491 & Regional Skill Migration
The new 491 visa, Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) subclass 491 visa will enable eligible skilled workers and their families to live, work and study in designated regional areas of Australia for 5 years. Visa holders will be eligible to apply for a Permanent Residence visa after three years.
Benefits of the 491 visa:
- Priority processing of regional applications
- Incentives for migrants to stay in regional areas longer term as they build ties through workforce and community participation
- More points available to subclass 491 visa applicants
Other features include:
- an Australian state or territory government agency or
- 15,000 places allocated each year
- Must live and work for 3 years in regional areas to get Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional) 191 Visa
- Must be sponsored by an eligible relative or state authority
- You or your partner will need to earn for those 3 years a minimum income each year ($53,900 per annum)- for the State sponsored stream it may be in any occupation however if employer sponsored it must be in the nominated occupation.
- sponsored by an eligible family member residing in a designated regional area and be invited to apply for the visa, following submission of an Expression of Interest (EOI) in Skill Select.
- The 491 visa is a skilled and a point tested visa.
- It has a 45 year age limit and requires a positive skills assessment.
- The visa validity period is 5 years. Conditions, namely 8579 will be imposed which will enforce the government’s intentions that visa holders live, work and study only in regional areas. Visa holders may movebetween regional areas.
- Must live and work for 3 years in regional areas to get to get PR (Skilled Regional)191 Visa.
- DHA Fee (main applicant) $4,045and for spouse is: $2,025
- Regional area is defined as:
| STATE | AREAS | POSTCODE |
|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | Everywhere except Sydney, Newcastle, the Central Coast and Wollongong | 2311 to 2312, 2328 to 2411, 2420 to 2490, 2536 to 2551, 2575 to 2594, 2618 to 2739, 2787 to 2898 |
| Northern Territory | Everywhere in the territory | All postcodes |
| Queensland | Everywhere except the greater Brisbane area and the Gold Coast | 4124 to 4125, 4133, 4211, 4270 to 4272, 4275, 4280, 4285, 4287, 4307 to 4499, 4515, 4517 to 4519, 4522 to 4899 |
| South Australia | Everywhere in the state | All postcodes |
| Tasmania | Everywhere in the state | All postcodes |
| Victoria | Everywhere except the Melbourne metropolitan area | 3211 to 3334, 3340 to 3424, 3430 to 3649, 3658 to 3749, 3753, 3756, 3758, 3762, 3764, 3778 to 3781, 3783, 3797, 3799, 3810 to 3909, 3921 to 3925, 3945 to 3974, 3979, 3981 to 3996 |
| Western Australia | Everywhere except Perth and surrounding areas | 6041 to 6044, 6083 to 6084, 6121 to 6126, 6200 to 6799 |
You may work in any occupation and for any employer in line with the work and residence conditions attached to your visa. Holders of the new provisional visas will also be unable to apply for most other skills based visas in Australia unless they have completed at least three years in a designated regional area, unless exceptional circumstances exist. Additionally, similar to current arrangements for the subclass 457 and 482 visa program, holders of the new provisional visas can be negatively impacted by sponsor non-compliance.
The 491 visa permanent pathway will be:
- Subclass 191 Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional):To meet the requirements of the permanent visa (from November 2022) applicants must have held a subclass 491 or 494 visa for at least 3 years, have complied with the conditions on that visa and have met minimum taxable income requirements. You must show earnings of at least $53,900 per annum for three years. Your partner can also be the main applicant for the 191 visa if they can demonstrate this criteria.
- 15points for nomination by a State or Territory government agency or sponsorship by a family member residing in regional Australia, to live and work in regional Australia.
- 10 pointsfor certain Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) qualifications.
- 10points, if one of the following apply:
- skilled spouse or de facto partner (Skills assessment and Competent English); or
- applicants without a spouse or de facto partner (single) or
- 5points: if your partner has Competent English. Your partner can be over 45 years of age and does not need a Skills Assessment.
Most locations of Australia outside major cities (Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane) are classed as designated regional areas for migration purposes.
Designated regional areas
The regional definition is comprised of 3 categories and offers regional incentives for skilled migrants who migrate to locations classified as Category 2 ‘Cities and Major Regional Centres’ or Category 3 ‘Regional Centres and Other Regional Areas’:
- Category 2 – ‘Cities and Major Regional Centres’ of Perth, Adelaide, the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, Canberra, Newcastle/Lake Macquarie, Wollongong/Illawarra, Geelong and Hobart have access to the following regional incentives:
- Access to the dedicated 25,000 regional places
- Priority processing of regional visas
- Access to the Regional Occupations List – more jobs compared to non-regional lists
- International graduates with a bachelor or higher qualification from a regional campus of a registered institution will be eligible to access additional year in Australia on a post-study work visa
- Category 3 – ‘Regional Centres and Other Regional Areas’ will also have access to the dedicated 25,000 regional places, priority processing of regional visas, and the Regional Occupations List. Additional incentives include:
- International graduates with a bachelor or higher qualification from a regional campus of a registered institution will be eligible to access an additional 2 years in Australia on a post-study work visa.
- Priority in negotiating region-specific Designated Area Migration Agreements (DAMAs)
A list of postcodes that specify designated regional areas is available and applies to the following visas:
Regional visas:
- Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491)*#
- Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 494)
- Skilled Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 489)* – designated regional areas only apply to visa holders nominated by a State and Territory government agency whose visa was granted after 16 November 2019. See other specified regions for the invited pathway and subsequent entrant pathway.
- Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189)*
- Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190)*
- Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme visa (subclass 187) – the Temporary Residence Transition stream of the RSMS visa remains open to transitional 457 or Temporary Skill Shortage (subclass 482) workers.
- Employer Nomination Scheme visa (subclass 186) – if the position is located in regional Australia, the nomination fee is waived.
- Temporary Skill Shortage visa (subclass 482) – if using an occupation on the Regional Occupation List for this subclass.
- Business Innovation and Investment (Permanent) visa (subclass 888)
- State/Territory Sponsored Business Owner visa (subclass 892)
Note:
# additional 5 points (from 10 -15) under the Skilled Migration Points Test if nominated to live and work in a designated regional Australia.
* 5 points if study completed in a designated regional area and meets the Australian Study Requirement