Check whether a Professional Year pathway is currently available for your field and nominated occupation
Grace services · Professional Year
Turn your degree into
Australian experience.
A Professional Year Program combines formal coursework with a workplace internship to help recent graduates of Australian qualifications build industry experience. Grace helps you assess whether it fits your circumstances, compare approved providers, and prepare your application.Tell us where you are up to.
Four quick answers give your branch the context it needs before the first conversation.
Complete all four selectionsYour branch picks it up from here.
Send to your branch →What it is
The service,
in plain terms.
The Professional Year Program is a structured, government-recognised program for recent graduates of Australian qualifications. It combines classroom-based learning with a workplace internship, and generally takes around 12 months to complete.
Under current program and migration settings, approved pathways are available in three fields: Accounting, Information and Communications Technology, and Engineering. Programs must be delivered by providers approved under the relevant professional stream, rather than directly by universities.
Under the current General Skilled Migration points test, completing an approved Professional Year may add five points for eligible applicants seeking a Subclass 189, 190 or 491 visa. The program has to relate to your nominated skilled occupation and be completed with a provider approved under the relevant stream.
Those points are not automatic and not guaranteed. A Professional Year is one part of a broader migration points profile, and on its own it does not secure an invitation to apply or a visa outcome. Professional Year settings are under policy review in 2026, so confirm the current position before relying on any of this.
How the pieces fit
Six things that
have to line up.
A Professional Year only works when the field, the provider and your own circumstances all point the same way. Your branch checks them together rather than one at a time.- Coursework
- Internship
- Approved provider
- Your field
- Nominated occupation
- Your visa
What Grace does
Support that is
actually hands-on.
Fees, approved providers and intake dates vary. Confirm the current options for your field and location with your Grace branch before you commit to anything.Identify the applicable professional body — ACS, CPA Australia and/or CA ANZ, or Engineers Australia
Compare approved provider options, without implying that any program guarantees points or a visa outcome
Review timing, including the current four-year claiming window and the length of the program
Consider how the program fits your visa circumstances — many participants study while holding a Temporary Graduate visa (Subclass 485)
Prepare and submit your application to a suitable approved provider
How it works
From first question
to finished process.
Check it fits
We review your Australian qualification, your field, your nominated occupation and your visa circumstances. Eligibility should be confirmed before you apply.
↗Choose a provider
Compare programs delivered by providers approved under the relevant professional stream. Which body approves them depends on the field.
↗Apply and enrol
We prepare the application with you and confirm the provider's current entry requirements, fees and intake dates.
↗Complete the coursework
The formal classroom component, which together with the internship forms a program generally running 44 to 52 weeks.
↗Complete the internship
Finish the workplace placement and the program's completion requirements. If you plan to claim points, confirm the completed program relates to your nominated occupation under the rules applying at that time.
↗Before you commit
Ask these
first.
A Professional Year is a year of your life and a real cost. These are the questions worth settling before you enrol, not after.Talk it through →Approved fields
Three fields,
three bodies.
Which professional body approves a program depends on the field. Approved fields and providers are set outside Grace and are under policy review in 2026.- ICT — Australian Computer Society (ACS)
- Accounting — CPA Australia and/or Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ)
- Engineering — Engineers Australia
Key details
The specifics,
checked not guessed.
Requirements for this service are set outside Grace and change from time to time.
Program lengthApproximately 12 months, commonly cited as 44 to 52 weeks.
Approved fieldsAccounting, Information and Communications Technology, and Engineering, under current settings.
Professional bodiesACS for ICT; CPA Australia and/or CA ANZ for Accounting; Engineers Australia for Engineering.
DeliveryBy providers approved under the relevant professional stream, not directly by universities.
Points testUnder the current GSM points test, an eligible Professional Year may contribute five points where it relates to your nominated skilled occupation. Not automatic, and not a guarantee of an invitation or a visa.
Relevant visasSubclass 189, 190 and 491 for points-test purposes. Many participants study while holding a Temporary Graduate visa (Subclass 485).
Claiming windowCurrent settings generally require the program to have been completed within the four years before the points are claimed.
Fees, providers, intakesVary by provider, field and location. Confirm current options with your branch.
Policy statusProfessional Year settings are under policy review in 2026. The points value, eligible occupation settings and claiming window may change.
Last verified 18 August 2026.
Professional Year approval requirements are set by the relevant professional bodies, while migration points and visa requirements are determined by the Australian Department of Home Affairs. These requirements can change, and Professional Year settings are under policy review in 2026. This page is general guidance only: it is not migration advice. Confirm current program recognition with the relevant professional body, and current points-test requirements with the Department of Home Affairs or an appropriately qualified migration adviser, before making decisions.
Graduating soon?
Plan the year
that follows.
Bring your qualification, your field and your timing. Your branch will go through the options that are actually running right now.
Talk to your nearest office →