Queensland 190 and 491 visa Offshore

Definition of Regional Queensland – applicable regions

Regional Queensland is defined as per the Department of Home Affairs’ list of designated regional area postcodes. You must live and work within one of the following postcodes to be eligible for the Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491):

4019–4022, 4025, 4037, 4074, 4076–4078, 4124–4125, 4133, 4183–4184, 4207–4275, 4280–4287, 4300–4301, 4303–4498, 4500–4512, 4514–4519, 4521, 4550–4575, 4580–4895.

Note: The above postcodes are applicable to those who have been nominated and applied for their 491 visa from 5 March 2022.

If you were nominated or applied for the 491 visa prior to 5 March 2022, the applicable Queensland postcodes are different.

If you were granted a 491 visa prior to 19 November 2019, the Gold Coast is not an eligible region.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible for a Queensland nomination, you must meet both the Australian Department of Home Affairs criteria and Migration Queensland criteria for your chosen visa category.

Home Affairs criteria requires you to:

• have a points-test result of 65 or higher, inclusive of state nomination points;
• have a positive skills assessment in your nominated occupation;
• be under 45 years of age;
• meet the minimum English language requirement of Competent, unless a higher level is required by your assessing authority.

Migration Queensland criteria requires you to:

Requirement	Skilled Nominated (Permanent) visa (subclass 190)	Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491)
Points	Have a points test result of 75 or higher (except for Trades occupations*, which require 70 or higher)	Have a points test result of 65 or higher
Occupation	Have an occupation on the Queensland Skilled Occupation List (QSOL) eligible for the 190 visa pathway	Have an occupation on the Queensland Skilled Occupation List (QSOL) eligible for the 491 visa pathway
English	Have Competent English or higher (except where a higher level of English is required**)	Have Competent English or higher (except where a higher level of English is required**)
Work experience	Must provide evidence of the required years of post-study work experience as per the QSOL. Note: You must be employed in your nominated occupation when you are invited	Must provide evidence of the required years of post-study work experience as per the QSOL Note: You must be employed in your nominated occupation when you are invited
Commitment to living in Queensland	Must commit to living and working in Queensland for two years from date of arrival	Must commit to living and working in regional Queensland for three years from date of arrival

*A trade occupation is defined as an ANZSCO occupation grouping beginning with 3

** Please note that to be registered or licensed in certain occupations, a higher level of English is required. In these cases, it is the responsibility of the applicant to understand the language requirements of the skills assessment and registration process for their nominated occupation. Migration Queensland will not nominate anyone who has lower English than is required for their occupation.

Important notes

• If you have been nominated, applied for or hold a Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491), Migration Queensland will not nominate you for the Skilled Nominated (Permanent) visa (subclass 190). This restriction also applies to the Skilled Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 489).

• If you are eligible for both the 190 and the 491 visas, please submit one EOI and select both visa classes. Please do not submit multiple EOIs – if you do, we will select the first one in the queue and close the rest. You will be offered one invitation only.
• You will receive copies of the State Nomination Application and Settlement Funds Declaration form, if/when Migration Queensland invites you to lodge an application.
• If you have more than one skills assessment, please only submit one EOI for the occupation that best meets your current employment.
• Please ensure that you read the application process, document checklist and all explanatory notes (below) before submitting your application
• Migration Queensland handle a high volume of applications and client enquiries; enquiries about where your application is in the queue or when you will be invited to apply will not receive a response.
• Priority will not be given to invitations where documents or visas are expiring.