Subclass 491

The subclass 491 visa is a provisional residency visa available to skilled workers who are willing to live and work in a designated regional area. It is available both to skilled workers who are already living and working in Australia as temporary residents, and to those living outside Australia.

subclass491

Whether you are applying on the basis of a State nomination or a Family Member nomination, all applicants must meet a minimum score of 65 points on a points test.

To be eligible for this visa, applicants must be skilled in an occupation on the relevant State Government Occupation List and be nominated by that State OR be skilled in an occupation on the MLTSSL and be nominated by an Eligible Family Member.

Applicants must also meet the following criteria:
  • Be between the ages of 18 and 44
  • Have Competent Englishor higher, and their dependent family members over 18 years of age have at least Functional English
  • Hold a positive skill assessment in the nominated occupation
  • Meet health and character requirements
Infact one must:
  • be nominated to apply by a state or territory government agency, or an eligible relative must sponsor you
  • have an occupation on a relevant skilled occupation list
  • have a suitable skills assessment for the occupation
  • be invited to apply
  • satisfy the points test

To check your point test eligibility here is point calculator:

https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/skilled-work-regional-provisional-491/points-table

Here we discuss subclass 491 Regional Provisional visa state wise:

Victoria

Every application for Victoria visa nomination is assessed individually with a focus on your ability to address a number of assessment criteria, including:

  • Your ability to meet the minimum eligibility criteria;
  • The demand for your skills and expertise in a designated regional area of Victoria;
  • Whether the job offer you provide is for a position located in a designated regional area of Victoria;
  • The suitability and transferability of your qualifications, skills and experience – including any specialist capabilities – to Victoria’s labour market; and

Your ability and commitment to establishing yourself and any dependents in a designated regional area of Victoria, with a view to long term settlement in that area

Occupation List for 491 visa is below here to check the eligibility:

https://www.seekvisa.com.au/491-visa-occupations-list/

All applicants who wish to apply for Victorian nomination for the Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) (subclass 491) visa must provide evidence of a current offer of employment in a position located in a designated regional area of Victoria (as defined by the Department of Home Affairs). The employment offer must be in your nominated occupation and must be for a full-time work for a period of at least 12 months. The business must be actively operating for at least two years in the designated regional area of Victoria.

Australian Capital Territory

The ACT is defined as regional for skilled migration purpose from 16 November 2019.  While potential applicants can complete the Home Affairs Skillselect EOI from this date, the 491 Canberra Matrix can only be submitted from 1 January 2020.

If we talk about 2020 Nomination Criteria  for Canberra Resident:

  • You must be working for an ACT employer in Canberra for at least 3 months before the date of Matrix submission
  • Work requirements:
    • Minimum 20 hours per week
    • Paid employment
    • The employer must be operating in the ACT for at least one year.
    • You may be self-employed. If you are self-employed you must have at least 12 months ACT business activity at date of Matrix submission. Your taxable income must be at least $500 pw for each week of the employment claimed.

And for overseas applicants:

  • English – Proficient or Superior
  • Your skills and at least 12 months continuous experience (within the last three years) in the nominated occupation must be relevant to the ACT economy (primarily knowledge-based)

Western Australia

Occupation list for WA State nomination under the new 491 visa is here below:

https://www.seekvisa.com.au/western-australian-skilled-migration-occupation-list-wasmol/

There are two types of nomination criteria as General stream and graduate stream

One have to meet DHA requirements for both streams.

A nominated occupation available on the Western Australia skilled occupation list for General Stream and on the Graduate occupation list for  Graduate Stream.

Meet minimum English reuirements which is same for both streams.

Demonstrate the minimum required work experience in nominated occupation. Its same for Bachelors and other higher degree gradudates but not required for Masters and PhDgraduates.

Provide contract of employment.

For Graduate Stream one have to demonstrate the minimum requirements for Western Australian study but not required for General Stream.

Demonstraion of sufficient settlement funds but only required if you are not currently living in Western Australia.

Norther Territory

First we will talk about nomination criteria in which one have to

  • Show evidence that you can be easily employed in the NT, which could include
    • a statement describing your understanding of the NT employment market for your occupation / industry and how your skills and experience are in line with NT employer needs (a generic statement is insufficient on its own)
  • evidence your occupation has been advertised in the NT multiple times and explanations of how your qualifications and experience match the selection criteria for real job examples (simple one or two sentence generic statements are insufficient)
    real feedback from NT employers on your skills and experience (auto-generated responses from job websites and employer HR departments are insufficient) and employment contract should be from an NT employer.

