Overview: Australian State Nomination Programmes Wrapping Up for the Financial Year
Only yesterday I was reflecting that another financial year is almost over — and today the state governments went and reminded me all over again.
NSW Subclass 190 About to Wrap Up
Subclass 190 will not be releasing any further EOI pre-invitations, while Subclass 491 Pathway 2 — also a pre-invitation channel — may still send out one more round.
I even went to the trouble of emailing the state government to confirm whether this “EOI invitation” refers to a pre-invitation or a formal invitation, and quickly received confirmation that it means a pre-invitation. So those who have already received a pre-invitation will continue to have their applications processed, then receive a formal invitation (nomination) and go on to lodge their visa (see header image).
Canberra: Final Nomination Round of the Financial Year and Remaining Quota
Canberra also finished issuing its final round for the financial year today.
A summary of our clients’ invitation outcomes is set out below. At the time of writing, the state government had not yet published the official report for this round — we expect it won’t be updated until next week.
As at the end of March, Canberra had 266 Subclass 190 places remaining — a remaining balance of just under 35 per cent — and 248 Subclass 491 places, with a remaining balance of just over 30 per cent. From here it will be a matter of processing the invited applications on the one hand while preparing to launch the new matrix submission system on the other. Canberra has been a front-runner in reforming both its state nomination scheme and its systems, and is full of fresh ideas — we look forward to seeing this new system refined to perfection.
Tasmania: Progress Update
Tasmania may be about to close as well.
This week it issued invitations as usual — both Subclass 190 and Subclass 491 sent out 31 invitations, with Subclass 190 at the high-score green tier and Subclass 491 at orange + 54 points.
But in theory Subclass 190 has already been over-allocated: it has 181 places, yet there are still 207 ROI pre-invitation applications awaiting a decision. Subclass 491 is in better shape, with 268 places and 191 still awaiting a decision. So it’s unclear how long the state government can keep up these small weekly releases — optimistically, I think it can hold out until the end of this month. What is certain is that some applicants will have to wait until the next financial year, once the state government receives its new quota, before they can obtain a formal nomination and lodge their visa. That, too, is a long-standing Tasmanian tradition.
Victoria: Remaining State Nomination Quota for the Financial Year
Victoria, by my reckoning, doesn’t have much quota left either.
It is still processing last week’s nominations; on my side, a Software Engineer nomination has just come through.
A Recap of the Three Phases of Australia’s State Nomination Programme This Year
This year’s state nomination programme had a character all of its own, unfolding in three phases:
- Phase one I’d call the anxious period: invitation quotas were slow to be released, and there were all sorts of rumours of cuts to come.
- Phase two was the hopeful period: the cuts turned out to be manageable, the states opened relatively late, and everyone began to expect a flood of invitations to follow.
- Phase three was the quiet period: so far, apart from one or two large rounds from Western Australia and Victoria, the rest has been all thunder and no rain, never stirring up much of a wave.
As for the outlook for the next financial year, let’s pick that up in the Budget livestream next Tuesday evening, the 12th. — Xingyao K-Shen Migration Consultancy
