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491 visa for applicants living in regional Queensland

Update (October 2026)

This post describes a Migration Queensland priority processing campaign from February 2024, and that registration window has closed. As at October 2026 Queensland’s 2025-26 registration of interest intake had closed and its 2026-27 nomination settings had not been confirmed, so check the current criteria before you submit an EOI. Update (November 2026): Queensland’s 2026-27 program has now opened, with registrations of interest from 6 November 2026. Onshore 491 applicants need at least 65 points and competent English, and must have lived and worked in regional Queensland for at least 6 of the last 9 months for a Queensland based employer. See our Queensland nomination requirements page for the full 2026-27 settings. Queensland’s Small Business Owners pathway closed to new businesses from 19 September 2025. See the 491 visa and 190 visa guides and our October 2026 migration news for the latest state nomination updates.

In February 2024 Migration Queensland invited onshore Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491) applicants living in regional Queensland, and who meet Queensland skilled nomination criteria to register for consideration of priority processing.

Eligible applicants could register their details (decision ready applications only) with Migration Queensland for consideration of priority processing from Friday 23 February to Tuesday 27 February 2024 (this window has closed).

Features

Migration Queensland nominates skilled migrants who are outside of Australia (offshore) under two visa subclasses:

The Skilled Nominated (Permanent) visa (subclass 190): This visa is available for offshore skilled workers who wish to live and work in Queensland permanently, and;

The Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491): This visa allows nominated skilled workers to live and work in regional Queensland for five years and is a pathway to permanent residency.

Am I eligible for a 491 visa?

Related guides

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.

Applicants must:

  1. Provide a decision-ready application (ie. all documents must be ready to upload immediately upon invitation).
  2. Currently be living and working in regional Queensland
  3. Have ongoing, full-time employment in regional Queensland for a further six months at time of EOI lodgement
  4. Meet all other Queensland nomination criteria for the Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491).

Additional notes:

  • This is for people genuinely interested in a 491 nomination. If you are nominated for a Skilled Work Regional 491 visa, Migration Queensland will not nominate you for the Skilled Nominated Permanent 190 visa. Requests for a change of nomination from 491 to 190 will not be responded to.
  • Applicants for graduates of a Queensland university who meet the requirements of the Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491) are encouraged to register for priority processing.
  • This is a targeted campaign to seek expressions of interest for decision-ready applications for the Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491). Registering your interest does not guarantee a nomination, as places are still very limited and the process is competitive.
  • If you are genuinely interested in a 491 nomination, this will be one of your final chances to be considered for nomination this program year.
  • If your application does not meet Queensland criteria, or is not decision ready, it will be closed.
  • Migration Queensland continues to process other pathways within our skilled nomination allocation for the 2023 – 2024 financial year

Previous 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 anANZSCO 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.

Application process

Step 1

Review your eligibility criteria, visa conditions, and document checklist on the Department of Home Affairs website and Migration Queensland website. Ensure that you meet both the Home Affairs eligibility criteria and Migration Queensland criteria and that you have all your documentation, including proof of registration if required for your occupation, ready before you apply.

Step 2

Submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) on SkillSelect. Provide all information on your EOI, including work experience. You must select ‘Queensland’ as your only state of interest to be considered.

Step 3

Migration Queensland considers all EOIs that meet the above criteria. If you are invited to apply for nomination, you will receive an email invitation to lodge an application and will be requested to provide the documents required (see list below).

Step 4

When you have received your invitation from Migration Queensland:

  1. upload the required documents – only upload one document per file. If you have multiple documents, merge, and save them as one file, and
  2. pay the non-refundable application fee to finalise your application. Do not pay the fee until you have been invited to apply and all your documents have been uploaded.

Migration Queensland will then assess your application and request any further information.

Note: You will be given 14 calendar days to finalise your application from the date of invitation. Applications not finalised within the time frame will be closed and you will need to submit a new EOI if you wish to seek Queensland nomination again.

Step 5

If you are nominated by Migration Queensland, you will also receive an invitation from the Department of Home Affairs to lodge your visa application. You will be given 60 days to lodge your visa application.

Australian PR Points Calculator
The 491 Small Business Owners (SBO) Pathway 

This option was used to reward small business owners (it closed to new businesses from 19 September 2025) in regional Queensland for investing in the local business community and provides employment opportunities for local residents. For more information see here.

Queensland 491 FAQs

No. The registration window ran from 23 to 27 February 2024 and has closed. Queensland sets new criteria each program year, so check the current Migration Queensland settings before you submit an EOI.

Yes. A 491 visa holder must live, work and study in a designated regional area. In Queensland this means living in one of the postcodes listed above, which cover most of the state outside the Brisbane metropolitan area. See our guide to designated regional area postcodes.

Under the settings described in this post, Migration Queensland would not nominate anyone who had been nominated for, applied for or held a 491 visa for the 190 visa. Many 491 holders instead work towards the 191 permanent visa after three years in regional Australia.

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