Occupation Shortage List Australia: how recruiters read the 29% of occupations in shortage

The Occupation Shortage List (OSL) is the yearly report from Jobs and Skills Australia that rates which occupations employers are struggling to fill, nationally and in each state and territory. In the 2025 edition, 29% of the occupations assessed (293 out of 1022) were in national shortage, down from 33% in 2024 and 36% in 2023. For a candidate, a shortage rating is a signal about demand, not a promise of a job or a visa: a recruiter reads it as a map, then checks the specialisation, the location and the visa lists before advising anyone to apply.

Before you negotiate on the strength of a shortage listing, make sure you know the floor you are negotiating from: see our plain guide to the NES, awards and safety rights behind every offer.

What the Occupation Shortage List actually measures

Jobs and Skills Australia treats an occupation as in shortage when employers cannot fill vacancies, or have considerable difficulty filling them, at current pay and conditions and in reasonably accessible locations.

That definition matters. It is about employers who are already offering normal wages and still not finding people. It is not a count of how many jobs exist or how fast an industry is growing.

One of the main inputs is the vacancy fill rate. If fewer than 67% (two-thirds) of an occupation's vacancies are filled, Jobs and Skills Australia considers there is a high chance it is in shortage. You can read the method and the latest ratings on the Jobs and Skills Australia occupation shortage page.

The four ratings, and how a recruiter reads each one

Every occupation gets one of four ratings, nationally and for each state and territory. Here is what each tells a hiring team, and what it should tell you.

Ratings can differ between states. An occupation rated No Shortage nationally may still be short in one state, so always open the state view, not just the national headline.

What the 2025 list shows

The 2025 Key Findings Report points to a market that has cooled a little overall but stays tight in hands-on work.

• Trades remain the pressure point. Challenges are described as particularly acute for Technicians and Trades Workers, with almost 1 in 2 of these occupations in shortage.
• Some shortages never go away. Of the 139 occupations in shortage every year from 2021 to 2025, Technicians and Trades Workers made up 51% (71), especially construction, engineering and automotive trades.
• Drivers and operators moved the other way. The share of Machinery Operators and Drivers occupations in shortage rose by 3 percentage points to 28%, against the broader easing.
• The regions are diverging. 21 occupations were in regional shortage without a matching shortage in the capital cities, compared with 12 in 2024.

Read together, these figures say the overall share is falling, yet skilled trades, plant and transport work, and regional employers still face real hiring gaps. If you work in construction, engineering or automotive trades, the persistent-shortage finding is the most useful single line in the report.

Shortage ratings come out once a year; for the monthly view of where employers are advertising, read our guide to what the Internet Vacancy Index job-ad count tells applicants.

Construction trades are a clear example: see what construction employers in Australia screen for and how trades get shortlisted.

For the ten-year industry picture behind these yearly shortage ratings, see our guide to industries hiring in Australia to 2035.

Why a shortage rating is not the whole story

Jobs and Skills Australia is careful on this point: jobseekers may find more vacancies in shortage occupations, but that does not necessarily make landing a job easier. Some specialisations within an occupation are not short, and some shortages sit in particular places only.

In practice, recruiters see this all the time. A welding role in a regional fabrication shop and a general labouring role in a capital city can sit under very different ratings, and the employer's exact requirements matter more than the label.

The OSL is also separate from visa eligibility. Home Affairs publishes its own combined list of eligible skilled occupations, which shows whether an occupation is on the Core Skills Occupation List (CSOL), the MLTSSL, the STSOL or the Regional Occupation List, and names the skills assessing authority. An occupation can be short on the OSL and still not fit the visa you have in mind, or the other way round.

Where the visa rules come in

For the Core Skills stream of the Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482), the worker must be nominated for an occupation on the CSOL and be paid the market salary rate for the role and no less than the Core Skills Income Threshold. That threshold is AUD79,423 for nominations lodged from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027. Applicants also need at least 1 year of relevant work experience gained within the last 5 years.

Some occupations also need a mandatory skills assessment, by Trades Recognition Australia or VETASSESS, and it must be started before the visa application is lodged. The Core Skills stream page sets out the full requirements.

Regional ratings and regional visas

Most of Australia outside Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane is a designated regional area for migration purposes, identified by postcode. That postcode list applies to visas including the subclass 491, 494 and 482. Category 3 regional centres and other regional areas also get access to dedicated regional places and priority processing of regional visas. Check any postcode on the Home Affairs eligible regional areas page.

So when an occupation carries a Regional Shortage rating, the regional visa settings and the hiring gap point in the same direction. That combination is worth knowing about before you decide where to apply.

