Yes. A teacher registered with the Teaching Council can teach in Australia, but your Irish registration doesn’t come with you. You apply to the teacher regulator in the state or territory where you’ll work, and you need a visa with work rights. A four-year B.Ed or a degree plus PME generally fits what the regulators ask for, and Irish-trained teachers generally skip the English test.
Fees, pay and rules were checked with the regulators, state education departments and Home Affairs in November 2026. New to all this? Start with our complete guide to moving to Australia from Ireland.
Short version
- Registration is by state. There’s no national licence, so pick your state first.
- The usual bar is 4 years of higher education, with at least a year of teacher education and 45 days of supervised placement. The old three-year B.Ed may fall short.
- An AITSL skills assessment (AUD 1,198) is for skilled visas, not for registration.
- The 6 month limit on a working holiday visa applies to teaching, but state schools at different addresses count as different locations.
- Sponsorship depends on the state. WA’s education department names Ireland on its list. NSW’s doesn’t sponsor at all.
- Starting pay in state schools runs from AUD 84,971 (SA) to AUD 92,882 (NSW and Victoria).
The route from Ireland in five steps
- Pick your state. AITSL says registering and employing teachers is up to each state and territory. Once you’re registered in one, mutual recognition can get you into another.
- Gather your papers in Ireland. Final transcripts, degree parchment, ID and a police check. A Garda police certificate is free and takes about three weeks, but check what your state accepts first. If a regulator wants a Letter of Professional Standing, the Teaching Council charges EUR 25.
- Apply to the regulator (state by state below).
- Get your visa. Working holiday if you’re 18 to 35, sponsorship or skilled migration if you plan to stay.
- Apply for jobs. Registration doesn’t get you hired. Queensland state schools have a separate employment application, and NSW public schools want their own approval to teach.
Will your Irish qualification be accepted?
Each regulator assesses you individually, so nobody can promise an outcome, but the rules line up well with today’s Irish routes.
| What regulators ask for | Irish routes |
|---|---|
| At least 4 years of higher education, with at least 1 year of teacher education (NESA, VIT, TRBWA) | The Teaching Council lists a 4 year undergraduate route, or a degree then a 2 year PME, for primary and post-primary |
| At least 45 days of supervised, assessed teaching practice | A Teaching Council report puts school placement on current programmes at 24 to 30 weeks |
WA’s education department names the Professional Master of Education as an accepted postgraduate qualification.
Known gaps
- The old three-year B.Ed. The B.Ed went from three years to four, and undergraduate programmes have been four or five years since 2012/2013. If yours was three, QCT says teaching experience or further study may get you there, so contact them first. TRBWA may consider experience too. NESA won’t: it assesses academic qualifications only.
- Proof of placement. If your transcript doesn’t show your days, get an official letter from your college. AITSL wants a statement from the awarding university and won’t take placement reports.
- Your teaching area. VIT checks that secondary teachers studied an area taught on an Australian curriculum, and that primary placement was mostly in primary schools.
The English test
Ireland is on the exempt list at NESA, VIT, QCT, TRBWA, TRB SA and TQI. QCT wants all four years done in English in a listed country, and NESA looks at every qualification you hold, so a degree from elsewhere can trigger a test.
What each state needs
NSW calls it accreditation. Everywhere else it’s registration. Main fees as of November 2026:
| Regulator | Main fees (AUD) |
|---|---|
| NSW: NESA | 100 a year, plus 112 for the Working with Children Check |
| Victoria: VIT | 292.84 pre-assessment, 203 application, 131.30 a year. A national criminal history check (77.40) may be extra |
| Queensland: QCT | 331.74 application (308.34 with a current blue card and no criminal history), 107.64 a year |
| WA: TRBWA | 473 provisional or 508 full registration, 95 a year |
| SA: TRB SA | 162 qualification assessment, 218 application, 137 a year |
| Tasmania: TRB | 136.12 overseas assessment, 186.41 application with first year |
| ACT: TQI | 65 to 115, depending on when you apply |
| NT: TRB | 170 (59 application plus 111 annual) |
New South Wales (NESA)
You need transcripts, your testamur, three ID documents, and an international police check if you lived outside Australia for 12 months or more in the last 5 years. You also need a valid NSW Working with Children Check, and you finish that in person at a Service NSW Centre, so in practice it waits until you land. NESA gives no timeframe for overseas applicants, only that they may take longer. The NSW Department of Education says it “does not sponsor teaching visas”, and international teachers get limited approval in line with their visa’s work rights.
