On 23 November 2021, the Australian Bureau of Statistics published changes to the Australian Occupational List (ANZSCO). As a result, a number of jobs and job categories have been changed or removed.

What is New

The new edition of the Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO), or the occupational list, is limited to a number of targeted updates of occupations. This relates mainly to the following sectors:

• Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing;
• Cybersecurity;
• Naval ship building;
• And emerging occupations identified by the National Skill Commission.

The above areas are based on priority sectors for the Australian labour market. They have been chosen primarily to test a new approach to updating the occupations list (ANZSCO). This update is therefore a first step towards a larger programme of updating the occupational list. It is expected that other sectors will be addressed as a priority in future updates.

This update relates only to the Australian labour market. Changes in the labour market in New Zealand have therefore not been taken into account.

Various types of changes

Various types of changes are implemented, and combinations of these are also possible. Below you find an overview:

Alternative title(s) revised
Alternative Title(s) revised refers to the situation where new Alternative titles are added, or existing ones are deleted. An example is the addition (deletion) of “Urban Forester” as an Alternative Title for 362212 – Arborist.

Lead statement revised
Lead Statement revised refers to the situation where the lead statement of an occupation is modified. An example is the addition of “for forestry conservation and production purposes” to the lead statement of 721112 – Logging Plant Operator to provide additional precision regarding this occupation.

Tasks revised
Tasks revised refers to the situation where the task list (at the Unit group level) has been amended. An example of this is the addition of “installing, testing and commissioning solar photo voltaic (PV) power generation systems” in the task list for Unit group 3111, Electricians.

Moved to another Unit Group, code retired
Moved to another Unit Group; code retired refers to the situation where the occupation’s Unit Group has changed. An example is the reclassification of 361211 – Shearers from ANZSCO Version 1.3 Unit Group 3611 to 2021 Australian Update Unit Group 3633.

Moved from old Unit Group, code created
Moved from another Unit Group; code created refers to the same situation as point 5 above, and appears next to the new occupation code. For the example of Shearers, it will appear next to the new code 363311.

Category addedd
Category added refers to a newly created occupation code in the 2021 Australian Update. These codes are not present in previous versions of ANZSCO.

Category deleted and code retired
Category deleted and code retired Refers to occupations that are no longer included in the classification. In many cases this is due to the creation of two or more new occupations from an existing occupation. In this instance, the original occupation is deleted and the code retired.

NEC occupation list revised
NEC occupation list revised refers to the situation where the set of occupations contained with a nec occupation are revised. An example is the removal of “Aerospace Draftsperson” from 312999 – Building and Engineering Technicians nec.

Category title revised
Category Title revised refers to the situation where the occupation’s title has been modified to clarify its definition. An example is the change for 311111 – Quarantine Officer to Biosecurity Officer.

Specialisation(s)
Specialisation(s) revised refers to the situation where new Specialisations have been included or deleted. Examples are the addition of “Solar Installer” and the removal of Heavy Coil Winder as specialisations from 341111 – Electrician (General).

For a complete overview of all changes, click on the button below.

Occupations not yet available for skilled migration

The previous ANZSCO catalogue is still current. This means that the Department of Home Affairs has not yet accepted any of these changes for Skilled Migration purposes. But since the update was broadly requested by professional bodies, industries and other parties, a new occupation list for migration purposes and the Legislative Instruments may come up.

Source:
https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/classifications/anzsco-australian-and-new-zealand-standard-classification-occupations/2021