Subclass 491 Skilled Work Regional
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Victoria · Subclass 491 Skilled Work Regional · 2026-27

Victoria 491 state nomination guide

Victoria's state-nominated 491 pathway is for regional migration. The 2026–27 Victorian Points Test ranks ROIs separately from the federal points test; priority selection and visa eligibility must not be confused.

Start with your occupation: explore Occupation Guidance for assessing authorities, federal visa lists and state nomination information.

Program statusOpen

The official VPT page says the 2026–27 program will open soon and full eligibility will be published when it opens. Fees and ranking information have been announced, but that does not confirm applications are open.

2026-27 allocationNot verified

A current 2026–27 allocation was not independently verified from the official sources reviewed. No prior-year number has been carried forward, and an unknown allocation is not zero.

Information last reviewed24 October 2026

Sources last checked: 23 October 2026. Official pages can change without notice. Confirm before acting.

Streams, pathways and eligibility rules

Awaiting current criteria

Criteria period
2026–27 opening notice; complete new-year eligibility not yet published
Criteria sources read
24 October 2026
Rules version
detailed-pathways-2026-10-24

Victoria's official index says full 2026–27 eligibility will be published when the program opens. The nomination and ROI route is recorded, but missing conditions have deliberately not been filled with older-year assumptions.

Limitations
  • The linked 190 page returned a not-found page and the 491 page could not be accessed during this source check. Neither is treated as verified eligibility evidence.
  • Do not reuse a past year's work-duration, salary, residence or graduate settings as if they were confirmed for 2026–27.
  • This is a source-referenced pathway guide, not an automated personal eligibility assessment. Occupation-list entries, caveats, document definitions and opening notices must be checked for the applicant and intended visa.
  • Source checking is not an approval or a guarantee that the government will keep these settings unchanged. Admin must review and explicitly publish this draft.

Which pathways exist

YES means the state has a route for this group. It does not mean applications are open now; check each stream's status. A route existing is not eligibility.

Being on an occupation list only makes an occupation relevant to a stream. It does not mean a person is eligible or will be nominated.

Rules that apply across streams

VisaFederal and state requirements
State nomination and the subclass 491 visa are separate decisions. Meet the applicable Home Affairs visa requirements, hold an eligible visa occupation and receive the required invitation. A state-listed occupation alone is not an eligibility decision.
PointsFederal points
At least 65 federal points including 15 nomination points, unless a higher competitive or occupation-specific requirement applies. State ROI, VPT and Canberra Matrix scores are different systems; minimum federal points do not guarantee selection.
Skills assessmentAssessment and registration
Hold the required valid positive migration skills assessment matching the nominated occupation and meet any occupation registration or licensing requirements. A provisional graduate-visa assessment is not automatically suitable.
EnglishEnglish and age
Meet the applicable English requirement and be under 45 at the federal invitation stage. A state may require stronger English or impose an earlier age-assessment stage; those state conditions also apply. English test rules depend on test type and test date.
ProcessEvidence and selection
Keep the SkillSelect EOI accurate and current, substantiate every claimed point, and follow the state's invitation or direct-application process. Nomination is competitive and discretionary; meeting a published minimum is not a promise of an invitation.

Streams in detail 1

Status shows current intake for each stream. Open a stream for its full requirements.

Victoria 491 — EOI and ROI selectionIntake: Not verifiedThe 2026–27 selection pathway is awaiting the complete published eligibility criteria. This record is a coverage placeholder, not an open or fully verified eligibility pathway.
Who it is for
Onshore and offshore coverage awaiting official criteria
Occupations
Occupation, priority-sector and occupation-specific conditions require the new-year official release.
Process
SkillSelect EOI and Victorian ROI when officially available; confirm the current invitation and application process at opening.
Minimum requirements

You must meet all of these to be considered.

ProcessCurrent-year rules pending
Wait for Victoria's published 2026–27 criteria before relying on residence, employment, graduate, income, priority-sector or occupation concessions. The fact that a federal occupation is eligible does not establish Victorian nomination eligibility.
PointsIndependent scoring systems
Federal points and any Victorian ranking or VPT system are different. Do not combine their scores, treat an estimate as an invitation threshold, or assume a calculator proves eligibility.
Evidence checklist
  • Passport, current visa / VEVO record, valid matching migration skills assessment, English evidence and an up-to-date SkillSelect EOI. Supply registration or licensing evidence where required.
  • Evidence supporting every federal point and every state claim, including partner or dependant claims. Use the state's current document checklist before lodging.
Official sources

Key requirements

  • Meet Home Affairs' requirements for the selected visa independently of the VPT estimate.
  • Check the forthcoming 2026–27 visa-specific nomination requirements and regional restrictions before lodging.
  • Maintain a valid EOI and evidence for all claimed qualifications, English, employment and partner factors.
  • Match the exact occupation and any additional conditions in Victoria's priority list.
  • Do not combine VPT and federal points, or treat an iExcel self-assessment as verified government advice.

How the process runs

  1. Check the official opening announcement and final visa-specific criteria.

  2. Update the SkillSelect EOI and check each claim.

  3. Calculate federal points and, separately, estimate the VPT.

  4. When the portal opens, submit the new program-year ROI and pay the applicable ROI fee.

  5. If invited, apply for nomination and then follow the separate visa invitation process.

Before you rely on this

  • A priority-sector occupation is not a nomination guarantee.
  • Graduate status alone is not an invitation or an exemption from the new nomination requirements.
  • 491 involves designated regional conditions; Melbourne is not a designated regional area.

Fees

Announced 13 October 2026: ROI $60 excluding GST ($66 including GST); 190 and 491 nomination applications $180 excluding GST ($198 including GST), payable after invitation. The ROI fee is once per program year, including withdrawal and resubmission in that same year. Check official terms.

Invitation data

The reviewed announcements do not publish completed 2026–27 VPT round results. Community reports on iExcel are not official invitation statistics.

No official invitation figures are recorded in this guide.

Points scores from past rounds are not cut-offs. States select on occupation, ranking factors and capacity, and a score that was invited before may not be invited again.

Planning articles and background

Our Victoria VPT explainer discusses scoring and competition. VPT, federal visa points and the community snapshot are separate concepts; none confirms personal eligibility.

Official sources

Sources last checked 23 October 2026. Links open in a new tab.

Related planning tools

General information only, not migration advice or an eligibility assessment. Nomination is at the discretion of each state or territory.

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