188 VISA – Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) Visa Subclass 188
If you want to own and manage a business or an investment in Australia, or you want to undertake entrepreneurial activities, this visa is the most suitable for you.
188 Visa Basic Eligibility
- You must submit an expression of interest (EOI) in SkillSelect;
- You must be nominated by a State or Territory government agency or Austrade;
- You must be invited to apply for the visa;
- For 2 out of 4 fiscal years immediately before you receive an invitation to apply, you must have had an ownership stake in 1 or 2 businesses that had at least AUD500,000 turnover in each of those 2 years.
- This would also mean you must own at least:
- 51%, of the total value of the business if the business has a turnover of less than AUD400,000 per year;
- 30%, of the total value of the business if the business has a turnover of AUD400,000 or more per year, or
- 10%, of the total value of the business if the business is operated by a publicly listed company.
- You must be under 55 years old;
- You must score at least 65 on the point test.
188 Visa Processing Time
There are no standard processing times available for this visa, so please make sure that your application is complete and you have included all the documents and information needed for the visa.
188 Visa Stay
All of the visa streams here are for a temporary visa that allows you to stay for up to 4 years and 3 months, except for the Business Innovation Extension stream and Significant Investor Extension stream.
Business Innovation Extension stream allows you to stay up to 6 years after the date of the grant of the Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) visa Innovation stream.
Significant Investor Extension Stream allows you to extend your stay for up to 4 more years from your Significant Investor Stream.
Permanent Residence pathway is possible if you are eligible to apply through the stream you are in.
7 Streams for this Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) Visa Subclass 188
There are seven streams for this visa with its various requirements, benefits and other details:
Business Innovation Stream
This visa is for people with business skills and it lets you run a new or existing business in Australia. With this visa, you can travel in and out of Australia as many times as you want while your visa is still valid.
Another advantage of this visa is that you can include your family members. The visa charge fee is variable. For an additional application under 18 years old, the visa costs $2,365 AUD, and $ 4,725 AUD if the applicant is 18 years old. While for you as the main applicant, the visa will cost $9,450 AUD.
You can be in or outside Australia when you apply for the visa, and also when the application is decided, but not in immigration clearance. However, you must be an eligible applicant by operating a new or existing business in Australia and be nominated by an Australian State or Territory government agency. The condition attached to this visa is that you must not marry or be in a de facto relationship before entering Australia, which is known as condition 8515.
Investor Stream
This investor stream requires you to invest at least $2.5 million AUD in an Australian State or Territory and maintain business or investment activity in Australia. So, the basic eligibility to apply for this visa is that you have to invest $2.5 million AUD in an Australian State or Territory, and you must be nominated by an Australian State or Territory government agency. Besides that, you must score at least 65 on the points test, and have a net business, investment and personal assets of at least $2.25 million AUD.
Besides doing business and investment activities in Australia, this visa lets you apply for a permanent Business Innovation and Investment (Permanent) visa (subclass 888) Investor stream. You can also include your family member. This visa will cost you from $6,270 AUD.
Significant Investor Stream
This visa is for people who are able to invest at least $5 million AUD in Australian investments that meet certain requirements and maintain investment activity in Australia. To be eligible, you must make a complying significant investment of at least $5 million AUD in Australia, and be nominated by an Australian State or Territory government agency or Austrade. Besides that, you must have a genuine intention to live in the State or Territory whose government agency nominates you.
Your visa fee starts from $ 13,860 AUD, and the conditions that might be attached to this stream are:
- 8515 – You must not marry or enter into a de facto relationship before entering Australia.
- 8557 – You must hold a complying investment, complying significant investment or premium investment (whichever is applicable) as long as the visa is valid.
Business Innovation Extension Stream
This visa lets people with business skills run a new or existing business in Australia. Remember that you must run a new or existing business in Australia, and you must be nominated by an Australian State or Territory government agency.
You must provide proof of your business success (annual turnover, ownership stake), where either you or your partner, or you and your partner must have total net business and personal assets of at least AUD $800,000.
With this visa, you can operate a new or existing business in Australia, and you can bring eligible members of your family with you.
Similar to the business innovation stream, you must comply with the condition 8515 where you must not marry or in a de facto relationship before entering Australia.
Significant Investor Extension Stream
This visa is for those who are holding a Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) visa (subclass 188) Significant Investor stream, to extend their stay in Australia for up to 4 more years. This means you can stay in Australia for a total of 8 years from the date of grant of your Subclass 188 visa in the Significant Investor stream (Stream No.3). To extend this visa, you must hold a Subclass 188 visa in the Significant Investor stream for at least 3 years, and you cannot have held more than 1 Subclass 188 visa in the Significant Investor Extension stream.
