Regional Migration to Australia: The Subclass 191 Visa and a Valuable Pathway to Permanent Residency

Understanding “Regional Australia”

According to the Australian Government’s definition, “regional” areas are geographic areas outside major metropolitan centres such as Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. This means that many other scenic cities and areas of Australia are classified as regional and benefit from priority migration policies.

States and territories notable for strong regional migration support include:

• South Australia (SA): Includes the capital, Adelaide, and surrounding agricultural areas. South Australia is known for its policies supporting international students and for offering a clear skilled migration pathway through the Regional Occupation List (ROL).
• Tasmania (TAS): The entire state of Tasmania is considered regional and generally offers flexible state nomination policies, which benefit international students and skilled workers.
• Northern Territory (NT): The northern territory, with its capital Darwin, has high demand for workers and offers attractive settlement incentives.
• Australian Capital Territory (ACT), Canberra: Although it is the national capital, Canberra is classified as a regional area and operates its own points-based Matrix system to attract talent.
• Regional Queensland, Victoria and Western Australia (WA): Areas outside the major metropolitan centres of these states are also potential destinations, with a wide range of employment opportunities and support policies.

Popular Visa Pathways to Regional Migration

The regional migration pathway centres on two key visas: the Subclass 491 visa (provisional) and the Subclass 191 visa (permanent).

1. Subclass 491: Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) Visa

This is a five-year provisional visa and an important stepping stone towards permanent residency in Australia through the regional pathway.

Key features:

• You must be nominated by an Australian state or territory government, or sponsored by an eligible relative living in a regional area.
• You may work, study and live in any designated regional area of Australia.
• This visa attracts additional points under the Expression of Interest (EOI) points test compared with visas that do not require a regional connection.

Basic requirements:

• Your occupation must appear on a relevant skilled occupation list (including the MLTSSL, STSOL and ROL).
• You must achieve the required EOI points score at the time of invitation.
• You must meet the minimum English language requirement (for example, IELTS 6.0 in each component, or equivalent).
• You must hold a positive skills assessment for your nominated occupation.
• You must be under 45 years of age at the time of application.

Pathway to permanent residency: After holding the Subclass 491 visa for at least three years and meeting the specified residence and income requirements, you may be eligible to apply for the Subclass 191 permanent residency visa.

2. Subclass 191: Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional) Visa

This is the final permanent residency visa in the regional migration pathway, and it is the visa that grants you permanent residency in Australia.

Key features:

• It is available exclusively to holders of the Subclass 491 visa (or the former Subclass 494 visa) who have held that visa for the prescribed minimum period (generally three years).
• Once the Subclass 191 visa is granted, you become an Australian permanent resident with full entitlements, including access to Medicare, social security benefits and the opportunity to apply for citizenship.

Basic requirements:

• You must demonstrate that you have lived and worked in a designated regional area throughout the period of holding the Subclass 491 visa (a minimum of three years).
• You must submit your three most recent tax returns to demonstrate that you have met the minimum annual taxable income threshold set by the Department of Home Affairs (currently AUD 53,900 per year, for each qualifying year). Although the Department does not impose a direct minimum income requirement for the Subclass 191 visa in the form of a separate condition, demonstrating valid and stable income through tax returns is mandatory.
• You must comply with all Subclass 491 visa conditions throughout the period of holding the visa.

Key Advantages of the Regional Migration Pathway

Choosing to settle in regional areas offers several competitive advantages compared with major cities:

• Higher invitation rates: Regional states tend to adopt more flexible talent-attraction policies, which can result in higher rates of invitation for the Subclass 491 visa compared with the Subclass 189 or 190 visas in major metropolitan areas.
• Flexible state nomination conditions: Many regional states set less competitive nomination criteria and may even give priority to graduates of institutions in that state.
• Clear pathway to permanent residency: With the Subclass 491 visa, you have a defined pathway to permanent residency through the Subclass 191 visa after three years, providing greater certainty about your future.
• Access to support: Students studying in regional areas are often given priority in tuition fees, may have access to special scholarship programmes, and may benefit from housing and employment support policies from local governments.
• High quality of life: Lower living costs, a peaceful environment, clean air, less competition for jobs in certain occupations, and close-knit communities are significant advantages.