Working and settling in Australia as a physiotherapist
Registration with the Physiotherapy Board of Australia (Ahpra) comes first, and we prepare and file it; the visa after it is the Australian government's decision.
We prepare and file; the regulator decides.
Credentis Global prepares and files
You are here
Fit check
Registration with the Physiotherapy Board of Australia (Ahpra)
Credentis Global prepares and filesThe government decides · with a licensed adviser
A job offer and the Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482), Core Skills stream, or the Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189) from home
Arrive and start
The government decidesSettle
The government decides
Is your occupation wanted here?
What the Australian government's own lists say about physiotherapists.
- Listed
Core Skills Occupation List
252511
Physiotherapist (252511) is on the Core Skills Occupation List for the Skills in Demand visa; the assessing authority named is the Australian Physiotherapy Council.
Department of Home Affairs · Skilled occupation list · read 5 Oct 2026
- Listed
Skilled occupation list: Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189)
252511
Physiotherapist is eligible for the Skilled Independent (189), Skilled Nominated (190) and Skilled Work Regional (491) visas.
Department of Home Affairs · Skilled occupation list · read 5 Oct 2026
What the official pages leave open
- Home Affairs shows no date against individual occupations on the skilled occupation list.
Two lanes after registration.
Both are the government's routes, named as it names them.
We prepare and fileRegistration with the Physiotherapy Board of Australia (Ahpra)
With a job offer · the government decides
Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482), Core Skills stream
An approved employer nominates you for an occupation on the Core Skills Occupation List, and an income threshold applies. Home Affairs asks for evidence from the relevant Australian registration or licensing authority that you hold, or will be able to meet, any necessary registration or licensing requirements; the Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) Direct Entry stream is the permanent employer-sponsored visa.
Registration requiredYes
Department of Home Affairs · Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482): Core Skills stream · 8 Sep 2026
On your own · the government decides
Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189)
A points-tested permanent visa for which you apply only if invited through SkillSelect after an expression of interest, with a suitable skills assessment for your occupation. The Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190) is the same kind of route with nomination by a state or territory government.
Registration requiredNo
Department of Home Affairs · Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189): Points-tested stream · 2 Oct 2026
Immigration steps are decided by the Australian government and handled with a licensed adviser. Under the Migration Act 1958, only registered migration agents, Australian legal practitioners or an exempt person can lawfully give immigration assistance in Australia. We handle the registration that comes first. Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority (OMARA) · Giving immigration assistance in Australia · 2021
The numbers.
Published figures, named at source. The sentence under each chart is the publisher's own.
Registered practitioners in five of our professions
Unit: registered practitioners
| Category | Latest quarter |
|---|---|
| Physiotherapy | 50,064 |
| Occupational therapy | 36,814 |
| Medical radiation practice | 21,499 |
| Optometry | 7,601 |
| Podiatry | 6,327 |
First-time physiotherapy registrants: domestic and international
Unit: practitioners
| Category | International | Domestic, incl. new graduates |
|---|---|---|
| 2022/23 | 1,109 | 2,220 |
| 2023/24 | 2,266 | 2,127 |
| 2024/25 | 1,760 | 2,365 |
Skill stream places to physiotherapists
Unit: places
| Category | Physiotherapist (ANZSCO 252511) |
|---|---|
| 2021–22 | 213 |
| 2022–23 | 451 |
| 2023–24 | 538 |
| 2024–25 | 562 |
What we do
How Credentis Global helps with this route
You trained. We file. The regulator decides. Here is what that means for a physiotherapist in Australia.
Built for your board’s assessment
Through AHPRA, your board assesses your qualification or portfolio, then supervised practice and recency. we build that evidence the way your board asks for it.
The order of registers, planned first
PBNZ’s Express Pathway accepts an active HCPC or CORU registration, and Australia accepts an active PBNZ registration. we plan which register comes first before the first file is opened.
Every document, in the order the regulator reads it
Each item is checked against the regulator’s own list: names matched to your passport, hours in writing, copies certified by the person the list names.
One portal, and a person who answers
Upload your documents, see every stage of the file and message us in one place. The person who replies is the specialist preparing your file.
We prepare and file. The regulator decides.
Your application goes in from your own regulator account with every page prepared, and every query is drafted against the regulator’s exact question.