This stream is for migrants who are currently living and working in Queensland in their skilled occupation (or closely related), and have an occupation that has been identified as a shortage in Queensland. Applicants under this stream must not be currently studying.

This visa is a provisional visa that allows nominated skilled workers to work and live in REGIONAL Queensland for five years, and is a pathway to permanent residency. Employment can be undertaken in the following ways:

• Work for one or more employers
• Two part-time jobs
• Work in own business as an owner/operator

Applicable regions

Includes locations outside of Brisbane:

4124 to 4125, 4133, 4183 to 4184, 4207 to 4275, 4280 to 4287, 4306 to 4498, 4507, 4517 to 4519, 4550 to 4575, 4580 to 4895.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible for Queensland nomination, you must meet:

A)   the Australian Department of Home Affairs (DOHA)  criteria and

B)   Business and Skilled Migration Queensland (BSMQ) criteria

for your chosen visa category.

BSMQ criteria requires you to:

• have an occupation in a critical skill or sector for the 491 visa.
• If you are lodging an EOI for a 491 visa you must be LIVING and WORKING (full-time post qualification, minimum 35 hours per week) in REGIONAL Queensland in your nominated occupation for the past 3 months IMMEDIATELY prior to EOI submission.
• provide evidence of ongoing employment with a Queensland employer registered in Australia for a further 12 months (minimum of 35 hours per week).
• commit to living and working in Queensland for 3 years from visa grant.

The DOHA 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
• submit additional documents as requested.

Application process

Step 1: Review your eligibility criteria, visa conditions and document checklist above.

Step 2: For Queensland State nomination, submit an EOI with SkillSelect.

Step 3: BSMQ assesses all EOIs that meet the HA and BSMQ criteria. If you are successful, will receive an email invitation to lodge an application and be requested to provide the BSMQ required documents.

Step 4: When you have received your invitation:

1. Upload required documents
2. Pay the non-refundable application fee to BSMQ in order to finalise your application. Do not pay the fee until you have been invited to apply and all documents have been uploaded.

Step 5: Once your completed BSMQ application is received and approved, you will receive an invitation from the HA to lodge your visa application. You will be given 60 days to lodge your application with HA.

Hospitality Skilled Occupations for the 491 visa Round 19 April – 25 April 2020–21

Please note: there is no specific occupation list (apart from the occupations listed above), and other applicants must meet one of the critical skills or sectors as listed.

Please note:  not all applicants will receive an invitation due to limited quota available.

• Please do not submit multiple EOIs.
• The Skilled Nominated (Permanent) visa (subclass 190) remains CLOSED and will not re-open in April 2021 as quota will be filled with the current pipeline.