Besides that, you must be nominated by an Australian State or Territory government agency or Austrade, and it will cost you from $1,135 AUD.
Similar to the Significant Investor stream, the conditions that might be attached to this stream are:
- 8515 – You must not marry or enter into a de facto relationship before entering Australia.
- 8557 – you must hold a complying investment, complying significant investment or premium investment (whichever is applicable) as long as the visa is valid.
Premium Investor Stream
This visa is for people who are nominated by Austrade and who invest at least AUD15 million in Australian investments and/or philanthropic contributions, and You can carry out business and investment activity in Australia.
To get this visa, you must invest AUD15 million in Australian investments and/or philanthropic contributions that meet certain requirements, and you must be nominated by Austrade. This visa will cost you from $9,455 AUD. Besides that, to be eligible for this visa, you must have a genuine intention to hold the investment for the whole period of the visa (except any part of the investment that is a philanthropic contribution).
Entrepreneur Stream
This visa lets you carry out entrepreneurial activities in Australia. Before applying for this visa, you have to make sure that you have a funding agreement with a third party to carry out entrepreneurial activities, and you must first be nominated by an Australian State or Territory government agency. Besides that, you must have a funding agreement of at least AUD200,000 to carry out the entrepreneurial activity in Australia and show us a business plan for your entrepreneurial activity.
The cost of the visa is from $6,395 AUD, and the conditions that might be attached to this stream are:
- 8515 – You must not marry or enter into a de facto relationship before entering Australia.
- 8571 – You must maintain an ongoing relationship with the state or territory government agency that nominated you for the visa, or the state or territory government the agency is (or was) located in.
As there are various streams leading to many different requirements and criteria that you may not be clear about, you may also worry about your business qualification or if you meet any of the visa requirements.
If you experience these struggles and want to apply for a business visa to Australia, we recommend using a professional and trusted migration agent to avoid refusal of the visa.
ONE derland Consulting has extensive experience in obtaining this visa.
Indah Melindasari, as our registered migration agent, will assess your eligibility and inform you whether you are eligible to meet the criteria for this visa.
She will also explain how and what must be provided to fulfill the requirements when applying for this visa to Australia.
Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) – Subclass 188 Visa Frequently Asked Questions
ONEderland Consulting managing director and also registered migration agent, Indah Melindasari, B.Com (MARN 0961 448) is here to answer your 188 visa Australia questions!
- How long will it take for my temporary business visa to be granted?
- There is no standard processing times available for this stream, it depends on specific circumstances applied to your application.
- What is the criteria to apply for this visa?
- There are different requirements for the different streams of this visa, but the common criteria for this visa is that you must be nominated by an Australian State or Territory government agency before being invited to apply for this visa.
- Please ensure that they do not withdraw the nomination after you apply for the visa.
- You and your partner must not have been involved in unacceptable business or investment activities and you and any eligible family members must meet health and character requirements.
- How long is the gap to lodge the visa after receiving an invitation from the department of home affairs?
- It’s recommended for you to lodge the application within 60 days after the invitation, otherwise your invitation will expire and you will not be considered for the visa as the validity period of an invitation cannot be extended.
- Do I need to fulfil the point test completely or fulfil an age requirement for any stream?
- You must score at least 65 points on the points test, and you must be under 55 years old when you receive an invitation for the Business Innovation Stream and Investor Stream.
- Are there any options for me to obtain an Australian permanent residency after holding this visa?
- Sure, once you have this visa, you can apply for the Business Innovation and Investment (Permanent) visa (subclass 888) if certain requirements are met.
- Do I have to be in Australia when applying for this visa?
- You can apply for this visa while you are onshore or offshore.
- Can I include my family member in my application?
- You can include your family members in your application. You can also add dependent children to your application at any time before decision made by the Department of Home Affairs.
Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) Visa Subclass 188 Three Steps Process
Step One : Check your eligibility and visa requirements
Before applying for the visa, you have to check your eligibility and make sure you have met all the requirements for the application.
The basic eligibilities are that you have to submit expression of interest (EOI) in SkillSelect, to be nominated by a State or Territory government agency or Austrade, and to be invited to apply for the visa.
Step Two : Apply for the visa
After you are sure you have met all the eligibility and requirements, then you can apply for the visa application.
Make sure you provide all the required documents including accurate information stated in your application.
Step Three : Granted a visa
The processing time estimations vary for each stream. If you are granted the visa, then you can carry out business and investment activity in Australia, and this visa allows you to stay legally in Australia for up to 4 years and 3 months.
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