Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) Visa or 491 Visa

This visa is appropriate for skilled workers who want to live and work in regional parts of Australia. Most parts of Australia other than the main cities such as Melbourne, Brisbane, and Sydney are specified regional areas. For instance, Perth and the Gold Coast are considered regional areas.

Skilled workers granted this visa are allowed to:

• Stay in Australia for 5 years from the date their visa is granted.

• Travel inside and outside Australia as many times as they desire during the visa duration time

• Apply for PR or permanent resident since November 16th, 2022

 

Same as all other visa applications there are specific requirements to be eligible for this visa application:

For skilled work regional visa, You shall:

• Be appointed by an Australian state or territory government agency or an eligible relative who sponsored you

• Have a job indicated in the relevant skilled occupation list

• Have proper and positive skills assessment for your job

• Be invited to apply by the Australian Government

• Achieve the points test

• Have proper age

 

Skilled Work Regional Visa or Subclass 491 visa Requirements

This visa has two different pathways:

• The invited

• The subsequent entry

 

The Invited Pathway is the primary visa application in that you are nominated by a state, territory, or sponsored by an eligible relative and invited to apply. First, you shall submit an online EOI or expression of interest, after being invited you shall meet the main visa requirements to be eligible for this visa.

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Requirements:

1. Be sponsored or nominated: You shall be sponsored by an eligible relative or nominated by a state/territory government agency. Submit your Expression of interest or EOI to be able to estimate your points and scores. Once you obtain sufficient points and scores Australian State or Territory government agencies can see your EOI, may verify it, and nominate you. If you indicate on your EOI that you are being sponsored by an eligible family member, the department may invite you to the invitation round to apply for the visa.

2. Have a relevant job: You must be having an occupation on the relevant skilled occupation list.

3. Have proper and positive skills assessment: For your application to be valid, you shall mention that you have a proper skills assessment at the invitation time. It is essential to attach a copy of this skills assessment to your application request. This skills assessment shall be received within 3 years of the invitation date. If this assessment was for a shorter period, the period shall not have passed.

4. Be invited: You can only apply for this visa if you are invited by the government. You can inform us if you would like to apply for this visa by providing an EOI on the skill selection.

5. Meet the points test: For this subclass, a points test is needed. After submitting your EOI on the skill select, a metric score will be shown according to the information provided by you. If your score is lower than 65, you will not be invited. The invitation mentions the number of points you must achieve in evaluating your visa application (this score can be over 65 points, depending on the claims in your EOI)

6. Have the proper age: You shall be under 45 to be invited. If you turn 45 years old after being invited to apply, you can still apply for a visa. If you turn 45 after sending the EOI but before you are invited, you will not receive the invitation

 

There are other requirements such as health, English language, character, etc., that may apply to your application.

 

The primary applicant or the spouse must be related to their relative sponsor as mentioned below:

 

1. Independent children – including biological, adopted, and stepchildren.

2. Parents - including adoptive or step-parents;

3. Brothers or sisters - including adoptive or half-brothers.

4. Niece or nephew – includes adopted or step-niece or nephew. or

5. Aunts or Uncles – including adoptive or step-child aunts or uncles.

6. Grandparents or cousins.

 

Include family

You can:

1. Include them when submitting your visa application.

2. Add dependent children after applying but before finalizing the application.

Family members applying for a visa must meet health and character requirements.

If your spouse or dependent children are not included on this application, you must provide a reason why they are not; for instance, they are Australian citizens or permanent residents already

 

Skill Select Points Test

Points are awarded based on the factors listed in the table below. All factors will be evaluated at the time you are invited to apply for this visa.

Overview

Scoring criteria are evaluated at the time of invitation