# Doubts in ACS Skill assessment Process



## vishnuvpotty (Jan 27, 2014)

Dear all,

I am planning to submit skill assessment application very soon.
I have gone through so manythreads and posts and i am confused with reference letter from previous employers,

I only have relieving letter from previous employers and yes I have payslips too.

So do i need to have reference letters as well?

The relieving letter is in company's letter head signed by HR manager. So will that suffice?
But payslips looks like plain paper printouts. No letter head or any info like that. It has only company name, registration number etc.
So how will i get that attested ?

Kindly let me know.

Other than this please share your experiences or unexpected situations you faced during submission of Skill assessment form so that it may help me too. 

Cheers 
VVP


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## amitk0703 (Oct 6, 2012)

vishnuvpotty said:


> Dear all,
> 
> I am planning to submit skill assessment application very soon.
> I have gone through so manythreads and posts and i am confused with reference letter from previous employers,
> ...


Yeah reference letter is a must. If you cannot get one from the employer then go for a statutory declaration by a Manager or colleague.

Amit


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## espresso (Nov 2, 2012)

Hi vishnuvpotty, 

you should get new reference letters in any case. ACS has streamlined the process quite a bit, so you only need one reference letter per job and no payslips, join/release letters etc. However, they want you to follow a very rigid template and the letters have to list your tasks/responsibilities, which should ideally match the ANZSCO code tasks/responsibilities .

Follow the ACS Reference Letter Sample when you prepare the letters. You can use the same format for statutory declarations from a colleague/manager: just remove the company letter head, add one line about your work relationship and a _"I believe that the statements in this declaration are true in every particular"_ clause at the end. 

Cheers, 
Monika


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## vishnuvpotty (Jan 27, 2014)

Oh!! 

1) The relieving letter has almost all duties like mentioned in sample reference letter provided in above link except duties / responsibilities .Even if i apply a new i doubt they will give the letter with duties / responsibilities.

2) So choice is statutory declaration . Can my senior sign on that declaration ? and can that be done in Indian stamp papers? I know some seniors who are still working there. 
So i need copy of their ID and business card right?

So please let me know.  
I am gathering info as fast as possible.


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## vishnuvpotty (Jan 27, 2014)

3) And how about letter from current job? do we need anything ?
because i cant ask for this purpose!


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## vishnuvpotty (Jan 27, 2014)

oh my god am i getting nervous?? 

I forgot one more important point.

4) In My first company i worked only for 2 months due to recession effect . So do i need to get reference letter from them? 
It is like Dec 2007 -Feb 2008 I worked for them

Then a gap of 3 months and from June, i joined a new job.
Since i worked for only 2 months and then a gap of 3 months is there , is there any needto submit reference letter from them.
Moreover the first company's name alsoe got changed! 

I am confused.


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## amitk0703 (Oct 6, 2012)

vishnuvpotty said:


> Oh!!
> 
> 1) The relieving letter has almost all duties like mentioned in sample reference letter provided in above link except duties / responsibilities .Even if i apply a new i doubt they will give the letter with duties / responsibilities.
> 
> ...


Your senior colleagues can sign the statutory declaration which is supposed to be made on a stamp paper with your roles and responsibilities. If you have their business card then those can also be attached however, they are not mandatory.

Amit


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## amitk0703 (Oct 6, 2012)

vishnuvpotty said:


> 3) And how about letter from current job? do we need anything ?
> because i cant ask for this purpose!


Yes, you need the same from the current job as well. If you cannot get it from the HR, request your seniors or managers. I am sure they will help you out without disclosing it to anyone. I got it from my Manager in the current job without any problem. Statutory declaration is a personal declaration by the person signing it and has nothing to do with the employer. I mean by doing this, your Manager still complies with the ethics and compliance policies of the employer.

Amit


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## amitk0703 (Oct 6, 2012)

vishnuvpotty said:


> oh my god am i getting nervous??
> 
> I forgot one more important point.
> 
> ...


If you are not marking this employment period relevant to nominated occupation then no need to worry about getting a reference letter. Just mark it as irrelevant when submitting the EOI and do not mention this to ACS for skill assessment.

Amit


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## Nish89 (Sep 12, 2013)

*Skill reference letter*

Hi Guys/Gals
I got the required skill reference letters from two companies. However one refuses to mention the line 'was working full time 40 hours per week' and one refuses to mention the line about salary I earned there.

Please advice if these letters are ok inspite of the missing information? It seems their policy does not allow to commit salary and hours.

appreciate quick help

many thanks!


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## vishnuvpotty (Jan 27, 2014)

amitk0703 said:


> Your senior colleagues can sign the statutory declaration which is supposed to be made on a stamp paper with your roles and responsibilities. If you have their business card then those can also be attached however, they are not mandatory.
> 
> Amit


Thanks a lot amit.

