States and Territories started receiving their allocations for 190 and 491 visa Nominations for the 2023-24 financial year. The Annual Planning Levels were published last month.
But first of all: what is the difference between the Planning Levels and the State and Territories nomination allocations?
We know this might be confusing for many of you, so we decided to put together in this article all you need to know in plain and clear language, so you can learn more about Australian state-nominated visas to make informed decisions for your migration journey.
Recap of Planning Levels for the Permanent Migration Program 2023–24
Let’s begin with a quick recap of the Planning Levels: Every financial year, the Government announces the Federal Budget, which includes financial planning for the following year and migration planning – determining the number of permanent visas to be granted in that financial year.
On May 9, 2023, the Australian Government announced that the planning level for the 2023–24 Permanent Migration Program would be set at 190,000 places. This represented a slight reduction of 5,000 places compared to the 2022-2023 program. Among these places, 72% were allocated to skilled visas, while the remaining 28% would be dedicated to family visas. The breakdown of places available for each visa Subclass were published later. Here they are:
Source: https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/what-we-do/migration-program-planning-levels
From this total, 30,400 places were designated for state-nominated visas, which refers to the Permanent Skilled Nominated visa (Subclass 190. Another 32,200 places were allocated to the, Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (Subclass 491). Both these visas require State/Territory nomination. After the Annual Planning Levels are decided, the Federal Government then distribute the places available for visas 190 and 491 to the States and Territory. These numbers started being published last week.
Differences between Planning Levels and State/Territory Nomination Allocations
No, they are not the same thing.
Planning levels refer to the total number of permanent visas planned by the Department of Home Affairs to be granted in a given financial year. This number includes primary and secondary applicants, and it also accounts for applications from previous financial years that are still pending processing.
On the other hand, Nomination allocations refer to the number of new primary applicants that each state or territory can nominate within a program year.
Having said that, let’s check what States and Territories have released in terms of Nomination Allocations for 2023-2024:
State and territory nominated visa allocations 2023-2024
Each state and territory has its own criteria for state-nominated visas, so it’s always important to keep an eye on our articles and social media, as well as visit their websites for up-to-date information:
- ACT – Migration
- NSW – Visas and Immigration
- VIC – Live in Melbourne
- QLD – Business & Skilled Migration Queensland
- NT – Migrate
- WA – Business Migration Western Australia (BIIP) or Skilled Migration Western Australia (190 and 491 visas)
- SA – Move to South Australia
- TAS – Migration Tasmania??
2023–24 state and territory nomination allocations
Source: https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/what-we-do/migration-program-planning-levels
What about the Business Innovation and Investment Program (Subclass 188)?
As you can see from the table above, no new nomination allocations have been provided for the Business Innovation and Investment Visa 188 for any State or Territory this financial year.
One of the findings of the Review of the Migration System was that the Business Investor Visa program is not meeting the objectives of the government. The review also suggested that the visa subclass should be replaced with something more effective, so we are not surprised to see that this financial year no new nominations for this visa have been allocated to States or Territories. This visa requires those types of nomination and this seems to be the beginning of the end. Applications pending will still be processed but may take longer than expected.
We welcome changes to the 188/88 visa as long as there is still a pathway for overseas investors and entrepreneurs to come to Australia and invest here.
According to State agencies, they are still closely working with the Australian Government to ensure entrepreneurs, investors, and business migrants continue contributing to their economy.
We hope this article has helped you understand the Australian State and Territory Nomination Allocations 2023-2024 that could impact your plan of migrating to Australia.
If this is your case, don’t hesitate to reach out to us today! With 15 years of experience, we have successfully guided over 7500 individuals in realizing their dream of migrating to Australia. Let us help you change your life too!