For the categories, the named cities and the visas tied to that postcode list, read our recruiter guide to designated regional areas in Australia.

How to use the OSL in your job search, step by step

1. Find your exact occupation. Search the OSL for the occupation that matches your real duties, not the job title you would like. The rating belongs to the occupation, not to a company's job title.
2. Read the national and state ratings. Note where your occupation is rated Shortage, Metropolitan Shortage or Regional Shortage. Those states and areas are where employers are most likely to welcome applications.
3. Check the visa lists separately. Look up the same occupation on the Home Affairs combined list to see which list it is on and who assesses it.
4. Confirm the skills assessment. If your occupation needs one, find out which authority runs it, its timeframes and its charges, and start early: some sponsored visas will not accept an application without it.
5. Match live vacancies to the rating. Browse current jobs on Talynx and compare the duties in each listing with your experience. Our manufacturing roles are a good place to start for fabrication and production trades.
6. Tailor every application. Rewrite your CV against the listed duties and requirements, and put certificates, licences and references in order before an employer asks.

How candidates stand out in a shortage occupation

A shortage does not lower the bar. Employers who have waited months to fill a role want someone who can start working safely and competently, and they screen quickly. The candidates who move forward make the employer's decision easy.

Show the exact match first. If a listing such as this boilermaker and metal fabricator role in Perth asks for specific processes or materials, name the ones you have worked with and for how long. The same applies to a carpenter vacancy in Cairns: describe the kinds of projects, the tools and the standards you worked to.

Make your experience easy to verify. Employers outside your home country may not know your former employer, so explain team size, the type of work and your responsibilities in plain terms. A verified profile on Talent Tabloid can help you present your skills, certificates and work samples in one place.

Be upfront about your situation. State your current location, your work rights and whether you need sponsorship. Hiring teams in shortage areas will often consider sponsorship, but they need to know early so they can plan around the visa steps.

Common mistakes when reading the shortage list

• Treating a rating as a job offer. A shortage tells you employers are struggling, not that your application will succeed. Evidence of fit still decides it.
• Using only the national figure. The state ratings and the regional versus capital city split often tell a more useful story than the national label.
• Confusing the OSL with the visa lists. Visa eligibility depends on the Home Affairs lists, the salary thresholds and the stream rules, not on the OSL rating alone.
• Picking the wrong occupation. Choosing an occupation because it is in shortage, rather than because it matches your actual duties, causes problems later with skills assessments and nominations.
• Leaving the skills assessment too late. Where one is mandatory it must be started before the visa application, and each assessing authority sets its own timeframes.
• Paying for a job or sponsorship. Asking for, offering or paying a benefit in return for visa sponsorship can make a subclass 482 applicant ineligible. Requests for a recruitment fee before you start are a common scam sign.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Occupation Shortage List the same as the list used for visas?

No. The OSL is a labour market assessment from Jobs and Skills Australia. Employer-sponsored and points-tested visas use the combined list of eligible skilled occupations published by Home Affairs, which shows whether an occupation sits on the CSOL, MLTSSL, STSOL or ROL. Check both before you plan an application.

Does a shortage rating mean I will find a job quickly?

Not necessarily. Jobs and Skills Australia itself says shortage occupations may offer more vacancies, but that does not automatically make a job easier to secure, because some specialisations are not in shortage and some shortages are concentrated in particular places.

What does a Regional Shortage rating tell me?

It means employers outside the capital cities are the ones struggling to fill that occupation. In the 2025 list, 21 occupations were short only in the regions, up from 12 the year before, so being open to a regional move can widen the set of employers who want your skills.

How often is the list updated?

The OSL is published once a year. The Jobs and Skills Australia page still showed the 2025 list as the latest release when it was last checked, so read the rating alongside the release year and confirm the current version on the official page.

Can a recruiter or agent promise me a sponsored job because my occupation is in shortage?

No. No one can promise an Australian visa, and anyone who does is misleading you. For visa advice use a registered migration agent listed with OMARA, and treat any request to pay for a job or sponsorship as a serious warning sign.

Key takeaways

• The OSL rates occupations as Shortage, Metropolitan Shortage, Regional Shortage or No Shortage, nationally and by state.
• In 2025, 29% of assessed occupations were in national shortage, with trades the most affected group.
• Regional-only shortages rose to 21 occupations, so flexibility on location can open more doors.
• The OSL is not a visa list: check the Home Affairs combined list, the income threshold and any skills assessment.
• A shortage raises demand, not the chance of any single application: tailored, verifiable evidence still wins the interview.