So do the Senior colleague needs to be at some level higher than me?
I mean he is kind of 3-4 years more experienced than me. So will that do?

I searched for statuary declaration format online with no success.
In the Statuary declaration do i need to put my manager's name.
If you have any format can you please share it?

Do i need to do two separate statuary declarations for previous and current job? 
I plan to talk with a Notary this weekend . so if gets sample format then it will be easy.


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## vishnuvpotty (Jan 27, 2014)

Nish89 said:


> Hi Guys/Gals
> I got the required skill reference letters from two companies. However one refuses to mention the line 'was working full time 40 hours per week' and one refuses to mention the line about salary I earned there.
> 
> Please advice if these letters are ok inspite of the missing information? It seems their policy does not allow to commit salary and hours.
> ...


I think this link will help you.
https://www.acs.org.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0017/12635/Employment-FAQs.pdf


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## amitk0703 (Oct 6, 2012)

vishnuvpotty said:


> Thanks a lot amit.
> 
> So do the Senior colleague needs to be at some level higher than me?
> I mean he is kind of 3-4 years more experienced than me. So will that do?
> ...


Your colleague or Manager will do.
Yes statutory declaration is by your colleague or manager so their name, designation, current company name and contact details are required.
You need to get separate declaration for each employer.
Sample attached

Amit


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## vishnuvpotty (Jan 27, 2014)

amitk0703 said:


> Your colleague or Manager will do.
> Yes statutory declaration is by your colleague or manager so their name, designation, current company name and contact details are required.
> You need to get separate declaration for each employer.
> Sample attached
> ...


Thanks for the useful info buddy.. 
I will get it done from a colleague as previous manager is not approachable. 

For present job, from date will be mentioned and to date will be till date right. 

Cheers
VVP


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## Mohan Babu (Feb 27, 2011)

Hi Nisha, 

Do we really need to mention salary.? I dont think so. But full time employment needs to be specified for sure. So make sure it is printed in your letters. I believe even they can skip the hrs of work. As per ACS guidelines more than 20 hrs of work is considered to be full time. We normally work for 40 hrs. So i believe it is understood. 

Thanks
Mohan



Nish89 said:


> Hi Guys/Gals
> I got the required skill reference letters from two companies. However one refuses to mention the line 'was working full time 40 hours per week' and one refuses to mention the line about salary I earned there.
> 
> Please advice if these letters are ok inspite of the missing information? It seems their policy does not allow to commit salary and hours.
> ...


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## amitk0703 (Oct 6, 2012)

vishnuvpotty said:


> Thanks for the useful info buddy..
> I will get it done from a colleague as previous manager is not approachable.
> 
> For present job, from date will be mentioned and to date will be till date right.
> ...


Till Date


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## amitk0703 (Oct 6, 2012)

Mohan Babu said:


> Hi Nisha,
> 
> Do we really need to mention salary.? I dont think so. But full time employment needs to be specified for sure. So make sure it is printed in your letters. I believe even they can skip the hrs of work. As per ACS guidelines more than 20 hrs of work is considered to be full time. We normally work for 40 hrs. So i believe it is understood.
> 
> ...


I did not mention the salary or working hours in the reference letter or statutory declaration. Just mentioned the employment date.

Amit


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## Mohan Babu (Feb 27, 2011)

Yes Amit, This confirms to me. No need to mention salary and hrs worked. I have also seen in some sample letters salary and hrs specified but i dont think it is really required. 


amitk0703 said:


> I did not mention the salary or working hours in the reference letter or statutory declaration. Just mentioned the employment date.
> 
> Amit


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## espresso (Nov 2, 2012)

Hi Mohan Babu, 

DIBP Booklet 6 on page 21 lists "salary" and "part-time or full-time" as well. Some employers will not write "full-time" if you worked less than 40hrs a week, that's why some people list the hrs/week as well. If you add salary and hours/week you fulfill both the DIBP and ACS requirements. Preparing the reference letters is lots of work, so you might as well make sure that it fits the ACS sample reference and DIBP requirements as closely as possible. 

Cheers, 
Monika


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## espresso (Nov 2, 2012)

Hi Mohan Babu, 

DIBP Booklet 6 on page 21 lists "salary" and "part-time or full-time" as well. Some employers will not write "full-time" if you worked less than 40hrs a week, that's why some people list the hrs/week as well. If you add salary and hours/week you fulfill both the DIBP and ACS requirements. Preparing the reference letters is lots of work, so you might as well make sure that it fits the ACS sample reference and DIBP requirements as closely as possible. 

