Approvals for the Subclass 491 are currently very slow, and the Subclass 489 is an even more disheartening situation(as of the end of January 2022, there were 21,934 pending applications in the 491 state-nominated category, with 4,632 Subclass 491 visas granted in the first seven months of the 2021–22 financial year, against an original 491+494 annual quota of 11,200) — but that has not stopped this pathway from becoming an increasingly dominant trend; the number of people taking this route, whether already visa holders or still waiting for a grant, will only continue to grow.
In March this year, the regional areas applicable to Australian migration were expanded once again,with some areas surrounding Brisbane also added to the regional area definition,prompting many people to ask us once morewhether they are able to move to the newly included regional areas.
Can they or can’t they? Under what circumstances is it permitted, and when is it not?
OK, let’s clarify this today.
Two Fundamental Points You Must Understand
1. Changes Are Governed by the Commencement Date of the Migration Legislation
The designated regional areas used for migration purposes will continue to change, and the most recent change will certainly not be the last,with postcodes used to define the boundaries — the effective date is the commencement date of the relevant migration legislation,and when subsequently transitioning to the Subclass 887 or 191, the case officer will not rely on the date the DoHA website was updated — or even what a department phone operator has said — when assessing your visa.
Currently, the two important commencement dates for relevant legislative changes are16 November 2019 and 5 March 2022.
2. Visa Holders Must Look at the Date of Grant
Which set of regional areas (under which piece of legislation) applies to a visa holder is determinedby the date the visa was granted (date of grant), meaning any changes made after your grant date are irrelevant to you — and conversely, if your visa has not yet been granted, the most recent version should, in theory, apply to you once it is
In fact, at the bottom of the latest postcode list on the DoHA website, there is a linestating that the above postcodes do not apply to visasgranted before 5 March 2022, and this equally uses thedate of grantas the cut-off point.
So, simply remember thatthe legislation commencement datecorresponds tothe date of grant— that is the fundamental principle.
The updates to the ‘Designated regional areas’ page on the DoHA website, and the links on VEVO (which also simply redirect to the DoHA website), often create a great deal of confusion.
For example, some applicants with a Subclass 489 granted before 16 November 2019 ask why the link in their VEVO displays the latest version of the regional area list —the answer is that the DoHA simply keeps the website current with the latest version; it is not updated specifically for your situation.
Now let’s go throughwhich grant date rangecorresponds towhich set of regional areas.
Family-Sponsored Subclass 489
— Applicable Regional Areas Have Never Changed
Family-sponsored invitations are issued by the federal government, and while both streams require a subsequent transition to the Subclass 887, the regional areas applicable to family-sponsored applicants differ from those for state-nominated applicants — for example, the entire state of Victoria, including the Melbourne metropolitan area, qualifies for residency,and furthermore,condition 8549— the regional areas under condition 8549 have not changed since 1 July 2016; even if your visa has not yet been granted, the table below will still apply once it is,as shown in the image below.
Family-Sponsored Subclass 491
— Same Applicable Regional Areas as State-Nominated Subclass 491
The conditions that family-sponsored Subclass 491 applicants must comply with are thesamerelevant visa conditions as state-nominated Subclass 491, which is condition 8579(for the Subclass 489, family-sponsored is condition 8549 and state-nominated is condition 8539),so the applicable regional areas are the same as those for state-nominated Subclass 491,which will be expanded on further below.
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Subclass 491 and State-Nominated Subclass 489
Principle: Legislation Commencement Date Corresponds to Date of Grant
If the Subclass 489 visa was grantedbefore16 November 2019,
the applicable regional areas are shown in the image below,and this set of areasdoes not includeareas such as Canberra, Wollongong, and the Gold Coast.
There was also legislation dated 20 January 2020 relating to the regional area definition, which introduced a more detailed tiering of regional areas primarily used to determine whether the Subclass 485 can be extended by one or two years — this is not discussed in this article.
If the Subclass 489/491 visa wasgranted between 16 November 2019 and 4 March 2022,
the applicable regional areas are shown in the image below,and this set of areasstill does not include Brisbane and surroundingareas.
If your Subclass 489 was lodged before 16 November 2019, or your Subclass 491 was lodged during the above periodbut has not yet been granted,please continue reading below.
If the state-nominated Subclass 489/Subclass 491 visa wasgranted on or after 5 March 2022,
the applicable regional areasare shown in the image below — this is also the version currently on the official website.
Of course,since there is no way of knowing whether there may be further regional area adjustments before your visa is granted, this is technically only the current position — if there are future updates, the same principle applies: legislation commencement date corresponds to date of grant.
Newly added areas surrounding Brisbane ↓
If you’d like to compare, you can save the image above, or visita “hidden” page on the DoHA website — this is from a recently updated DoHA Newsletter:
https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/what-we-do/skilled-migration-program/skilled-visa-newsletters/march-2022
Scroll to the very bottom and you will find a table, which is essentially there to let you click through and check the relevant legislation
One Exception
Due to COVID-19, some Subclass 489 visas previously received a three-year extension in Australia — however, if a Subclass 887 application had already been lodged before the original Subclass 489 expired, even if the 887 has not yet been granted,the visa holder only needs to reside in a regional area until the original Subclass 489 expiry date. They may then move to a major city, and this will not be considered a breach of conditions 8539 or 8549.
For example: suppose applicant N’s original Subclass 489 was valid from January 2019 to January 2023, and they met the requirements and lodged a Subclass 887 application in January 2022. Due to the automatic visa extension policy, however, the Subclass 489 was extended to expire in January 2026, meaning N is currently still holding a Subclass 489. Under this update, N is able to move out of the regional area in January 2023 (provided the Subclass 887 has not been granted by that date).
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On the whole, theregional areas applicable to Australian migration are expandingfurther, and it cannot be ruled out that they will continue to expand in the future — this is, at a stretch, one silver lining for Subclass 489/491 holders facing delayed grants,but we’d still much rather see Subclass 489/491 visas granted as soon as possible!
For related reading on transitioning from Subclass 491 to 191, see:
Study Abroad and Migration Video Guides
Past Recommendations
Subclass 189 Invitations Overview — Canberra and Tasmania Both Issuing Invitations!
If you are currently overseas and considering skilled migration to Australia
A Round-up of Current Preferential Policies for Australian Work Visas!
Postgraduate Study in Australia — Two Niche Healthcare Fields That Offer a Strong Migration Pathway!
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