Victoria has officially opened its 2025–26 skilled visa nomination program for subclass 190 and subclass 491 applicants. The state has been allocated 3,400 places for this program year, consisting of 2,700 Skilled Nominated (subclass 190) visas and 700 Skilled Work Regional (subclass 491) visas — a smaller allocation than usual.
This year, Victoria has introduced significant changes to the 491 program:
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No virtual offices — your employer must be physically located in regional Victoria.
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Income must be earned inside the regional area — salary from work performed outside the region cannot be counted toward your Registration of Interest (ROI).
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Employment does not need to match your nominated occupation and no minimum hours are required.
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These employment and earnings requirements apply only to onshore applicants; overseas applicants are not required to meet them.
Because eligibility depends heavily on where work was performed, some applicants may find it tricky to calculate their annual earnings if part of the year was spent outside the designated regional area.
Prospective applicants must submit or update an Expression of Interest (EOI) through SkillSelect before lodging a Registration of Interest with Victoria.
Need help navigating these updates or preparing your EOI/ROI? AVIE is here to simplify the process and guide you through each step.