Participate in ANZSCO consultations

The ABS is undertaking a comprehensive review of the Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) to reflect the contemporary labour market and better meet stakeholders’ needs. 

While ANZSCO has previously had some minor updates, it largely describes the original 2006 version, which was based on the 2001 labour market.

Updates to the classification will be reflected progressively in official labour market statistics from August 2026, including Labour Force time series to improve visibility of new and emerging occupations. The updated classification will be released by December 2024, in time for use by Census 2026.

Learn more about ANZSCO and the comprehensive review.
 

Public consultation rounds will be held across 2023 and 2024 with each round targeting selected occupations grouped by focus area. The ABS will be inviting submissions on these focus areas through the ABS Consultation Hub.

ANZSCO is used to describe data for governments, industry, and businesses to inform and shape educational pathways, skilled migration programs and workforce strategies that equip Australians with skills to get jobs and stay employed.

Feedback will be sought on the accuracy of current occupation skill levels and descriptions and any occupations anticipated to emerge or decline in the next 5 to 10 years. Learn more about the occupations that will be reviewed in each round. 

A final consultation round in 2024 will allow users an opportunity to provide feedback on the complete set of proposed changes prior to the ABS finalising the classification update for release by December 2024.

You can start preparing submissions now by:

• Gathering evidence on the need for changes to occupations described in the classification and how your proposed changes align to policy, program or statistical/data needs.
• Assessing your proposed changes against the ANZSCO assessment criteria.
• Connecting with other organisations to provide a consolidated submission to strengthen your evidence base. An easy read guide outlining the key elements of the ANZSCO Review can be downloaded to share with your networks.
• Viewing our latest Q&A session to find out how to provide feedback about changes in jobs and skills requirements, and where to go to learn more about How ANZSCO works.
• Subscribing to receive updates about the upcoming ANZSCO consultation rounds.
   

Reviewers will draw on a prioritised set of submissions, data analysis, and structural review processes to ensure the classification is updated for release by December 2024.

To ensure ANZSCO continues to support the production of reliable occupation-based statistics, changes will need to adhere to the principles of statistical classifications. These principles will guide the development of changes throughout the comprehensive review, ensuring the classification is well structured, clearly defined, comparable, robust, and representative.

Reviewers will consider numerous factors when prioritising suggested changes received from each public consultation round. To do this, evidence provided in the submissions will be collated and assessed in relation to the following criteria.

1. Benefits of the proposal and any alignment to policy, program or statistical need.
2. Risks and potential outcomes that could undermine confidence in ANZSCO and lead to poor decision making. Reviewers will also consider economic impacts as well as the relative effect on small, but important, sectors of the labour market when considering this factor.
3. Complexity, implementation, and use in labour market analysis. Some requested changes may have dependencies on other elements of ANZSCO that need to be considered holistically.
4. The degree of urgency and need for action, including policy drivers to address issues of national significance.
5. The strength of demand for this change across stakeholders and number of beneficiaries likely to be affected. Proposals with far reaching impact will be considered over those that affect a narrower segment of the labour market.  

Census and other supplementary data will also be used to inform the development of changes, including minimum size thresholds for inclusion or exclusion of occupations and changes to the way occupations are described.
 

View our latest Q&A webinar for an overview of the consultation process and how to prepare a high-quality submission.

Access further information for guidance on preparing a submission to inform the review.
 

2026 Census Content consultation is planned for 2023. The ANZSCO program will feed any submissions received relating to Census to the relevant team – there is no need to provide your submission again.
 

Subscribe to receive updates about the ANZSCO review consultation process.