If you want to move to Australia as a chef, you cannot get around the TRA Skill Assessment. At least not if you take the route via Visa 186, the way we are. I am a self-employed chef, I went through the assessment in early 2026 and I am writing here what it cost, how it went, and what I wish I had known beforehand. The translation cost piece in particular caught me off guard.
This article is for chefs who want to move and are wondering what is ahead. Employees and the self-employed, the difference is explained right below.
What is the TRA Skill Assessment?
TRA stands for Trades Recognition Australia, the official Australian government body that assesses overseas trade qualifications. For chefs and cooks, the TRA Skill Assessment is a precondition for certain work visas, including Visa 186.
The assessment checks whether you, as a trained chef, even if you did your training in Germany, work to Australian standards. No TRA, no visa. That simple.
TRA directly or via ATTC?
One point many people do not know: you do not have to do the assessment directly via TRA.
TRA has authorised so-called RTOs (Registered Training Organisations) to carry out the assessment on its behalf. One of them is the Australian Trade Training College, ATTC for short.
Our migration agent strongly advised against going through TRA directly. The reason: processing times, in his experience, can run over a year. Through ATTC, our entire process was done in 3 months.
ATTC offers two routes, and which one you can take depends on your qualification.
Which pathway fits you?
This is decisive, also on the cost side.
I already had Certificate III and IV in Commercial Cookery, which I did during my time in Australia. That meant I could take the cheaper pathway.
Pathway 1 (without an Australian qualification): more extensive assessment, higher cost for the Technical Interview.
Pathway 2 (with an Australian qualification): leaner process, cheaper interview.
Which pathway you can take is best clarified in the first call with ATTC. That is straightforward.
What you have to submit, and why it gets really expensive for the self-employed
This is where it gets interesting. And expensive.
As an employee, you essentially submit payslips. Manageable.
As a self-employed applicant, it is a different world. I had to submit:
- Tax assessments (several years)
- Business registration
- Profit calculations
- Confirmation from my accountant
- Bank statements (3 months from each of 3 years)
And here comes the part that took the wind out of me: everything has to be certified-translated. Page by page. With documents that run over several years and are often 20 pages or more.
My first translation round cost 1,200 AUD.
Then ATTC came back with: they still needed bank statements from 3 months each over 3 years. I briefly panicked, some of those statements were 20 pages long. I asked. Result: 3 pages per statement were enough.
Second translation round: 900 AUD.
Honestly: I should have asked that earlier. Remember that.
The Technical Interview: what actually gets asked
The interview was online, there is no ATTC location near me, so this was the only option. And it was more professional than I had expected.
At the start: a room check. I had to turn my tablet around and film my desk so they could confirm I was not cheating. In the middle of the interview, with no warning, I had to do it again. You should know that.
The interview itself was led by an Australian chef. Next to him sat a TRA team member who recorded everything. Language: English.
The questions ran roughly like this:
- Questions about my restaurant, what I cooked, how the business looked
- Questions about specific dishes from my file, how I prepared them
- Technical questions: temperatures, which cutting boards for what, storage, hygiene
It was clear: they check whether the information in your documents matches up, and whether you really are a chef. Anyone who learnt the trade and brings reasonably solid English does not have to worry, honestly.
My preparation: I watched a few YouTube videos on "technical interview chef Australia". That was it. That was enough.
One important note: there are areas where Australian standards differ from German ones. If you are not sure about an answer, you can simply say that this is the German rule. Most assessors know this, no issue.
All costs at a glance
| What | Cost |
|---|---|
| Step 1: Document evaluation (ATTC) | ~1,120 AUD |
| Step 2: Technical Interview (Pathway 2) | ~900 AUD |
| Translations round 1 | ~1,200 AUD |
| Translations round 2 (bank statements) | ~900 AUD |
| Total | ~4,120 AUD |
As an employee you save the second translation round and overall have far fewer documents. I estimate the difference at 1,000 to 1,500 AUD.
Small note: ATTC offers an optional service in the first call where your documents are pre-checked. That costs extra. I did not do it and do not regret it. Anyone very unsure can consider it.
Timeline: how long does it take?
- Overall process: about 3 months
- Result after the interview: about 1 week
By comparison: directly via TRA, the process can take well over a year, according to our migration agent's experience. For us, ATTC was therefore not a question.
My most important tip
Learn English trade vocabulary. Not at C1 level, but you should know what kitchen tools are called in English, the common ingredients, basic cooking techniques.
And then: YouTube. Search for "technical interview chef Australia", you will find current videos from chefs who did the assessment and talk through the questions. That was the only preparation I did.
What comes next?
The TRA Skill Assessment is one building block of many on the way to Visa 186. The result, passed or not, gets submitted with the visa application. You do not need it directly afterwards.
We are right in the middle of the whole process. I will keep reporting on the blog, what comes next, what it costs, what actually works.
If you have questions, drop them in the comments. I will answer.
Last updated: 01.06.2026 · Sources: ATTC (Australian Trade Training College), Trades Recognition Australia
