Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189) for Medical Professionals
This stream is for Points-tested skilled workers who are not sponsored by an employer or family member or nominated by a state or territory government. To find out if you are eligible and the process for the visa, please refer to our Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189) (Points-Tested) Stream page.
Skilled Nominated (subclass 190) and Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) (subclass 491) Visas for Medical Professionals
Unlike the 189 visa, both 190 and 491 visas require skilled workers to be nominated by a state or territory government. The main difference between these two visas is that the 491 visa is a temporary visa (5 year validity). 491 visa holders have a pathway to permanent residency through the subclass 191 visa after living and working in a designated regional area for at least 3 years and meeting the minimum taxable income requirement. For more information, please visit our Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190) and Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491) page.
Queensland
Information current as at October 2026.
Migration Queensland nominates skilled workers for the Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190) and the Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491). Doctors, nurses, midwives, psychologists and allied health professionals make up a large part of Queensland’s Onshore Skills List.
Queensland program status (November 2026)
- Queensland’s Registrations of Interest (ROIs) for the 2025-26 program are closed: all nomination places for that year were filled.
- Migration Queensland published its 2026-27 State Nominated Migration Program on 30 October 2026, with updated program requirements and skilled occupation lists. Registrations of Interest for 2026-27 open on 6 November 2026.
- Onshore applicants must have lodged their 2025-26 tax return and received their ATO Notice of Assessment before submitting an ROI.
- Invited applicants who already lodged an application continue to be assessed once new places are allocated.
The criteria below are Queensland’s 2025-26 settings. Migration Queensland has updated its requirements for 2026-27, so check the current 2026-27 pathway criteria and occupation lists before you submit an ROI.
Requirements for all Queensland pathways (2025-26)
- An occupation on the Queensland Onshore Skills List (onshore and graduate pathways) or the Queensland Offshore Skills List (offshore pathway), available for the visa you want.
- At least 65 points on the Home Affairs points test (earlier years required 80 points for some 190 pathways; this no longer applies).
- At least competent English (earlier years required proficient English).
- An EOI in SkillSelect that is accurate and up to date. Queensland no longer requires Queensland to be your only state, and EOIs are considered until they are 715 days old.
- A commitment to live and work in Queensland for at least two years after a 190 grant, or in regional Queensland for at least three years after a 491 grant.
- If you have applied for or hold a 491 or 489 visa, you cannot be nominated for the 190.
Queensland selects candidates using skills and qualifications, work experience, salary and job security, location of employment, age, English and your partner’s skills, and gives weight to occupations most needed in regional, rural and remote Queensland.
Queensland nomination pathways for health professionals (2025-26 settings)
For skilled workers already living and working in Queensland (onshore).
- Work history: immediately before your ROI you have been living and working in Queensland for the past 9 months (190), or in regional Queensland for the past 6 months (491).
- The work must be after your qualification, in an occupation with the same first three ANZSCO digits as your nominated occupation (for example any registered nurse specialisation for a registered nurse), and at least 20 hours a week.
- Casual work and multiple jobs can count, and working from home is accepted if your employer has a physical presence in Queensland.
- You must still be in an eligible role when you lodge your ROI, when you are invited and when you are nominated.
How a Queensland nomination application works
- Check the requirements for Home Affairs and for your Queensland pathway, and review the Migration Queensland documentation checklist.
- Lodge or update your EOI in SkillSelect. If you live in Queensland, your usual country of residence must be Australia.
- Submit a Registration of Interest (ROI) when Queensland is open. A new ROI is needed each program year, you can only have one ROI at a time, and you must meet every requirement when you submit it.
- Receive an invitation if your ROI is selected, then upload your documents to the documentation portal and pay the nomination fee (check the 2026-27 fee on the Migration Queensland website). Fees are not refundable.
- Nomination: if approved, Queensland nominates you in SkillSelect and you receive an invitation to apply for the visa, which you must lodge within 60 days.
- After the grant: live and work in Queensland (190) or regional Queensland (491) for the committed period.
See our Queensland 190 visa requirements page for the latest program updates, and our 190 visa and 491 visa pages for the visa stage.
Ahpra registration for health professionals moving to Queensland
To work as a registered health practitioner in Queensland you need registration with the relevant National Board through the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra). Queensland’s onshore pathways require current work in Queensland in a related occupation, so registration normally has to be in place before you can meet the work experience rules.
