Initial Steps

here is an excerpt from my wife to my sister who inquired how we went about the process.

go to http://www.immi.gov.au/
and go to the tab Migrating to Australia - Migrating as a: Skilled Person ... then go to General Skilled Migration then look up the Skilled Occupation List (form 1121i)... choose the Skill that you want to apply for so you'll know the points, if that is in the SSASL (in demand skills) and the corresponding Assessing Authority - for example if you choose Computing Professionals - you'll have 60 points and a high demand skill and you need ACS to assess your skills first before proceeding with the DIMIA application... Once you have chosen the skill, go back to the DIMIA website (General
Skilled Migration) and choose the general skilled visa that you want - for us we chose Skilled - Independent (subclass 136) visa... you need to have 120 points to be able to lodge for this type of visa So you try to assess if you hit the 120-point mark.. once you're in the Choose a General Skilled MIgration Visa page, click on the Are you outside Australia? and look at the best Visa option... there you'll find the Validity requirements for the Skilled - Independent (subclass 136) visa

If you click on that, click on the See: Visa-specific requirements for the Skilled Independent (subclass 136) visa at the bottom of the page. It will lead you to the Self Assess your score in the points test.

Skills (60 points - if computing professional)
Age (20 points if 35 to 39 years)
English (20 points if IELTS score is 6 or more)
Specific work experience (10 points if you work 3-4 years in your nominated occupation)
Occupation in demand / job offer (addl 15 points if skill is in MODL - Computing Professional - specialising in CISSP, E-commerce security, network security, SAP or SIEBEL)

If you have assessed that you will pass the points test, visit the website of ACS to know the requirements for you to have your skills assessed. Once you receive the letter from ACS on skills assessment, that's the only time you file an application for australia immigration... hope this helps...
God bless,
joanna

Everything you need to know is in the website. Of course if helps to talk to other people who are interested. www.dimia.gov.au