 

And for living in Northern Territory

  • bank statements for the six months before applying that clearly show your day-to-day spending in the NT as evidence you have been living in the NT, and
  • payslips for six months from a NT employer – this is not required for applicants who have completed their eligible studies in the NT.

Overseas applicant

  • verifiable evidence of full-time employment in your nominated occupation for at least 12 months out of the last 24 months or evidence that you have Australian qualifications.
  • evidence that you have done detailed research into living and working in the NT to show that you have a realistic knowledge of the NT including climate, relocation costs and living expenses – parts of websites copied and pasted into your submission are not accepted.

Not NT graduate or NT resident

You must show financial capacity to settle in NT.

Queensland

To be eligible for Queensland nomination, you must meet both the Australian Department of Home Affairs (HA)  criteria and Business and Skilled Migration Queensland (BSMQ) criteria for your chosen visa category. The occcupation list can be seen here.

 

https://www.seekvisa.com.au/queensland-skilled-occupation-lists-qsol/

 

Queensland skilled program is now open.

BSMQ:

BSMQ criteria requires you to:

  • have an occupation on the QSOL ‘Working in Queensland’ list (onshore list)
  • provide evidence of full-time post-qualification employment. If you are lodging an EOI for a 491 visa you must be LIVING and WORKING (full-time post qualification, minimum 35 hours per week) in REGIONAL Queensland in your nominated occupation for the past 3 months IMMEDIATELY prior to EOI submission.
  • For the 491 it must be an ongoing employment in a REGIONAL area for a further 12 months (minimum 35 hours per week).
  • commit to living and working in Queensland for 2 years for the 190 visa and 3 years for the 491 from visa grant.

 

 

Offshore

BSMQ criteria requires you to:

  • have an occupation on the QSOL ‘Offshore’ list
  • provide evidence that you have a minimum of 2 years post-qualification work experience in your nominated occupation. More experience may be required for certain occupations.
  • commit to living and working in Queensland from the date that you arrive in Queensland to live permanently.

The 491 Small Business Owners (SBO) Pathway is now OPEN:

This option can be used to reward small business owners in regional Queensland for investing in the local business community and provides employment opportunities for local residents.

Tasmania

State nomination from Tasmania for this visa provides you with 15 additional points to help you meet the Department of Home Affairs’ points test pass mark of 65 points. More information on this is available under “Eligibility”.

You may be eligible to apply for permanent residency through the Subclass 191 Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional) visa after you have lived in Tasmania for at least three years and earned a minimum taxable income that meets the minimum threshold determined by the Department of Home Affairs for at least 3 years (currently set at AU$53,900).

Category 1 – Tasmanian graduate

To be considered for this category, you must meet all of the following criteria.

  • you must have completed and graduated from a CRICOS registered tertiary institution in Tasmania. The course undertaken:
    • must be a degree (bachelor or any higher degree), a diploma (standard, advanced, associate or graduate) or a trade qualification (minimum Cert III level for a skilled occupation in Major Group 3 in ANZSCO)
    • must have a minimum duration of one academic year (40 weeks)
    • must be full time and on site in Tasmania
  • you have lived in the state for at least 1 year during your period of study
  • you and your dependents are currently living in Tasmania and can provide evidence of your ongoing genuine commitment.

 

Category 2 – Working in Tasmania

*If you are looking for employment opportunities in Tasmania, please refer to the comprehensive resources on the Make It Tasmania website.

To be considered for this category, you must meet all of the following criteria:

  • you must have been working in Tasmania for six months immediately prior to your application for state nomination. You do not have to be working in your nominated occupation. Your employment needs to:
    • be at least 35 hours per week in one full-time job or in two or more part-time jobs and you are able to provide evidence of your employment claims (see Document Checklist – Employment for more details)
    • fill a genuine, ongoing skill shortage in Tasmania
  • you and your dependents must currently be living in Tasmania and can provide evidence of genuine commitment to continue to live in Tasmania (please refer to disclaimer at the bottom of this page for indicators as to how to meet this requirement)
  • your employer must have a well-established business that has been actively operating in Tasmania for the past 12 months
  • there must be a genuine need for your position within the business.

