If you are searching for the 491 visa requirements 2026, here is the short version: you need a state or territory nomination (or sponsorship by an eligible relative in regional Australia), an occupation on the relevant skilled list, a positive skills assessment, at least Competent English, an age under 45 when invited, and 65 points on the points test. The visa lasts five years, you must live, work and study in a designated regional area, and after three years you can apply for permanent residence through the subclass 191.

What has changed for 2026 is the competition. The government cut the Regional category of the permanent Migration Program from 33,000 places in 2025–26 to 14,110 places in 2026–27, and the main applicant fee rose to A$6,140 on 1 July 2026. This guide sets out every requirement, the real costs, the current processing times and the mistakes we see most often, with notes for applicants from India and Malaysia. Information is current as at 15 October 2026.

491 visa requirements 2026: key facts at a glance

• Visa type: Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa, subclass 491. Temporary, valid for up to 5 years.
• Two streams: State or territory nominated, and family sponsored.
• Points: 65 minimum. Nomination or family sponsorship adds 15 points.
• Age: Under 45 at the time you are invited to apply.
• English: Competent English or better (for example IELTS 6.0 in each band).
• Skills assessment: A positive assessment in your nominated occupation, valid at invitation.
• Main applicant fee: A$6,140 from 1 July 2026 (was A$4,910).
• Processing (as at early October 2026): state nominated 50% in 5 months, 90% in 18 months; family sponsored 50% in 4 months, 90% in 7 months.
• Key condition: Condition 8579, live, work and study only in designated regional areas.
• PR pathway: Subclass 191 after holding the 491 for at least 3 years and showing 3 income years of taxable income.

What the 491 visa is, and who it suits

The 491 is the provisional regional skilled visa that replaced the old 489 in November 2019. It is points-tested, like the 189 visa and the 190 visa, but it gives you 15 nomination points instead of 5 (190) or none (189). That extra 10 to 15 points is the main reason people choose it. A profile sitting at 75 or 80 points that is going nowhere in the 189 round can become competitive for a regional nomination.

The trade-off is geography and time. You commit to regional Australia for at least three years, and you hold a temporary visa during that period. For many applicants, especially those in occupations that states list as regional priorities (nursing, aged care, teaching, trades, engineering, accounting in some states), that trade-off is worth it.

The two streams

1. State or territory nominated

A state or territory government nominates you after you register interest (most states run their own Registration of Interest, or ROI, system) and meet their criteria. Each state sets its own occupation list, work experience rules, residence or job-offer requirements, and minimum points expectations. Some states favour onshore applicants already living and working in their regional areas; others accept offshore applicants in specific occupations.

Allocations are small. Tasmania, for example, has 800 places for the 491 in 2026–27 and reopened its program on 17 August 2026. Several states closed or paused intake during 2025–26 once places ran out, so always check the state's own website on the day you apply.

2. Family sponsored

An eligible relative who is an Australian citizen, permanent resident or eligible New Zealand citizen, aged 18 or over and living in a designated regional area, sponsors you. Eligible relatives include a parent, child, brother or sister, aunt or uncle, niece or nephew, grandparent, or first cousin (including step equivalents). Your occupation must be on the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL), which is narrower than the lists states use.

The family stream has no state quota or ROI, but it is still an invitation process through SkillSelect, and the invitation cut-off depends on demand.

Eligibility requirements in detail

Occupation and skills assessment

Your occupation must be on the list that applies to your stream, and you need a positive skills assessment from the relevant assessing authority (for example ACS for IT, Engineers Australia, VETASSESS, ANMAC for nurses, TRA for trades). The assessment must be valid when you are invited. Most assessments are valid for three years unless the authority states a shorter period.

Age

You must be under 45 when you receive the invitation. Age is not tested again at lodgement, so turning 45 between invitation and lodgement does not make you ineligible. Points for age are also locked in at invitation.

English language

The minimum is Competent English. Test score thresholds changed on 7 August 2025 for several tests. For PTE Academic tests taken on or after that date, Competent English is Listening 47, Reading 48, Writing 51 and Speaking 54. IELTS remains 6.0 in each component. Higher scores earn points:

Level	IELTS (each band)	PTE Academic from 7 Aug 2025 (L / R / W / S)	Points
Competent	6.0	47 / 48 / 51 / 54	0
Proficient	7.0	58 / 59 / 69 / 76	10
Superior	8.0	69 / 70 / 85 / 88	20

Test results must be no more than three years old at the time of invitation.

