With NSW now being the most popular location for foreign nationals, Subclass 491 is a blessing! Immigrants are welcomed with open arms into NSW’s stunning landscapes. With the help of this Visa, you can now stay, study and work in designated regional areas for a period of 5 years.
What Exactly Is A Subclass 491 Visa?
The new skilled work regional 491 visa (Subclass 491 Visa) is a provisional visa that allows all skilled workers and their families to live, study, and work in designated areas of Australia. This visa is having 5-year validity.
The candidate must be either state-nominated or sponsored by an eligible family member who is an NSW permanent resident.
Basic Eligibility Requirements
To be eligible for NSW nomination, you need to meet the following fundamental requirements:
Visa: You must meet all Home Affairs requirements for this visa subclass.
Skills: Be adept in the following occupations:
- as a member of an ANZSCO unit group listed on the NSW Skilled Work Regional Skills List;
- qualify for a Visa for Skilled Work (subclass 491)
Residency: You must be currently resident in NSW or offshore and have been doing so for at least three months.
Work Experience and Point Score: You must have the required amount of skilled work experience and point total for your unit group.
Nomination Pathways
There are two ways to get a Skilled Work Regional visa (subclass 491) in NSW:
Pathway 1 – Apply to an RDA office directly
To apply through this route, you must:
- Check the Home Affairs website to see if you are eligible for this visa subclass.
- Confirm that you match the essential eligibility criteria for NSW indicated above.
- Submit an Expression of Interest in SkillSelect and verify that:
- all information is accurate
- Your EOI is just for the Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 491) and NSW.
- Apply to the RDA office directly in the region where you want to reside and work for the first three years after Home Affairs issue your visa.
- Include proof of all points-claims in your SkillSelect EOI and your current address with your application. A copy of your SkillSelect EOI is also required.
Pathway 2 – Invited by Investment NSW
To be considered for this pathway, you must:
- Check the Home Affairs website to see if you are eligible for this visa subclass.
- Confirm that you match the basic eligibility criteria for NSW indicated above.
- Submit an EOI through SkillSelect and verify that:
- all information is correct
- Your EOI is just for the Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 491) and NSW.
- Be invited to apply during an invitational round.
- NSW will not invite to apply for any reason other than the normal operation of an invitation round. Please do not contact our office to obtain an invitation.
- Submit an application to Investment NSW within 14 days after being invited.
- Provide evidence for all points claimed in your SkillSelect EOI and your current address.
Common Reasons Applications Are Declined
Common causes for application rejection include an applicant’s:
Ineligible to claim all the points in their EOI
It is the EOI owner’s obligation to ensure that they can produce evidence for all of the claims in their SkillSelect EOI. The following are common reasons for being denied for this:
- Obtaining credentialed community language points after your qualification has lapsed. Your CCL certificate should be valid on the day you are requested to apply for these points by NSW.
- Attempting to obtain professional year points when you are not eligible. Your professional year must be spent in your nominated (or closely related) occupation to qualify for these points.
- Earning points for skillful work before the date you are declared an expert in your occupation
Failure to meet the residence requirement
You must reside in NSW or offshore and have done so for at least three months.
Over-Claimed points for employment
If your skills evaluation showed a date when you were deemed proficient in your occupation, you could not claim points for skilled work before that date. This is especially true for ACS and most VETASSESS tests.
You cannot claim points for skilled employment before completing your qualification if your assessment does not include this date.
We strongly advise you to validate that you are entitled to claim all of the points in your SkillSelect EOI and that you have only claimed eligible skilled employment to guarantee you are qualified to accept your NSW invitation.
If you have claimed points incorrectly, you will not be able to accept an invitation to NSW if you are invited. No exceptions exist under any circumstances.
Alternative Migration Pathways
For potential skilled migrants, NSW nomination for the Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491) is merely one of several visa options.
Home Affairs provides a variety of visas, including both temporary and permanent employer-nominated visas. You may also want to consult with a registered migration agent.
