Skills assessment for OT, speech pathology and physio: OTC vs SPA vs APC

Written by Callum Trevorrow. Last checked 28 October 2026 against official sources.

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The three professions each have a different migration skills assessor: the Occupational Therapy Council (A$800) for OTs, Speech Pathology Australia (A$825 through the Mutual Recognition Agreement, or A$2,000 through the OSQCA) for speech pathologists, and the Australian Physiotherapy Council (A$1,674) for physios. Only one of them, SPA, does the same job for work and migration. OTs and physios need a separate step to register with Ahpra before they can practise.

It’s an easy mix-up: paying for the migration assessment and assuming it lets you work, or the other way round. This page lines up all three so you can see which step is which for your profession. Figures are from each body’s own pages, checked on 28 October 2026. It’s general information. Whether your visa needs a skills assessment at all is a question for a registered migration agent.

The migration skills assessments side by side

All three occupations are on the Core Skills Occupation List. Being on the list tells you the occupation is eligible, not that every visa needs a skills assessment.

Registration vs migration, profession by profession

The migration assessment and the step that lets you work are different things for OTs and physios, and the same thing for speech pathologists:

• Occupational therapists: two bodies. You register with the Occupational Therapy Board through Ahpra (A$250 application + A$138 registration, A$130 in NSW, plus A$688 first if you need a portfolio assessment), and the OTC is a separate A$800 application only if your visa needs it. The English minimums for the two now match exactly. The full side-by-side, including the three OT Board pathways and recency, is in OTC skills assessment vs Ahpra registration.
• Speech pathologists: one body, one assessment. SPA’s MRA or OSQCA outcome covers both Certified Practising eligibility and migration. Some applicants also have to give extra evidence of dysphagia competency, depending on when or where they qualified; SPA doesn’t publish which countries or years. Documents and stages are in the SPA MRA and the OSQCA explained.
• Physiotherapists: one council, two separate assessments. The Council’s registration route (Express FLYR A$1,742, FLYR A$3,490 or APEP A$8,321) leads to the Physiotherapy Board (A$452 + A$220, A$200 in NSW); the A$1,674 migration assessment is a separate Council application. It accepts the APC Final Certificate as one of its qualification routes, so finishing the registration route first is one way in. APC publishes about 3 weeks for Express FLYR and for FLYR and APEP eligibility, and no times for the later stages. Your route is in Express FLYR, FLYR or APEP.

If you trained outside the UK, Ireland, New Zealand, the USA, Canada and South Africa, moving from India, the Philippines or elsewhere puts the portfolio, OSQCA and APEP routes for all three professions on one page.

What the step that lets you work leads to: the award minimum in year 1 is A$1,308.80 a week for OTs and physios (AQF 7) and A$1,308.80 to A$1,444.90 for speech pathologists by qualification level (AQF 7, 8 or 9), from 1 October 2026. Queensland Health HP3 starts at A$83,824 a year (from 1 September 2026). Where these steps sit in the order of a move is in registration, job or visa first?

Three things that catch people out

1. The OTC doesn’t look at experience, but your visa might. The Skills in Demand (482) visa needs at least 12 months’ full-time work experience (or equivalent) in the occupation or a related field, within the 5 years before you apply. That’s assessed for the visa, not by the OTC.
2. SPA’s English rules aren’t Ahpra’s. If you’re a speech pathologist who isn’t exempt, SPA asks for OET or IELTS results, and its previous assessment page set IELTS 8 overall, above Ahpra’s 7. The current OSQCA page doesn’t list the scores, so confirm them with SPA before you book a test. See English tests for allied health.
3. Validity clocks differ. The OTC outcome lasts 3 years, the SPA outcome letter 2 years, and the APC certificate has no APC expiry. If you’re unsure when you’ll lodge a visa, timing matters more for speech than for the others. Fees and English rules move, too: what changed in 2026 logs the dated changes.

From the hiring side

We work alongside registered migration agents, so your visa advice comes from someone licensed to give it. What I can tell you is which step employers wait on: Ahpra registration for OTs and physios, and SPA’s assessment for speech pathologists. Keep that one moving first, and run the migration assessment alongside it if your visa needs one.

Your next step

OTs: check which OT Board pathway your qualification is on, because that decides your registration cost and whether you need a supervisor. Speech pathologists: check whether you can use the MRA or need the OSQCA, because that’s the difference between A$825 and A$2,000. Physios: check whether you’re an Express FLYR, FLYR or APEP applicant. The pathway check answers that for all three professions in a few minutes and points you to an info session or a call.