Australia's regional migration program is designed to direct skilled migrants to designated regional areas — parts of Australia outside the major metropolitan centres of Sydney, Melbourne, and Perth. The program provides a provisional-to-permanent pathway: holders of a regional provisional visa who live, work, and earn income in a designated regional area for three years may apply for the subclass 191 permanent residence visa.

The regional program currently operates through two provisional visa streams: the subclass 491 (points-tested, for nominees of state/territory governments or eligible family members) and the subclass 494 (employer sponsored, for persons sponsored by an employer in a regional area).

• Migration Regulations 1994 — Schedule 2, Subclasses 491, 494, and 191
• DHA: Regional visas page — immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/regional-visas
• DHA: Eligible regional areas — immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/regional-areas

The two provisional visa streams

Subclass 491 — Skilled Work Regional (Provisional):

• Points-tested — the applicant must have a points score at or above the relevant pass mark
• Requires nomination by a state or territory government, or sponsorship by an eligible family member residing in a regional area
• The subclass 491 attracts a 15-point bonus in the General Skilled Migration points test — applicants who receive a 491 nomination are invited through the Express Entry-equivalent SkillSelect system with this points advantage
• Duration: 5 years (provisional)

Subclass 494 — Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional):

• Employer-sponsored — the applicant must be sponsored by an approved sponsor operating in a designated regional area
• Not points-tested — eligibility is based on the employer's sponsorship and the nominated occupation being on the relevant skills list
• Duration: 5 years (provisional)

Regional residence obligation

Both subclass 491 and 494 holders must live and work in a designated regional area as a visa condition. Relocating to a non-regional area without authorisation is a breach of visa conditions and can result in visa cancellation, affecting eligibility for the subclass 191 pathway. The definition of a designated regional area uses a three-category framework — Category 1 (excluded) and Categories 2 and 3 (eligible).

Pathway to permanent residence — subclass 191

After holding the subclass 491 or 494 for the required period and meeting the income threshold requirement, holders may apply for the subclass 191 Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional) visa. Key requirements:

• Have held a subclass 491 or 494 for at least 3 years
• Have complied with the conditions of the subclass 491 or 494 (lived and worked in a regional area)
• Have earned a taxable income at or above the minimum income threshold for each of the 3 years on the provisional visa — refer to the DHA subclass 191 page for the current income threshold

Points bonus for regional study

Under the General Skilled Migration points test, applicants who have completed at least 2 years of study at an Australian educational institution in a designated regional area of Australia may claim 5 bonus points for regional study, in addition to the 15-point bonus for a subclass 491 nomination.

The subclass 491 and 494 replaced the earlier subclass 489 (Skilled Regional Sponsored — Provisional) from November 2019. Holders of the legacy subclass 489 may have transitional arrangements applicable to their situation.

The Designated Area Migration Agreements (DAMA) framework provides a separate pathway for employers in specific regional areas to sponsor workers in occupations not on standard occupation lists. DAMAs are agreements between the Commonwealth and specific regional bodies, and their availability varies by location. See the DAMA framework page.

State and territory governments have significant discretion in determining their own subclass 491 nomination criteria and occupations. These criteria change periodically and are separate from the federal visa requirements — applicants should check the current nomination criteria for the relevant state or territory directly.