 

Category 3A – Overseas applicant (TSOL)

*If you are looking for employment opportunities in Tasmania, please refer to the comprehensive resources for on the Make It Tasmania website.

To be considered for this category, you must be living overseas and meet all of the following criteria:

  • your nominated occupation must be listed on the Tasmanian Skilled Occupation List (TSOL)
  • you, or any of your dependants have not lived in another Australian state or territory within the last twelve months
  • you have achieved the English requirement specified in the TSOL for your nominated occupation in a recognised English language testor hold a passport of the UK, Ireland, the USA, Canada or New Zealand
  • you meet the requirements specified in the TSOL for your nominated occupation
  • you have researched the Tasmanian labour market and, unless your occupation is listed as “High Demand” in the TSOL, provide evidence that there are sufficient employment opportunities (at least five and not more than eight opportunities) in your nominated occupation in Tasmania and that you have:
    • skills and recent experience relevant to the researched employment opportunities
    • skills and experience relevant to the Tasmanian economy (see Document Checklist – Employability for more guidance),
  • if your occupation is listed as “High Demand” and you meet the specified requirements, employability evidence is not required
  • you have access to sufficient financial assets to fund your migration and settlement in Tasmania for at least 6 months while you seek employment.

 

Category 3B – Overseas applicant (Job offer)

*If you are looking for employment opportunities in Tasmania, please refer to the comprehensive resources for on the Make It Tasmania website.

To be considered for this category, you must be living overseas and meet all of the following criteria.

  • have received a formal job offer for a job that is based in Tasmania that is in your nominated occupation
  • you, or any of your dependents have not have lived in another Australian state or territory within the last 12 months
  • your employer must have a well-established business that has been actively operating in Tasmania for the past 12 months
  • there needs to be a genuine need for your position within the business. This may be satisfied if there is:
    • an existing, current and genuine need for your position within the business
    • an ongoing need for your position and the capacity for the business to sustain the nominated position

Category 4 – Family in Tasmania

To be considered for this category you must have an IMMEDIATE family member who meets all of the following criteria:

  • has been an Australian Permanent Resident or an Australian Citizen for a minimum of 12 months prior to the lodgement of your application
  • is currently residing in Tasmania and has been for a minimum of 12 months
  • is a parent, brother, sister, child, aunt, uncle, or grandparent only direct relationships will lie under this category.
  • agrees to support and assist you in the process of gaining employment in Tasmania upon your arrival in Tasmania.

Category 5 – Small Business Owner

To be considered for this category, you must be living in Tasmania at the time of lodgement of your application and meet the following criteria:

  • demonstrate that your business has been established and operating in Tasmania for at least 6 months with comprehensive business plan.
  • demonstrate that the business is highly likely able to give you a personal income that would meet the minimum taxable income requirement set by Home Affairs for the subclass 191 Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional) visa. Currently, that is AU$53,900 per year for at least 3 years in the next 5 years.

South Australia

For SA 491 nomination there are two Occupation Lists:

For state Nomination Occupation List: https://www.migration.sa.gov.au/skilled-migrants/lists-of-state-nominated-occupations

Supplementary Skilled List: https://www.migration.sa.gov.au/skilled-migrants/lists-of-state-nominated-occupations

Skilled workers and international graduates of South Australia seeking nomination must meet both state nomination and Department of Home Affairs requirements.

State nomination requirements include:

  1. Commitment to South Australia– You need to commit to living and working in South Australia for two years from when you arrive, with a view to long-term settlement
  2. Age– under 45 years at the time of nomination
  3. Occupation – this must be listed on the State Nominated Occupation List as available.  Access to a supplementary occupation list and ‘special conditions apply’ occupations are available in some circumstances.
  4. Skills Assessment– a positive General Skilled Migration skills assessment from the relevant authority
  5. Work experience– at least one year of skilled work experience in the last three years. Some occupations have a higher work experience requirement. If you are an international graduate of South Australia, you may be able to access a work experience waiver
  6. English– ability to meet Immigration SA’s minimum English language requirement for your occupation.  If you are a passport holder or citizen of the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada or New Zealand, you don’t need to provide an English test result
  7. Financial capacity– sufficient funds to settle in South Australia
  8. SkillSelect Expression of Interest (EOI) – you need to have an EOI which meets the Department of Home Affairs criteria and Immigration SA nomination requirements.