Subclass 491 - Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) Visa

Introduction

Like the subclass 190 visa, you must obtain sponsorship from an Australian state or territory government to obtain this visa. This visa is valid for a period of three years after which it can be converted to permanent residence as long as you lived in a particular area for two years and worked there for one year. This visa enables you and family members included in your application to:

stay in Australia for five years and provides a pathway to permanent residence after three
work and study in Australia

Eligibility

This visa requires you to meet a number of requirements.

you must nominate an occupation on the Skilled Occupation List
you must have passed the relevant skill assessment for your occupation
you must be aged less than 50 years old
at least competent English (IELTS 6 or equivalent)
you must be able to score at least 65 points on the skilled migration points test (including state sponsorship points)
you must successfully be nominated by an Australian State or Territory Government
you must submit an Expression of Interest to the Immigration Department for selection. State sponsored applicants will usually be selected automatically by the Department.

The main advantage of this visa is that 15 additional points are available to applicants applying under this visa compared to the subclass 189 visa making it easier to satisfy the points test.

Click below for a free assessment of your eligibility!

Free assessment

General Skilled Migration Points Test

You must score at least 65 points on the General Skilled Migration Points Test to apply for migration to Australia via this visa.


Factor	Description	Points
Age	18–24 / 25–32 / 33–39 / 40–44 / 45–49	25/30/25/15/0
English ability	IELTS 6 (all bands)/ OET test B (all bands) Canada, New Zealand, the Republic of Ireland, the United Kingdom or the United States of America	0
	IELTS 7 (all bands)/ OET test B (all bands)	10
	IELTS 8 (all bands)/ OET test A (all bands)	20
Skilled employment	Outside Australia
	In skilled employment for at least three but less than five years (of the past 10 years)	5
	In skilled employment for at least five but less than eight years (of the past 10 years)	10
	In skilled employment for at least eight and up to 10 years (of the past 10 years)	15
	In Australia
	In skilled employment for at least one but less than three years (of the past 10 years)	5
	In skilled employment for at least three but less than five years (of the past 10 years)	10
	In skilled employment for at least five but less than eight years (of the past 10 years)	15
	In skilled employment for at least eight and up to 10 years (of the past 10 years)	20
Qualifications	Doctorate from an Australian educational institution or other doctorate of a recognised standard	20
	At least a bachelor degree from an Australian educational institution or other degree of a recognised standard	15
	Diploma or trade qualification completed in Australia	10
	An award or qualification recognised by the assessing authority in the assessment of the skilled occupation	10
Australian study requirement	One or more degrees, diplomas or trade qualifications awarded by an Australian educational institution and meet the Australian study requirement	5
Other factors	Credentialled community language qualifications	5
	Study in regional Australia or a low population growth metropolitan area (excluding distance education)	5
	Completed Masters by Research or PhD in the last 2 years in Australia in the natural physical sciences, information technology or engineering and related technologies	10
	Professional year in Australia for at least 12 months in the four years before the day you were invited to apply	5
Partner Skills	Single or spouse/ defacto partner under 45, IELTS 6 or above, skilled occupation in same occupation list, and suitable skill assessment	10
Partner Skills	Spouse has competent English (IELTS 6 or equivalent)	5
Nomination/sponsorship (where required)	Nomination by state or territory government (visa subclass 190 only)	5
Nomination/sponsorship (where required)	Nomination by state or territory government or sponsorship by an eligible family member to reside and work in a specified/designated area (visa subclass 491 only)	15