Points test

You need at least 65 points, and the 15 points for nomination or family sponsorship count toward that. In practice, invitation thresholds are much higher than 65 for most occupations. The main points categories are:

Factor	Points available
Age 25–32	30
Age 18–24 or 33–39	25
Age 40–44	15
Superior / Proficient English	20 / 10
Skilled employment (overseas and Australian combined)	Up to 20
Doctorate / Bachelor or higher	20 / 15
Australian study, Professional Year, NAATI CCL, regional study	5 each
Single, or partner is an Australian citizen or PR	10
491 nomination or family sponsorship	15

For a full breakdown, read our Australia PR points test 2026 guide. The government has announced a future overhaul of the points test, but as at 15 October 2026 it has not commenced, so the current table above still applies.

Health and character

Every applicant, including family members, must meet the health requirement (medical examinations with a panel physician) and the character requirement. You will need police certificates from every country where you have lived for 12 months or more in the last 10 years since turning 16.

Where you can live: designated regional areas

Home Affairs splits Australia into three categories for regional migration:

• Category 1, major cities: Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Not regional. You cannot live there on a 491.
• Category 2, cities and major regional centres: Perth, Adelaide, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Canberra, Newcastle/Lake Macquarie, Wollongong/Illawarra, Geelong and Hobart. These count as regional.
• Category 3, regional centres and other regional areas: everywhere else outside Category 1.

Designated regional areas are defined by postcode, so check the exact postcode of any home or job before you sign a lease or accept an offer. Note that a state's own nomination rules can be stricter than the national definition. The NSW regional stream, for example, has excluded Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Central Coast, Wollongong and Illawarra in recent program years even though those areas are regional for visa purposes.

491 visa cost in 2026

Visa application charges increased on 1 July 2026. Confirm the current figure on the Home Affairs visa pricing page before you lodge.

Applicant	Charge from 1 July 2026 (AUD)	Before 1 July 2026 (AUD)
Main applicant	$6,140	$4,910
Additional applicant 18 or over	$3,070	$2,455
Additional applicant under 18	$1,535	$1,230
Couple with one child	$10,745	$8,595

On top of the visa charge, budget for the skills assessment, English test, medicals for each family member, police certificates, certified translations, and the state nomination fee where one applies (some states charge nothing, others charge a few hundred dollars). Card surcharges also apply when you pay online. Our free visa cost calculator helps you estimate the full amount for your family.

Step-by-step: how to apply for the 491 visa

1. Confirm your occupation and list. Check that your occupation is on the state list (for state nomination) or the MLTSSL (for family sponsorship).
2. Get your skills assessment. Use the correct ANZSCO code. A mismatch between your duties and the occupation description is one of the most common reasons for a negative assessment.
3. Sit your English test. Aim for Proficient or Superior if you can. Each extra 10 points matters in a shrinking program.
4. Lodge an Expression of Interest in SkillSelect. It is free and stays valid for two years. Select the 491 and the right state, or the family sponsored option.
5. Apply for state nomination or line up your sponsor. For state nomination, submit the state's ROI or nomination application with the evidence it asks for. For the family stream, gather proof of your sponsor's relationship to you, status and regional residence.
6. Receive your invitation. You then have 60 days to lodge the visa application.
7. Lodge in ImmiAccount with full documents. Upload identity, skills, English, employment, qualifications, family and sponsor evidence. Claim only points you can prove as at the invitation date.
8. Complete health checks and police certificates. Do these early to avoid delays.
9. Grant and move regional. Condition 8579 applies from grant. Keep records of your addresses and employment from day one, because you will need them for the 191.

Processing times and priority rules

According to Home Affairs data as at 2 October 2026, 50% of state nominated 491 applications were finalised in 5 months and 90% in 18 months. For the family sponsored stream, it was 4 months and 7 months. Check the live figures on the global visa processing times page.

Processing order is set by Ministerial Direction 122, which has applied since 19 September 2026 and covers the 491, 191, 189, 190, 186 and 494, among others. Priority goes first to primary applicants in priority sectors (including construction, healthcare, teaching, agriculture and resources), then to other primary applicants who were in Australia when they applied, then to offshore primary applicants without family members included, then to everyone else. The Direction also applies to applications already lodged but not yet decided.

