Last updated: 21 June 2019

There is a little known category related to language that all you polyglots can benefit from. Did you know that you can gain more points in the Independent skilled migration program just by speaking a language other than English?

Also did you know that the IELTS is not the only accepted form of English language testing for immigration purposes?

Have you ever applied for a job, listing the languages that you speak but then having them count for nothing? This is because in Australia there is little emphasis on speaking other languages. However, just when you thought that Australia has forsaken foreign languages in favour for the international business language of English, you’d be pleased to find out that finally you can get recognised for your multilingual abilities by gaining more points in the Skilled Independent migration program.

If you are fluent in another language other than English then you can gain additional points by simply getting accredited.

Naturally, being foreigners to Australia, you must speak a language other than English so why wouldn't you increase your points and increase your chances of being invited to apply for a 189 or 190 visa? You'd be silly not to consider this option. BUT of course there are caveats and a few drawbacks to this method. I'll go into that later.

To recap, the Skilled Independent migration program is a points-based system that awards points for various factors such as age, skills and experience, English language ability, education etc. For more information please have a read of our write up in Visa options.

Now the pass mark is 60 points before you will be invited to apply for a 189 or 190 visa.

The invitations are awarded on a first in, best score basis - that is, the person who submitted the expression of interest earlier than you will have a higher ranking. The person who has a higher score than 60 will also be higher ranked than you. Therefore you can now see the value in gaining as many points as you can. For more examples of this we wrote about it in our other post here.

Simply put, in order to maximise your chances of getting invited to apply for a 189 or 190 visa, you need to get as many points as you can.

Most of the enquiries that we get or people who have used our Bridge Package have gone on to learn about how they can increase their points score because that's the first thing we instruct them to do. We analyse their chances and then we tell them to quickly gain these points that they haven't heard of, thought of or found on online forums.

So what's the deal with the accredited community language? You simply need to prove that you speak, write, read and understand your mother language and you'll get an additional 5 points. For some, these 5 points are crucial. As crucial as say getting sponsored by a State or Territory (which currently also adds 5 points to your score).

What's an accredited community language? Well these are the ones that we need and/or want. Have a look here to see if your language is on it, but it's safe to say that all major languages are on the list and even very obscure and rare languages are too.

How to do it:

Like all accreditation, you need to undergo an examination by a certifying body. In this case, you need to get certified by NAATI.

NAATI is the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Intepreters

That's right, they're translators and interpreters, which means you also need to be able to translate and interpret from your mother language to English and vice versa.

This involves a written and oral examination, a fee application fees and voila you're accredited.

So there you have it folks, you have a easy not often used way to gain an additional 5 points to increase your chances of getting invited to apply for a 189 or 190 visa.

Disadvantages:

• Studying and examinations
• Fees
• Time

Go forth you DIY'ers and get more points today!

For a detailed walkthrough and advice on which test to take for maximum effect, consider a consultation with us. Or if you want to see if you even qualify take our visa assessment - we'll tell you how to max out those points.

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