Victoria (VIT)
Since July 2025 your qualification must be pre-assessed before you can apply, and you can do that before you decide to move. You then apply once you’ve arrived, or up to three months before arrival if you have a Victorian job offer or a visa that needs registration. Apply earlier and it’s closed. Most applications take 4 to 6 weeks once everything is in. VIT-registered teachers are exempt from the Working with Children Check, and government schools say they can help with a visa once you’re offered a role.
Queensland (QCT)
QCT takes a four-year teacher education programme, or a one-year graduate programme after a degree. Teachers from overseas can get provisional registration for an initial two years. You need a national police check from any country where you’ve lived 12 months or more in total in the last 10 years. QCT’s 2025 report says 65% of all registration applications were processed within 30 days, though Lisa, whose story is below, says allow a few months. Once registered, you don’t need a blue card to teach at a school.
Applying to state schools from overseas is tougher. The department asks for at least 2 years’ experience in the past 5 and a valid AITSL skills assessment, plus work rights.
Western Australia (TRBWA), including Perth
You can pay AUD 330 for qualification advice before applying. The overseas police check must come from AIS International if you’ve lived abroad for 12 months or more in total, since turning 18, in the last 10 years. Most applications are finalised within 10 weeks. Public schools also need a Working with Children Check.
The WA Department of Education lists Ireland among the countries it has visa options for, and runs online information sessions on 17 and 22 November 2026 (8am Irish time). Its International Teacher Employment Register is for regional schools and closes on 31 December 2026. It can offer 482 sponsorship of up to 4 years if you have a year of full-time teaching from the last five. See also our guide to moving to Perth from Ireland.
South Australia (TRB SA)
First comes an assessment of your qualifications, sent by post or in person, not by email. It can take up to 6 weeks. Then you lodge your registration with a South Australian Working with Children Check, plus an overseas criminal history check if you’ve spent 12 months or more abroad in the last 10 years. The department is an approved sponsor for eligible teachers with a year of full-time teaching in the last five, and a regional pathway goes up to age 55. Its current drive is aimed at UK teachers, so ask if Irish teachers qualify.
Tasmania, ACT and NT
Same idea, smaller systems. The ACT also needs a current Working with Vulnerable People registration.
AITSL skills assessment: when you need one
You need it for skilled migration. AITSL says teachers migrating on a skilled visa must complete one, which covers the 189, 190 and 491. Home Affairs says some 482 applicants must have one and it can ask anyone else, so check first.
You don’t need it for registration alone. AITSL says it’s for skilled migration only, and even a good outcome doesn’t replace registration. TRBWA does its own assessment regardless.
The fee is AUD 1,198 since 7 September 2026. An optional Skilled Employment Statement for your points is AUD 265. Most ready applications take 4 weeks, some 6. AITSL wants 4 years of study including teacher education, and 4 years in Ireland meets its English criterion without IELTS.
Visas for Irish teachers
| Visa | For teachers (main applicant cost from 1 July 2026) |
|---|---|
| Working holiday (417) | Irish passport holders aged 18 to 35. AUD 840. No sponsor or skills assessment needed. Good for relief work |
| Skills in Demand (482) | Employer sponsored, up to 4 years. AUD 4,015. Primary and secondary teachers are on the Core Skills list. You need 1 year of experience and pay of at least AUD 79,423 (nominations lodged by 30 June 2027) |
| Skilled Independent (189) | Permanent. AUD 6,135. Secondary and special needs teachers, not primary |
| Skilled Nominated (190) | Permanent, needs state nomination. AUD 6,140. Primary and secondary |
| Skilled Work Regional (491) | 5 years in a regional area, nominated or family sponsored. AUD 6,140. A route to permanent residence through the 191 |
The 189, 190 and 491 all need you under 45 when invited, with 65 points and a skills assessment. The catch for primary teachers: the occupation list has Primary School Teacher on the short-term list, so the 189 isn’t open to you.