The bigger issue in 2026–27 is supply. The Migration Program planning levels show the Regional category at 14,110 places, down from 33,000. Fewer places means fewer invitations, tighter state criteria, and potentially longer waits for some applicants.

From 491 to permanent residence: the subclass 191

The Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional) visa, subclass 191 is the PR step. To be eligible you generally need to:

• have held a 491 (or 494) visa for at least 3 years;
• have complied with the conditions of that visa, including living, working and studying only in designated regional areas;
• provide Australian Taxation Office notices of assessment for at least 3 income years while holding the 491 or 494; and
• meet health and character requirements.

There is currently no legislated minimum income amount for the 191; the instrument that set a minimum was removed in 2023. You still need taxable income and lodged tax returns for three income years, so long gaps without work can push your 191 timeline back. The 491 is valid for five years, which gives you some buffer if a year of income does not count.

Common mistakes that cost 491 applicants

• Overclaiming employment points. Work counted as skilled must be at the assessed skill level and after the date your assessing authority deems you skilled. Claiming years the assessment did not accept is a common reason for refusal.
• Moving to a Category 1 city "temporarily". Even a short stint living or working in Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane can breach condition 8579 and damage your 191 application.
• Ignoring state-specific commitments. If you were nominated by a state, they expect you to live and work in that state's regional areas. Moving interstate can cause problems with the state and later questions from Home Affairs.
• Letting tests or assessments expire. English results older than three years at invitation, or an expired skills assessment, can make an invitation invalid.
• Weak family sponsor evidence. For the family stream, missing birth certificates linking the generations (for example for a cousin) or no proof of the sponsor's regional address is a frequent gap.
• Not keeping records for the 191. Keep leases, utility bills, payslips and tax returns for the entire period.

Applying from India or Malaysia

Indian and Malaysian applicants make up a large share of 491 applicants, and both groups face some predictable issues.

India

• Police certificates: Indian Police Clearance Certificates are issued through Passport Seva in India or through Indian missions abroad. If you live in Australia, service disruptions have caused delays in 2026, so start early. Our PCC assistance service can help.
• Employment evidence: Experience letters must show your duties, hours and dates on company letterhead, and be backed by payslips, Form 16 or bank statements. Generic letters often lead to a lower or negative skills assessment.
• Name and date-of-birth consistency: Make sure your passport, degree certificates and assessment documents match, or include an affidavit explaining any difference.

Malaysia

• Police certificates: You will need a police certificate covering Malaysia, and from any other country you have lived in for 12 months or more.
• Qualifications: Malaysian degrees from twinning or transnational programs are usually assessed fine, but submit full academic transcripts and confirm which campus issued the award.
• Translations: Any document in Bahasa Malaysia needs a certified English translation.

For both groups, a strong English score is often the fastest way to lift a profile. Moving from Competent to Proficient English adds 10 points, which is usually more achievable than adding years of work experience.

Is the 491 still worth it in 2026?

For many applicants, yes, but go in with a plan. The cut to regional places means the 491 is now a targeted option, not a fallback. It works best if your occupation is on a state's priority list, you are already in or willing to settle in a specific regional area, or you have an eligible relative in regional Australia. If your points are already high, compare the 190 visa, which is permanent from grant and has a larger 2026–27 allocation of 35,500 places.

How EazyViza can help

EazyViza is backed by Collins Quarters, a migration and commercial law firm with offices in Sydney, Melbourne, Chennai and Kuala Lumpur. Our team can:

• review your points claim and occupation choice before you spend money on assessments;
• identify which states are open for your occupation and what each one expects;
• prepare your EOI, state nomination and family sponsorship evidence;
• lodge and manage your 491 application, then plan your 191 pathway.

Start with our free eligibility checker, or see our 491 visa service and send us an enquiry for a tailored assessment.

Disclaimer

This article is general information only and is not legal or migration advice. It reflects the law, fees and published processing data as at 15 October 2026. Migration rules, state nomination criteria, fees and processing times change often. Check the official Department of Home Affairs website and speak with a registered migration agent or lawyer about your own circumstances before applying.