Skilled Visa Lawyers

The legal minimum is 65 points, but meeting the minimum does not result in an invitation in any realistically competitive occupation. Invitation cut-offs are set by the Department each round based on the distribution of points among all current EOI holders. The cut-off is not published in advance and varies by round and by occupation.

In most IT, engineering, accounting, and health occupations, the practical cut-off for a Subclass 189 invitation has been between 90 and 110+ points in recent years. The 190 and 491 often have lower effective thresholds because they draw from separate pools, but each state also applies its own minimum. The honest answer is that we need to look at your specific occupation and current data before telling you where you actually stand.

Processing times vary significantly by assessing authority. Engineers Australia and ACS typically take 8 to 12 weeks for straightforward applications. VETASSESS can take similar timeframes. AHPRA and TRA (trades) can take considerably longer, particularly if they request additional information or require interviews. Some assessing bodies offer priority processing for an additional fee, which can reduce timeframes but does not guarantee an outcome.

The most effective way to minimise assessment time is to submit a complete, well-documented application at first instance. Applications that require follow-up requests from the assessing body can add months to the process. We advise on exactly what each authority requires before you submit, to avoid avoidable delays.

Yes. Your partner and dependent children can be included as secondary applicants and will share your visa conditions and residency rights. Including a partner who meets the skills assessment basic requirements and English requirements can also add up to 10 points to your application, which may be significant depending on your overall score.

All secondary applicants must meet health and character requirements. Additional government application fees apply per family member. We ensure that all family members are properly included and that their documentation is complete before lodgement.

The Subclass 190 grants permanent residence immediately on grant. The Subclass 491 is provisional for 5 years, requires you to live and work in a designated regional area, and leads to permanent residence through the Subclass 191 only after 3 years of regional residence and meeting an income threshold.

The 491 offers 15 additional points versus 5 for the 190, making it more accessible for applicants with lower base scores. The trade-off is a longer and more demanding pathway to permanence and a genuine obligation to live regionally. If you are willing and able to live in regional Australia, the 491 can open doors that the 189 and 190 do not. If you need to be in Sydney, Melbourne, or Brisbane for work or family reasons, the regional obligation makes the 491 unworkable regardless of the points advantage.

For skilled migration purposes, regional Australia excludes Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, and the Gold Coast. Most other parts of Australia qualify, including Adelaide, Canberra, Hobart, Darwin, and regional cities such as Newcastle, Wollongong, Geelong, Cairns, Townsville, and many others.

The definition can shift with policy updates, and some regional study bonuses have their own definitional thresholds that differ from the residence obligation definition. We always confirm the current applicable definition for your specific circumstances before you plan around it, because a location that was regional last year may not meet the current standard.

The Subclass 485 is available to international students who have completed at least 2 years of study in Australia at a registered Australian institution, satisfying the Australian study requirement. You must apply within 6 months of your course completion notification, meet English language requirements, and hold a current passport.

The Graduate Work stream is for those with qualifications relating to an occupation on the skilled occupation list. The Post-Study Work stream is available for Bachelor, Masters, or Doctorate graduates from Australian institutions regardless of occupation. Duration varies from 18 months to 5 or more years depending on qualification level and whether study was completed in a regional area.

Skilled visa applicants must demonstrate at least competent English, which corresponds to IELTS 6.0 overall, PTE Academic 50, TOEFL iBT 60, Cambridge C1 Advanced 169, or OET B overall. Competent English attracts no additional points. Proficient English (IELTS 7.0) adds 10 points. Superior English (IELTS 8.0) adds 20 points.

Given how competitive invitation cut-offs are, there is a strong case for maximising your English score before submitting your EOI. The difference between proficient and superior English is 10 points, which in many occupations is the entire difference between an invitation and none. Citizens of certain English-speaking countries are exempt from the test requirement, but we confirm the current exemption list before relying on this.

Processing times vary by subclass and year. For the Subclass 189 and 190, the Department generally processes straightforward applications within 6 to 18 months. The 491 follows a similar range. The 485 is typically processed within a few months, though this depends on application volume.

Applications that are incomplete, require additional documentation, or involve health or character considerations take longer. A complete, well-documented application lodged from the outset significantly reduces the risk of follow-up requests that extend processing time. We always aim to lodge applications that are self-contained and require no further clarification from the Department.

To be eligible for the Subclass 191, you must have held a Subclass 491 visa for at least 3 years and provide ATO Notices of Assessments for 3 of the 5 income years. There is no minimum salary requirement.

You must also have complied with all regional living and working conditions of your 491 throughout that period. We advise 491 holders on maintaining accurate records from the date of grant, because the Department may request evidence of compliance spanning the full 3-year period. Gaps in records or periods of non-regional residence discovered at the 191 stage are very difficult to remedy retrospectively.

An EOI remains active in SkillSelect for 24 months. If your score is not competitive during that period, your EOI expires and you must submit a new one if you wish to continue. There is no limit on how many times you can submit an EOI, and your previous submission does not affect a new one.

If your score has not changed and the cut-off has not moved in your favour, resubmitting without any changes will produce the same result. If this is the situation you are in, we advise on what legitimate options exist to improve your score or whether an alternative pathway such as employer sponsorship or a different visa subclass may be more appropriate for your circumstances.