Cheers, 
Monika


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## amitk0703 (Oct 6, 2012)

No offence but I have used the same statutory declaration for ACS assessment and PR without any issues. 

Check this out

http://acs.org.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0019/7570/Skilled-Employment-Reference-Example.pdf

I don't think ACS has to do anything with the salary part. As far as DIBP is concerned, we provide Form 16, salary slips and TAX papers to prove the salary or compensation for each employer.

Type of duty, full or half time is mentioned in the sample above.
However if guidelines are set by them it should be followed to prevent complications and wastage of time/efforts.

Amit


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## Nish89 (Sep 12, 2013)

Mohan Babu said:


> Hi Nisha,
> 
> Do we really need to mention salary.? I dont think so. But full time employment needs to be specified for sure. So make sure it is printed in your letters. I believe even they can skip the hrs of work. As per ACS guidelines more than 20 hrs of work is considered to be full time. We normally work for 40 hrs. So i believe it is understood.
> 
> ...


thanks Mohan - I am going ahead now - no point asking again since company advised against policy. so will just keep :fingerscrossed:


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## Raj sunni (Feb 6, 2014)

*Need helph*

I nish,have you applied for Acs skill assessment? Have u done by ur self or thru an agent.
Amit, I need some help with Acs assessment,did u go thru an agent or applied by urself


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## amitk0703 (Oct 6, 2012)

Raj sunni said:


> I nish,have you applied for Acs skill assessment? Have u done by ur self or thru an agent.
> Amit, I need some help with Acs assessment,did u go thru an agent or applied by urself


All by my self and with great help received at this forum.


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## santoshpatil (Feb 4, 2014)

Nish89 said:


> Hi Guys/Gals
> I got the required skill reference letters from two companies. However one refuses to mention the line 'was working full time 40 hours per week' and one refuses to mention the line about salary I earned there.
> 
> Please advice if these letters are ok inspite of the missing information? It seems their policy does not allow to commit salary and hours.
> ...


You should ALSO try to get a SD from your senior colleague so that they can attest the facts about your employment and salary. If you are able to obtain such a document then you do not have to worry.


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## santoshpatil (Feb 4, 2014)

vishnuvpotty said:


> Thanks for the useful info buddy..
> I will get it done from a colleague as previous manager is not approachable.
> 
> For present job, from date will be mentioned and to date will be till date right.
> ...


Ensure that the colleague that you are approaching was working at a designation that was higher than yours. It is not necessary that you were directly reporting to me, but he has to be at a higher pecking order than you in your organization. Mentioning the salary is always a plus.


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## vishnuvpotty (Jan 27, 2014)

santoshpatil said:


> Ensure that the colleague that you are approaching was working at a designation that was higher than yours. It is not necessary that you were directly reporting to me, but he has to be at a higher pecking order than you in your organization. Mentioning the salary is always a plus.


Oh mentioning salary is a tricky thing. I mean do we need to convert to Australian dollars or in Indian rupees?

Also i didn't knew that colleague should be senior to me. 

For eg. In statuary declaration, when my colleague declares he should mention his current position or the position he was holding when i was working there?

In India, The declaration should be done at Notary right. And we need to just scan and upload . Thats it right.
Planning to get it done next week.


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## santoshpatil (Feb 4, 2014)

vishnuvpotty said:


> Oh mentioning salary is a tricky thing. I mean do we need to convert to Australian dollars or in Indian rupees?
> 
> Also i didn't knew that colleague should be senior to me.
> 
> ...


I think you do not need to make any conversions for your salary ( in case you had to produce your payslips then they should match up ). And yeah, your senior colleague does need to mention his position to show that he was senior to you.


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## vishnuvpotty (Jan 27, 2014)

Thanks.


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## Mohan Babu (Feb 27, 2011)

vishnuvpotty said:


> Thanks.


When we mention the salary. Is it gross,net or basic or all together. 

Thanks
Mohan


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## DreamAstralia (Mar 19, 2014)

Hello All,

I am planning to start the process of getting Australian PR. 
I have gathered most of the information - the three stage process. 

This is regarding skill assessment. Presently, I have 6 years of IT experience. My skills qualify me to apply for subclass 189 (Australian PR).

I have completed my graduation in 2004 Aug. Because of some different plans I didn't join IT soon after my graduation. However, in 2008 Feb I started my career in IT. Since then I am into IT.

It would be really great if you let me know the below.
1) Can I apply for PR (subclass 189) even though there is a gap of 4 years between the _'graduation date'_ and _'the start of IT career'_? I think I can score 60 points.
2) I need to provide any written document to explain what I did during that time, albeit, I don't mention that period in my CV. If yes, then please let me what is it?

