Understanding ANMAC Nurse Skill Assessment

The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Accreditation Council is usually referrd to as ANMAC. It is the role of ANMAC to conduct Skill Assessments on Internationally qualified Nurses and Midwives moving to Australia.

The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Accreditation Council is tasked by the Australian Government to check that you are who you say you are, that you have the rights skills, qualifications and experience at an equivalent level to nurses and midwives who have studied and trained in Australia.

ANMAC and AHPRA are easily confused

• ANMAC is the skills assessment authority and a nursing applicant must always have an ANMAC skills assessement
• AHPRA is the overall nursing registration body for Australia
• ANMAC do not register nurses, they check the qualifications of nurses moving to Australia
• All nurses and healthcare professionals require AHPRA reghistration

The following medical professionals require an ANMAC Skill Assessment

Nurses and Midwives moving to Australia on Skilled Migration require an Australian Nursing and Midwifery Accreditation Council Skill Assessment for the following Australia Visa classes

• 189 Visa
• 190 Visa
• 491 Visa

There are three types of Australian Nursing and Midwifery Accreditation Council Skill Assessment

• Full Skill Assessment; For internationally qualified nurses and midwives moving to Australia
• Modified Skill Assessment; For nurses and midwives who are already registered in Australia or New Zealand
• Modified Plus Skill Assessment; For internationally qualified nurses and Midwives already resistered with AHPRA

To secure a successful ANMAC skill assessment an applicant is required to provide

• Passport
• Evidence of name change (if applicable)
• Letter of Good Standing for migration purposes
• Detailed and migration specific references from every employer
• English Test Results
• Degree Certificate
• Degree Transcripts
• Confirmation of the Theory and Practice hour components of your course

Educational equivalence

Applicants must provide a graduation certificate and transcript from their University. The transcript must show the number of theory and practice hours completed during the course.

This is one of the most important elements of the application and an ANMAC skill assessment cannot pass without these details being supplied.

Professional practice

ANMAC will require an electronic Letter of Good Standing  and Confirmation of registration to be sent by the Nursing Registration body in your home country directly to ANMAC.

Professional references

References must be

• On an Hospital letterhead
• Be written by a direct supervisor who is a nurse or a midwife
• Include exact dates
• Contain an original signature
• Include contact information for each referee

Find: ANMAC’s profession reference template

English proficiency

ANMAC requires all its applicants to meet an English language proficiency requirement, regardless of your country of origin, even if that country of origin is an English speaking country such as the United Kingdom or the United States.

English tests accepted by ANMAC and minimum scores

IELTS Academic

• Minimum overall score of 7 across all components and a minimum score in each component of 7.
• Combining scores from 2 tests taken within a 6 month period:
  • A minimum overall score of 7 in both test
  • No score in any component in either test is below 6.5

 OET for Nurses

• Minimum score of B in each component
• Combining scores from 2 tests taken within a 6 month period:
  • All the 4 components must have been tested in both tests
  • No score in any component in either test is below C

 PTE Academic

• Minimum overall score of 65 across all components and a minimum score in each component of 65.
• Combining scores from 2 tests taken within a 6 month period:
  • Minimum overall score in both tests of 65
  • No score in any component in either test is below 58.

Level 1/15 Lancaster Pl, Canberra ACT 2609, Australia

+61 2 6257 7960

ANMAC Processing time is currently:

• 12 weeks for Nurses
• 15 weeks for Midwives

ANMAC Skill Assessment Cost 2020:

If you cannot pass the English Language requirement for ANMAC and are from an Englisg speaking country there is another way to approach the Nurse SKill Assessment for Australia.

If you first register with AHPRA in Australia you will then be granted an ANMAC Skill Assessment as a matter of course via the ANMAC Modified Plus Skill Assessment route.

In theory this sounds easy. The reality is that AHPRA is a very tough, very slow and emotionally draining process. AHPRA have no regard for your own time frame. They have a very specific regulatory job to do and they do it well. Their regulatory role has no inclination for your migration time frame.

Every time AHPRA request a further piece of information, or claim not to have received something the time-frame for completion gets pushed further back each time.

Once AHPRA have approved your application in principle an applicant can use this LOD (Letter of Determination) to apply for and secure a migration skill assessment from ANMAC via the Modified Plus route.

However, remember that in order to ‘activate’ your AHPRA registration you have to physically present in an AHPRA office in Australia for the final face-to-face ID checks. If you are unable to travel, or do not activate the AHPRA LOD then it will time out and you will be required to reapply for AHPRA again along with paying the fee a second time.

Nurse and Midwife applicants that do not hold an undergraduate degree will not pass ANMAC or AHPRA witha  direct application.

The solution for Diploma nurses moving to Australia is to first register with the New Zealand Nursing Council via this application form.

The New Zealand Nursing Council will accept a Diploma Qualified Nurse for Registration. The applicant then takes their New Zealand registration and applies for AHPRA via the Trans Tasmanian Mutual Recognition Agreement.

AHPRA are duty bound to accept the registration and issue a Letter of Determination. This letter of Determination is then used to secure an ANMAC skill assessment for migration via the Modified Plus route.