Yes. Completing an accredited Professional Year program in Australia in an accounting, computing, or engineering occupation adds 5 points under the Professional Year category. A Professional Year is a structured 12-month program that combines formal coursework with a work placement component and is designed to help internationally trained graduates integrate into the Australian professional environment.

For graduates with scores in the 75 to 85 point range, 5 additional points from a Professional Year can meaningfully improve invitation prospects. However, the value of spending 12 months in a Professional Year program must be weighed against the time cost and whether those same 12 months could be used to gain Australian skilled work experience points instead, which in some occupations may yield a greater points benefit.

The occupation you nominate must be the occupation your assessing authority has assessed you under and, ultimately, the occupation the Department determines your work experience relates to. Job titles do not determine ANZSCO classification; the actual duties performed in the role do.

In some cases, an individual's work history genuinely spans duties covered by more than one ANZSCO code. Where this is the case, it may be worth exploring whether a different ANZSCO classification is a more accurate and more advantageous fit for your skills profile. This is a legitimate exercise when done correctly and honestly. It is not legitimate if the occupation nominated is simply strategically chosen without a genuine basis in your actual employment history and duties.

All applicants and secondary applicants must satisfy health and character requirements. Health assessments are conducted by Department-approved panel physicians and generally include a medical examination and chest x-ray. Certain health conditions that would impose significant costs on the Australian health system or public health risk may result in a refusal or a request for a health undertaking.

Character requirements involve disclosure of all criminal history, adverse visa decisions, and associations with people of character concern. A prior criminal record does not automatically result in refusal, but the nature, recency, and sentence imposed are all assessed. Failure to disclose relevant history is treated very seriously by the Department and can result in cancellation of a visa even after it is granted. We advise on character matters as part of our assessment and help you present your history accurately and in the most complete way possible.

Government application fees are paid directly to the Department and are non-refundable regardless of the outcome. As a general guide, the Subclass 189 and 190 fees for the primary applicant are currently around $4,910, with additional fees for secondary applicants aged 18 and over and dependent children. The Subclass 491 fee is similar. The Subclass 485 is approximately $2,300. Fees are indexed annually and should always be verified on the Department's official website at the time of lodgement.

Our professional fees are separate, quoted clearly before you commit to proceeding, and can be paid in stages aligned to the stages of your application. We do not require full payment upfront.

If your skilled visa application is refused, you may have the right to apply for review at the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) depending on the grounds of refusal. The ART can substitute the Department's decision with a different one if it finds the original decision was wrong in fact or law. Some refusals can also be the subject of judicial review in the Federal Court if there is a legal error in the decision.

Review prospects depend heavily on the specific reason for refusal. Some refusals arise from points calculation disputes or documentation deficiencies that can be addressed at review. Others arise from more fundamental eligibility issues that a review cannot resolve. We advise on review options honestly after reviewing the refusal decision, including where we believe the prospects of success do not justify the cost and time involved.

Once you lodge a valid skilled visa application in Australia, you are typically granted a Bridging Visa A (BVA) which allows you to remain in Australia lawfully while your application is processed. The BVA generally carries work rights if your previous visa had work rights, or you can apply for work rights to be attached to the bridging visa.

If you are offshore when you lodge or while waiting, you are not in Australia on a bridging visa and your Australian work rights will depend on the status of any other visa you hold. We confirm your exact status and any travel implications before lodgement to avoid unintended gaps in your lawful status or work rights.

Applicants do not receive a bridging visa when filing an Expression of Interest.

You are entitled to lodge your own skilled visa application without professional representation. Many applicants do, and in straightforward cases with clear occupation classifications, high points scores, and no complications, it is possible to do successfully.

Where legal advice adds material value is in cases involving borderline or complex occupation classification, borderline points scores where maximisation matters, adverse skills assessment outcomes, state nomination strategy that requires current program intelligence, character or health considerations, or any situation where an error in the application could result in refusal of a matter that is otherwise viable. We are direct about where professional advice is likely to make a genuine difference to your outcome and where it may not. We do not take on matters where we believe the client would be fine proceeding without us.

We start with a visa assessment consultation where we review your occupation, points score, English results, employment history, and any other relevant factors. We give you an honest read of your options, including which visa pathway is most appropriate, what your realistic invitation prospects are, and whether there are steps worth taking before you submit your EOI. This assessment is not a sales process; it is a genuine professional evaluation.

If you choose to engage us after the consultation, we provide a clear fee agreement that covers each stage of the matter. You have a 2-day cooling-off period after signing during which you can withdraw without penalty. We do not pressure you into signing and we do not use countdown timers, urgency tactics, or vague fee structures. We operate like the law firm we are.

Completing at least 2 years of study in Australia satisfies the Australian study requirement and attracts 5 additional points. If at least 1 year of that study was undertaken in a designated regional area, a further 5 points are available under the regional study bonus, bringing the potential total study-related bonus to 10 points above what the base qualification provides.

For applicants who studied at a university or TAFE in a regional location, these points are often already available and simply need to be declared accurately in the EOI with appropriate documentation. We verify the eligibility criteria and documentation requirements before submission to ensure these points are claimed correctly and can withstand scrutiny.