Update 2021 State Nomination Changes for Skilled Worker Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 491)
Australian program for Skilled Regional Visa has been updated early in October 2020 due to COVID-19 Pandemic. The Federal Budget Allocation for 2020-2021 was released, Currently, the migration planning level for 2020-2021 is set at 160,000 places.
Skilled Worker Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 491) was just introduced last year on 16 November 2019 replacing subclass 489 visa, where some states since last year have been actively closing their Skilled Regional Nomination visa (Subclass 489) to new applications.
Here are the latest update of Skilled Worker Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 491) state nomination program for each region:
1. State Nomination 491 latest Update 2020 for Australian Capital Territory (ACT)
The latest ACT nomination guidelines report stated that currently The Canberra Matrix (unique score-based points system by ACT) is closed to overseas applicants. If submitted, it will automatically lapse after six month and will not be ranked.
However, if you already live in Canberra for at least three months immediately before the date of Matrix submission (and continuing until the date of any invitation) you may be eligible to apply for State Nomination for Skilled Worker Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 491).
The latest round was on 28 October 2020. Moreover, The ACT stated that invitations will be issued based on a regular basis regarding nomination allocation that is set by Home Affairs.
In addition, the ranking score may not guarantee you can get an invitation as the selected candidates might be invited if their nomination significantly provides benefit to the Territory.
2. New 491 Skilled Nomination Regulations for New South Wales (NSW) Sydney
Due to COVID-19 pandemic, currently NSW only invites onshore applicants who are working in ICT, engineering and health sectors as the NSW government only provides a limited number of interim nomination places in the 2020-2021 Financial year for visa 491.
An official announcement is yet to be issued by NSW for its invitations round as we believe next month the new invitation round is expected to be initiated in line with directions of Department Home affairs. We will provide any update for you regarding the state nomination for NSW Territory.
3. New Skilled Nomination 491 Changes for Victoria Melbourne October 2020
Skilled Nomination visa including Skilled Worker Regional (Provisional) (Subclass 491) in Victoria has continued to use the interim allocation nomination places since 5 October 2020, in-line with the command by The Department of Home Affairs.
If you received a state nomination by The Victoria Government to apply Skilled Worker Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 491), you could continue processing your application after 5 October 2020 but you must have submitted your Registration of Interest by 21 September 2020.
Furthermore, this time it will be tightly competitive as only limited places are available. Thus, it will require you to provide more effort during the submission of your application to meet The Victorian Government’s requirements. In addition, you might be asked about your contribution and skills to help Victoria economic recovery.
4. Skilled Nomination 491 Regulation Changes for Tasmania 2020-2021
The Tasmanian Government confirmed it will continue applying the interim visa nomination allocation and priority occupation list for its state.
However, there are two important conditions for applicants that need to be noticed.
Firstly, if you lodged your application for Skilled Worker Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 491) before 25 August 2020, you’ll be receiving email by Migration Tasmania that requires you to submit priority consideration or receive a full refund of your application fee if you decide to withdraw.
Secondly, applicants who lodged their application after 25 August 2020 must fulfil the minimum requirements and must provide a letter of support from their employer with a clear and reasonable explanation of how important their contribution is in order to support Tasmania economic recovery due to COVID-19 pandemic.
More details will be provided shortly as the requirement will be reviewed once full details of the 2020-21 nomination allocations and requirements are announced by the Department of Home Affairs.
5. 491 State Nomination Updates for Queensland
Currently, the Queensland Government still suspends their invitations for skilled programs until further notice. Applicants who submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) will not be considered.
Please DO NOT submit an EOI for Skilled Worker Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 491) application as they will not be picked up or considered.
The Queensland Government received a few thousand EOIs from 29 September – 05 October, they admit that currently a lot of people in challenging situations as they will review the decision by considering providing an invitation for selected occupations that have a critical impact on Queensland Economic & Health Recovery.
In addition, there is only a limited quota in the interim allocation and they will deliver further information of the skilled program across social media and official government homepage in December 2020.
6. Darwin Northern Territory Government Visa 491 State Nomination Update
At this stage, Northern Territory (NT) still closes GSM nomination for overseas applicants. They will only accept applications for Skilled Worker Regional (Provisional 491) for onshore applicants, as if you are currently living in the NT, you will still be able to lodge new applications for NT nomination under the GSM program, and these applications will continue to be assessed.
On the other hand, there is no guarantee that you will get an invitation even if you have met the criteria and all requirements.
This is due to NT will only be issuing your nomination once the Australian Government has allocated quotas to the NT.
The Northern Territory will continue to look forward to applicant interest, as they will provide further information as soon as a decision is made by Australian Government and become available to publish.
7. South Australia/ Adelaide State Nomination 491 Update 2020
The Government of South Australia only received a limited number of visa nomination places by The Commonwealth Department of Home Affairs (DHA). The announcement stated that DHA has identified critical sectors to support Australia COVID-19 public health response and economic recovery. If you work in nominating occupation on critical sectors you will be prioritized, while the critical sectors might change over time based on future circumstances.
The Skilled Worker Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 491) nominations for South Australia are subjected to a quota, as they reserve the right to revise nomination eligibility criteria for these visa subclasses without notice.
8. Western Australia (Perth) Skilled Nomination Update 491
The Western Australian (WA) State Nominated Migration Program for Skilled Worker Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 491) nominations visa is currently suspended. WA Migration Services will not issue invitations to apply for state nomination during the suspension period.
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