The Institution of Engineers Australia

The standard Competency Demonstration Report (CDR?) assessment is $910 ex GST ($1,001 incl GST) at the current effective rate, lifting to $940 ex GST from 1 July 2026. The Australian-accredited qualification pathway is $305 ex GST, and the Washington / Sydney / Dublin Accord pathway is $490 ex GST. Add-ons stack: $350 ex GST for fast-track, $315 ex GST for a separate overseas engineering PhD assessment, and $470 ex GST for a separate skilled employment assessment. The full schedule with effective dates is in the Fees table on this page.

Engineers Australia? publishes 15 weeks as the typical time for an MSA application to be assigned to an assessor, not the time to outcome. After assignment the assessor reviews documents and may request more information, so total elapsed time from lodgement to outcome letter is longer than 15 weeks for most applicants. Fast-track at $350 ex GST moves the application to the front of the queue but does not change the assessor's review timeline.

The CDR? is the migration pathway for engineers whose qualification is not Australian-accredited and not from a Washington, Sydney, or Dublin Accord signatory institution. It requires three Career Episodes (each a written account of a distinct project or period of engineering activity), a Summary Statement that maps each Episode to EA's Stage 1 Engineering Competencies, and a Continuing Professional Development list. EA runs plagiarism checks across all CDRs ever submitted, so recycled or AI-generated text is refused.

Yes for most applicants. The published English floor for EA's Migration Skills Assessment? is IELTS Academic 6.0 in each of reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Equivalent OET, PTE Academic, and TOEFL iBT scores are also accepted. Narrow exemptions exist for graduates of qualifications taught entirely in English in certain countries, but EA decides exemptions case by case. The MSA English requirement is separate from any Home Affairs English requirement at the visa stage.

For most engineering ANZSCO? occupations (233xxx Engineers, 312xxx draftspersons, 313xxx technicians) Engineers Australia? is the designated assessor. For software, hardware, and ICT-classified roles (261xxx Software and Applications Programmers, 262xxx Database and Systems Admins) ACS? is the assessor. Telecommunications engineering codes 263311, 263312, and 313212 to 313214 route to Engineers Australia?, even though they sit numerically near ACS?'s ICT range. The split is by ANZSCO? code, not by job title.

Home Affairs treats an Engineers Australia? Migration Skills Assessment? as valid for 3 years from the issue date of the outcome letter. If the assessment expires before a visa application or Expression of Interest? is lodged, a fresh MSA at the full fee is required. Time the application so the 3-year window stays open through the planned visa decision date.