Two bits of good news. An Irish passport proves competent English, and teaching is a priority sector for processing. On the 190, Home Affairs was processing teaching applications lodged up to October 2026, against February 2025 for general applicants outside Australia. Those dates move.
This is big money, so get advice. Our partners at Migration Unity are registered migration agents: fill in the short form on our visa help page. Our guide to visa options to stay longer covers the rest.
Working holiday visa and relief teaching
Relief teaching (supply, at home) is the obvious way in on a 417. Here’s how the 6 month rule, condition 8547, treats it:
- The limit is 6 months with one employer, and casual work counts. It runs on months since you started, not days worked.
- Teaching isn’t exempt. Schools aren’t among the critical sectors. Childcare is.
- Different addresses help. Home Affairs gives “State and Territory schools” at different addresses as an example of different locations, as long as you don’t exceed 6 months in any one location. That suits relief work, but you can’t stay at one school past 6 months.
- Agencies: one agency can place you at a school for 6 months, then at another for 6. You can’t stay in the same job at the same school by swapping agencies.
- The clock restarts with a new working holiday visa, but teaching isn’t on the specified work list, so you’d need your 88 days elsewhere.
- Permission is possible if you’ve applied for a visa allowing ongoing full-time work, or your work is critical to your employer. Request it before the 6 months ends.
Teacher pay by state
| State schools | Classroom teacher pay (AUD a year) |
|---|---|
| NSW | 92,882 to 133,422 (current award, October 2026). Casual from 480.43 a day |
| Victoria | 92,882 to 133,456 from 1 October 2026, rising to 96,598 and 138,794 from November 2027 |
| Queensland | About 90,164 to start with a 4-year degree (October 2026). Casual about 103.15 an hour |
| WA | 88,178 to 127,737, levels 2.1 to 2.9 (as of December 2025) |
| SA | 84,971 at step 1 to 117,198 at step 8 (schedule dated May 2026) |
WA and Queensland both say prior experience can lift your starting point, so have your statements of service ready. Catholic and independent schools aren’t covered by these scales.
School year, and when to apply
Irish schools normally start in the week of 1 September and close in June. Australia runs four terms inside the calendar year:
| State | 2027 school year for students |
|---|---|
| NSW (eastern) | 3 February to 17 December |
| Victoria | 28 January to 17 December |
| Queensland | 27 January to 10 December |
| WA | 1 February to 16 December |
| SA | 27 January to 10 December |
Term 3 in 2027 starts between 12 and 20 July, so you could finish in Ireland in June and start here in Term 3. The other natural start is Term 1 in late January.
Add up the waits above and I’d start your paperwork at least a term before you want to work, earlier if you need sponsorship. In Queensland you can apply for state school jobs while waiting on QCT. Fees are charged in AUD, so if you’re moving savings over, CurrencyFair is the one we’d try first.
Teaching jobs for Irish teachers
Search our Irish job board, including sponsorship jobs and jobs in Perth, and set up job alerts so new roles come to you.
Read Lisa Gunnigan’s story from Mayo to Brisbane. She worked in kindergarten while her registration came through, and now works in education recruitment. If you need work while you wait, childcare jobs are worth a look.
Moving over to teach? Ask the Irish already here which schools are good and which agencies pay on time.
FAQ
Do Irish teachers need IELTS to teach in Australia?
Usually not. Ireland is on the exempt list at the regulators we checked, as long as your studies were done there or in another listed country.
Can I do primary teaching in Australia on a working holiday visa?
Yes, once registered, within the 6 month limit per employer.
Do I need an AITSL skills assessment to teach in Australia?
Not for registration. You need it for skilled visas, and Queensland state schools want it from overseas applicants.
Do Australian state schools sponsor Irish teachers?
It varies. WA lists Ireland and can offer 482 sponsorship, Victorian schools can help once you have an offer, and NSW doesn’t sponsor.
Are there jobs for Irish teachers in Perth?
WA’s international register is for regional schools, so don’t assume sponsorship in Perth. With your own work rights you can apply directly for WA teaching jobs.
Can I start registration before I leave Ireland?
Often, yes. Victoria’s pre-assessment can be done from home and SA takes qualification assessments by post. NSW’s Working with Children Check needs you there in person.