- Doctors: international medical graduates follow the Medical Board of Australia and Australian Medical Council pathways. See our International Medical Graduates and Registration in Australia page.
- Nurses and midwives: register with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia; ANMAC carries out the migration skills assessment. See our Registered Nurse Pathway to PR page.
- Allied health: physiotherapists, occupational therapists, psychologists, pharmacists, podiatrists, optometrists, dental practitioners and medical radiation practitioners register with their National Board. Speech pathologists, audiologists, dietitians and sonographers are self-regulated.
- English: most National Boards require a higher English standard than the competent English needed for Queensland nomination.
Employer sponsored options for health workers in Queensland
While Queensland’s state nomination program is closed, employer sponsorship is the main option for many health workers. Healthcare is a top priority sector for visa processing under Ministerial Direction 121 (subclass 482) and Ministerial Direction 122 (subclasses 186, 190, 491, 494 and others), which commenced on 19 September 2026.
The Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482) lets an approved sponsor employ you for up to four years.
- Core Skills stream: occupation on the Core Skills Occupation List (CSOL) and a salary of at least $79,423 (from 1 July 2026) and the market rate.
- Specialist Skills stream: salary of at least $146,576 (from 1 July 2026).
- After two years with your sponsor you can generally apply for the 186 Temporary Residence Transition stream.
- Health Workforce Certificates are no longer required for employer sponsored nominations (the requirement was removed on 16 September 2023). Overseas trained doctors who want to bill Medicare generally need to work in a Distribution Priority Area or meet another exemption.
Queensland health occupations for state nomination
This table shows health occupations on the Queensland Onshore Skills List (2025-26 list, still published in October 2026), whether they are available for the 190 and 491, whether they are on the Queensland Offshore Skills List, and their national list status (MLTSSL for the 189 visa, CSOL for the 482 Core Skills stream and 186 Direct Entry). Information current as at October 2026.
Sources: Migration Queensland Onshore and Offshore Skills Lists and pathway pages, checked October 2026; national lists as published by Home Affairs (CSOL from 7 December 2024), checked October 2026.
Common mistakes in Queensland health nominations
Relying on the old 80 point rule
The 80 point minimum was a 2021-22 setting. Queensland’s current published minimum is 65 points, but higher scores, salary and regional employment still make your ROI more competitive.
Work in the wrong ANZSCO group
Onshore work must share the first three ANZSCO digits with your nominated occupation. A registered nurse working as an assistant in nursing does not meet this rule.
Not being in an eligible job at every stage
You must be in an eligible role when you lodge the ROI, when you are invited and when you are nominated. Changing jobs or reducing hours in between can make you ineligible.
Using an expiring EOI
EOIs older than 715 days, or expiring in less than two weeks, are not considered. Create a new EOI and ROI if needed.
Previous criteria (2021-22)
These are Queensland’s 2021-22 settings, shown for reference only. They no longer apply.
- 190 for skilled workers living in Queensland: points of 80 or higher, proficient English, six months living and working in Queensland and a further 12 months of employment.
- 491 for skilled workers living in regional Queensland: proficient English, three months living and working full time in regional Queensland and a further 12 months of employment.
- Graduates: a PhD pathway for the 190, and bachelor and master’s graduates with a GPA of 6.0 or higher for the 491.
- Regional Queensland postcodes used at the time: 4124 to 4125, 4133, 4183 to 4184, 4207 to 4275, 4280 to 4287, 4306 to 4498, 4507, 4517 to 4519, 4550 to 4575 and 4580 to 4895.
The image below showed the 2021-22 quotas for registered nurses.
Jamie Lim
Jamie is an Australian Regulated Migration Advisor (RMA 1799460). Jamie has extensive immigration services experience across multiple visa subclasses and specialises in employer sponsored visas. He has a wide range of experience in corporate migration, including employer-sponsored visas and immigration compliance, and has managed small to large multinational corporate clients. Jamie also has specific experience with medical professionals, skills assessments, state sponsorships as well as partner visas. Book a time with Jamie here.
Jamie holds a Bachelor of Laws (Hons) from Monash University. Jamie speaks Mandarin Chinese as a second language.
His specialities include but not limited to:
Related guides
- Employer Sponsored Visas Comparison for Registered Nurses
- Health Practitioners: Visa Options to Travel and Work in Australia
- International Medical Graduates and Registration in Australia
- Medical Practice and Hospital Sponsors Visa Options for Overseas Trained Medical Professionals
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- QLD state nomination requirements
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