The number of Chefs in Australia has constantly increased in the last six years, passing one hundred thousand positions in 2020, an increase of twenty thousand since 2014. This increase is surely thanks to the immigration policies that have included the profession in the Medium- Long-Term List of the Skilled Occupation List, enabling the transition from sponsor to permanent visa. With the exception of cases in which a statement cannot demonstrate employment for some years as a Chef, a qualification in the sector is generally required not only by the Department of Home Affairs but also by the various assessing authorities, that is, the bodies in Australia which formally recognise a profession. For the figure of Chef, the relevant Assessing Authorities are Trade Recognition Australia, VETASSESS and William Angliss. Completion of a course of at least 92 weeks for the profession of Chef, confers the right (apart from satisfying all the other requirements) to apply and obtain a Visa Subclass 485, which is then fundamental for completion of the four stages of the Job Ready Program and for satisfying the requirements for sponsorship and /or ‘skilled’ immigration programs.
Working as a chef in Australia
Qualification: Certificates III in Commercial Cookery
Skill Level: 3
Profession: 351411 COOK
Course program: https://training.gov.au/Training/Details/SIT40516
Description: this study course generally lasts a year but in some schools it can go for up to 78 weeks. Since you need a minimum of 92 weeks for a Post Graduate visa, you need to accompany it with the Certificate IV of the same name to obtain this category of work visa at the end of studies. The course alternates practical sessions with face-to-face theoretical lessons and the method of evaluation is assessment. Attendance is, generally, twice a week, including once in uniform to work with all the professional equipment in the school’s commercial kitchens. Generally speaking, the prerequisites for admission are a senior secondary school certificate and a certificate certifying at least a level 5.5 IELTS (General) English. In practice, there is also the possibility of being admitted even without the school diploma for those who have accumulated professional experience. As concerns the level of English, it is possible to sit an internal English test within almost every school, which is free and intended to save the $330 for the IELTS test.
Qualification: Certificate IV in Commercial Cookery
Skill Level: 3
Profession: 351311 CHEF (Skill Level: 2)
Course program: https://training.gov.au/training/details/SIT30816
Description: there is still a practical component to this course, although the balance in this phase has shifted slightly in favour of theoretical subjects, such as coordinating cooking operations, training new members of staff, drawing up rosters, managing the business’s budget.