the assessment is from the body that assesses your nominated occupation, not from a body that only covers a different or temporary stream.
Assessment type: it is a full assessment for permanent migration, not a provisional, pre-assessment or 485 Temporary Graduate assessment. The Department's PAM3 guidance lists the wrong type — including a 485 provisional assessment — among the reasons an assessment is unsuitable.
Nominated occupation match: the occupation on the assessment matches the occupation in your EOI and on your invitation. The Department's PAM3 guidance says the nominated occupation cannot be changed after lodgement; changing it means abandoning the invitation, updating the EOI and waiting for a new invitation.
Timing: the assessment date falls within the 3 years before invitation, or within any shorter stated validity; a suitable assessment obtained within the 60-day invitation period may be accepted under Thapa.
Route-specific condition: if it relies on an Australian qualification gained on a student visa, the course was CRICOS-registered.

A compact comparison:

Evidence point	Full skills assessment for Subclass 190	Provisional / 485 assessment
Purpose	Assessment for permanent skilled migration in the nominated occupation (PAM3 guidance)	Assessment made for the subclass 485 Temporary Graduate stream (PAM3 guidance)
Accepted as 190 evidence?	Yes, if it matches the nominated occupation and meets the timing rules	No — the Department's PAM3 guidance lists a 485 provisional or pre-assessment as unsuitable
Timing on the official page	Declared at invitation; obtained within 3 years before invitation or a shorter unexpired period; Thapa also allows a suitable assessment obtained within the 60-day invitation period	Not presented on the official page as meeting the 190 requirement

What if I only hold a 485 provisional assessment when I am invited?

The evidence problem is the type, not just the date. A 485 provisional assessment is not the full permanent-residence assessment, so it should not be submitted as if it satisfies the criterion. Under the Thapa approach on the official page, a suitable assessment obtained within the 60-day invitation period may be accepted; in practice that means obtaining the full assessment for your nominated occupation within that window, because the provisional 485 document itself is not the suitable assessment the 190 criteria contemplate. Remember that you have 60 calendar days from invitation to apply and the department does not extend this time.

Special cases: medical practitioners, lawyers and Australian study

Medical practitioners: the official page accepts full, unconditional or general registration with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA), or conditional specialist registration that lets you practise only in your specialty with no further training or supervision. You must be registered at the time you are invited.
Barristers and solicitors: proof of admission to practice law in the relevant state or territory is accepted, and you must be admitted at the time of invitation.
Professional memberships: the Department's PAM3 guidance states that professional association membership does not replace a skills assessment or the AHPRA/admission evidence.
Australian study route: as above, an Australian qualification used for the assessment must be from a CRICOS-registered course if you obtained it while holding a student visa.

Common reasons a skills assessment fails the 190 evidence test

The assessment is a provisional, pre-assessment or 485 assessment rather than a full assessment (PAM3 guidance).
The assessment was not obtained within the 3 years before invitation, or its shorter stated validity had passed (official page).
The assessment is from the wrong assessing authority for the nominated occupation (PAM3 guidance).
The occupation on the assessment does not match the nominated occupation on the invitation (PAM3 guidance; the official page requires the assessment to be for the nominated occupation).
For the Australian-study route, the qualification was not from a CRICOS-registered course (official page).
For doctors or lawyers, relying on association membership instead of AHPRA registration or state/territory admission (PAM3 guidance).

This article is general information only and is not personalised advice on your application, so for your own circumstances rely on the latest official publication and, if your situation is not straightforward, an appropriately qualified professional rather than on this summary alone.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use my subclass 485 provisional skills assessment for a 190 application?

No. The Department's PAM3 guidance for Subclass 190 says the skills assessment must be a full assessment for permanent migration, not a provisional or 485 temporary assessment. The Home Affairs official page (as of July 2026) requires a suitable skills assessment for the nominated occupation, and a 485 provisional assessment is not that evidence, so you should obtain the full assessment for your nominated occupation.

Does the 190 skills assessment have to be valid on the date I am invited?

The official page says you must declare a suitable skills assessment at the time of invitation and that it must have been obtained in the 3 years before the invitation date, unless a shorter period applies and has not passed. Separately, because of Thapa [2021] FCCA 686, delegates will also accept a suitable assessment obtained within the 60-day invitation period.

What is the 3-year rule, and does a shorter period override it?

Under the official page, the assessment must have been obtained in the 3 years before your invitation date. If the assessing authority set a shorter validity period, that shorter period must not have passed, so the period stated on the assessment governs when it is shorter than 3 years.

I am a doctor or lawyer — do I still need a skills assessment?

For medical practitioners, the official page accepts AHPRA full, unconditional or general registration, or conditional specialist registration allowing practice in the specialty with no further training or supervision, and you must be registered at the time of invitation. For barristers and solicitors, proof of admission to practice in the relevant state or territory is accepted, and you must be admitted at the time of invitation; under the Department's PAM3 guidance, professional association membership alone is not a substitute.

My assessment was based on an Australian qualification I gained on a student visa — is that enough?

The official page says the qualification must be from a course registered on CRICOS if the assessment was based on an Australian qualification you obtained while holding a student visa. The assessment still has to be the full assessment for your nominated occupation and meet the 3-year or shorter-validity timing rules.

Can I change my nominated occupation after I receive an invitation?

Under the Department's PAM3 guidance, the nominated occupation on the invitation cannot be changed after the application is lodged; changing it requires abandoning the invitation, updating the EOI and waiting for a new invitation. The Home Affairs page states the invitation records the points you must meet and that you must declare the assessment for the nominated occupation, so the occupation on your assessment must match the invitation.