I read somewhere in this forum, that, this may not affect, however, I should provide the details about how I had survived with regards to living expenses. I am not sure if this rule is still valid. However, if this still holds good where should I provide the documentation evidence? Do you have any sample document for it?

*Please please please reply to me at the earliest as I need to finalize this before 2014 March end.*


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## tipzstamatic (Aug 13, 2013)

DreamAstralia said:


> Hello All,
> 
> I am planning to start the process of getting Australian PR.
> I have gathered most of the information - the three stage process.
> ...


you wont be able to finalize it in time for end march  because if youre only submitting acs now, most likely, by the time you gather documents - if you havent, fy 14-15 will have started already.

1. as long as you meet 60 points, you can apply. although it depends on which occupation you have how long it will take for you to get an invite since invites are sent on a pro-rata basis. you need at least 65 to get better chances and 70 for sure shot invite within next round or the one after (depends again on occupation).

2'. no you dont need to provide any details of it. but if you worked during that time you still need to declare those employment in DIBP, the first thing you have to worry about is ACS assessment and IELTS, because you will get 2 years (or maybe 4 or 6) deducted from your total years of experience based on how closely related your education is to your nominated occupation.

i think the evidence is more mandatory if you're presently unemployed and applying for skilled migration. if it was in the past, it should be irrelevant unless you spent those times in prison or you were convicted of something - then that one you need to declare.


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## kingcantona7 (Jan 12, 2014)

during ACS, we dont need to show any documents for employment gap right?


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## Nitsy01 (Mar 18, 2014)

Hi,

I am sure this would have been answered couple of times in the past but please see if someone can help us here.

My wife is a Java Developer and is planning to file for credential assessment with ACS next week but we are a little perplexed on how strong our case is:

Age: 33
Education: Bachelors in Arts, GNIIT
Experience: Overall 9 years of experience in development
IELTS: Appearing on 5th April'14

Believe few years of experience is knocked off on account of GNIIT not being a relevant degree. 

Her job code has been assessed for Developer Programmer - 261312, subclass 189 skill. However with the expected 5 years of work-ex deduction, she may fall short of points for applying thus we may have to seek state sponsorship.

Please suggest if GNIIT is a recognised program and if there is a deduction how much of years would that be. 

Also do you recommend to wait for the new skill list to released in July 2014 or we get her skill assessment done in the meantime.

I am unsure if we apply for EOI before new list releases in July, our case would be considered on new guidelines or previous guidelines would apply.

Look forward to your opinion on our case and suggestions pls.

Thnx & have a great day!


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## tipzstamatic (Aug 13, 2013)

---duplicate post deleted


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## tipzstamatic (Aug 13, 2013)

Nitsy01 said:


> Hi,
> 
> I am sure this would have been answered couple of times in the past but please see if someone can help us here.
> 
> ...


refer to this link:
https://www.acs.org.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0016/7324/Summary-of-Criteria-2014.pdf

6 years will be removed most likely as BA is not an ICT degree. and you will have to go through the RPL route (read more about it in forum. im not aware how difficult and troublesome it is)

APPLY NOW!  most likely the rules will just get stricter in the future (ACS just introduced this year the mandatory 2 year minimum deduction to experience). So apply now before the rules change even more drastically to limit the applicants. Yes there are many uncertainties, but why wait for those to be revealed not knowing if it will work in your favor or not


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## TorukMakto (Jan 15, 2012)

For previous employment , is it fine if one get the statutory declaration from manager who has also left the company and is working in some other firm? He should sign with the details of his current designation, company right?

Please advice


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## espresso (Nov 2, 2012)

Hi TorukMakto, 

yes, your reference does not have to work at the company anymore. 

*Important:* It's not necessary to provide information about the reference's current workplace or designation. It is not relevant to your application. However, s/he should provide _current contact data_ (email, phone), in case ACS/DIBP wants to reach out for employment verification. The statutory declaration should also describe how you worked together (manager and team member, on what project, covering what duration). A sentence or two should be enough. If s/he can find an old business card from your former employer it would be a good idea to attach that to the statutory declaration. 

Cheers,
Monika


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## amit_aus84 (May 28, 2014)

Hello All,

I have one more doubt. The reference letters from colleagues can be on white A4 sheet with business card, contact details and signature or is it mandatory to have it on stamp paper ?

I live in a different city now and its difficult to arrange it on stamp paper.

Please advise.


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## TorukMakto (Jan 15, 2012)

@cseramit Reference letter should either be on company letter head or it should be a Statutory Declaration.In India, you can get that on Rs 20 or RS 50 stamp paper and get it notarized.

If you are in different city then you have to manage by asking favour to your colleague to get the details on stamppaper and notarized. You can also ask some of your friend living in that city to do it for you and get it signed from your work colleague.Your presence/signature is not required.


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