Which General Skilled Migration visa—the 189 Independent, the 190 State Nominated, or the 491 Regional (Provisional) visa—is best for you?

Overview of General Skilled Migration (GSM)

The three visas are under the General Skilled Migration (GSM) Program, hence they all operate under the point-test system to allow the Australian Government to invite the best suitable skilled workers to migrate to Australia, based on their age, qualification, skilled work experience, English language skills and many other factors.  

While Skilled Independent (subclass 189)* and Skilled Nominated (subclass 190) visas are both permanent visas, Skilled Worker Regional (Provisional) (subclass 491) visa is a provisional visa which provides a pathway to apply for Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional) (subclass 191) visa. It is worth noting that within 3 years from the date of grant of 491 visa, you cannot apply for a certain of skilled visas, i.e., subclass 188, 189, 190, or 858 visa, or onshore partner visa.  

*There are three streams under subclass 189 visa, namely Point tested stream, New Zealand stream and Hong Kong stream. In this article, we only discuss Point tested stream.  

Different to 189 visa which has no requirement of nomination or sponsorship, both 190 and 491 visas require nomination or sponsorship. 190 visa requires a nomination by a State or Territory Government agency, while 491 visa is either nominated by a State or Territory Government agency or sponsored by an eligible relative in designated regional areas.  

 

Common Grounds of 189 visa, 190 visa and 491 visa

As all three visas are operated under the GSM program, therefore they share some common formalities and criteria.  

  • Invitation 

Candidates must lodge an Express of Interest (EOI) through SkillSelect system, and you can apply for a kind of those visas only after you have received an invitation in the SkillSelect system. 

EOI will be stored in SkillSelect for 2 years and each EOI can receive up to 2 invitations in total, it would otherwise become expired or invalid. After that, candidates must re-submit a new EOI.  

You will have 60 days to lodge the visa application after you have received an invitation.  

  • Age 

Primary applicants must be aged under 45 at the time of receiving an invitation for a kind of those visas.   

  • Nominated Occupation 

Candidates must nominate an occupation, and the occupation must be on the relevant list of eligible skilled occupations for the 189, 190 or 491 visas respectively.  

  • Skills Assessment 

Candidates must have a suitable skills assessment for the nominated occupation at time of invitation. Also, the skills assessment must be valid within three (3) years before the date of receiving an invitation.  

  • English Language Ability 

At the time of invitation, Candidates must have a valid Competent English language test result obtained within 3 years or are a citizen of and hold a valid passport of the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Canada, New Zealand or the Republic of Ireland.  

  • Points Tested and Scoring at Minimum 65 Points  

Candidates must participate in the same point-test using the points calculator, and the threshold for invitation is 65-points at the time of invitation. At the time of visa application, you must provide evidence to support the claims.  

 

Differences 

  • Nomination or sponsorship 

189 visa doesn’t require nomination or sponsorship.  

Subclass 190 visa requires a nomination from a State or Territory Government agency, while subclass 491 visa requires a nomination from a State or Territory Government agency or sponsorship by an eligible relative who resides in a regional area. Differently, subclass 189 visa doesn’t need such nomination or sponsorship.  

For 190 or 491 state nominations, the Department of Home Affairs allocates quota to each state or territory each financial year, and each State or Territory Government agency will accordingly set up its own criteria to select candidates. Therefore, it is important that candidates must check those criteria by each state to determine whether they can meet the nomination criteria. Candidates must also review those criteria from time to time as they may be changed at any time.  

Some states or territories are also providing a streamlined pathway to PhD graduates.  

State Government agency doesn’t involve in the 491 sponsorship by eligible relatives. The invitation for 491 sponsored visa by an eligible relative is managed by the Department of Home Affairs as well as the 189 visa.  

 

  • Occupation lists 

Comparing occupations limited in Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL) for 189 visa, 190 or 491 visa share many more skilled occupations in Short-term Skilled Occupation List (STSOL) and Regional Occupation List (ROL) (491 only). However, each State or Territory agency has its own discretion to select occupations from MLTSSL, STSOL, or ROL available for their nomination. In addition, they may impose more conditions on or require higher points for some selected occupations.  

Again, the available nominated occupation lists may be frequently updated, candidates should review relevant state or territory’s occupation lists from time to time to ensure their nominated occupation is still available for nomination.  

 

  • Invitation 

Invitation for 189 visa and 491 visa sponsored by eligible relative are managed directly by the Department of Home Affairs. Invitations are issued regularly (currently quarterly) in the SkillSelect system to the highest ranking EOIs. However, the invitation is subject to occupation ceilings, that is only a limited number of invitations can be issued to a particular occupation in a financial year. It is also observed that during the COVID-19 time, only selected occupations are selected for invitation.  

There’s no such time limitation for 190 State or Territory nomination. The state or territory government has their own discretion to approve nominations across the entire financial year. Once the nomination is approved, the candidate will receive an invitation from the SkillSelect to apply for 190 or 491 visa.  

 

Conclusion 

While the 189, 190 or 491 visas are under the GSM program, their process and criteria are different. Some occupations are not eligible for the 189 visa but may be eligible for 190 or 491 visa. Some candidates may not be eligible for permanent visas, they nevertheless can consider the provisional visa instead. If your nominated occupation is in both MLTSSOL and STSOL, you may have more opportunities as you may qualify for both 189 and 190 visas. If you would like to understand your eligibility for the GSM visas, please contact AHC Lawyers on 02 8310 5230 and speak to our professional immigration lawyers or migration agents. 

 

How Can Agape Henry Crux Help You?   

Australian visa can be very complex - if you want to find out more about a visa or citizenship matter, please do not hesitate to contact us. You can book a Migration Planning Session with one of our immigration lawyers to seek professional advice by calling +612 8310 5230 or email us to book in a time at info@ahclawyers.com.   

We speak fluent English, Korean, Japanese, Mandarin, Cantonese, Indonesian, Burmese and Malay. If these aren’t your language, we can also help you arrange an interpreter. 

This article/presentation (“publication”) does not deal extensively with important topics or changes in law and is not intended to be relied upon as a substitute for legal or other advice that may be relevant to the reader's specific circumstances. If you find this publication of interest and would like to know more or wish to obtain legal advice relevant to your circumstances, please contact our office. 

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