The Digital Sector — which is directly linked to IT — was the second most popular sector in Victoria’s state nomination programme this financial year, coming in just behind the Health Sector. Over 3,000 Expressions of Interest (EOI) for the Subclass 190 and 491 combined were received, with close to 3,000 for the Subclass 190 alone.

It looks impressive on the surface, but the invitations have been far from satisfying — scores have been high and there are plenty of restrictions.The Subclass 190 invitation scores have generally been around 90 points.

As for the requirements, rather than listing them all, the images below say it all.

Whether it’s a Subclass 190 or a Subclass 491 in Victoria, applicants must currently be working in a Target Sector,which means if you’re not employed, don’t even dream about it. Even if you are working, if it’s not in one of these Target Sectors, Subclass 190 is still very difficult to obtain — even with a high points score. That said, don’t be too discouraged — the Subclass 491 has fewer Target Sector restrictions and a lower points threshold, if that’s an option you’re open to.

VIC 491 requirements

VIC 190 requirements

Image 2 shows Victoria’s Target Sectors for this financial year. From Image 2 we can see that IT graduates are most likely to fall under the ‘Digital’ option.

Image 2: VIC Target Sectors

So the next question is: which specific industries fall under this Digital sector? Let’s look at Image 3.

Image 3: Industries within the Digital Sector

Therefore,to apply for the Subclass 190 you must be working in one of the above 12 fields; for the Subclass 491, you can be in any Digital industry (though the role must be in a regional area of Victoria).Furthermore, the work you are doing must correspond to the skills assessment you received. For example, if your skills assessment is in software engineering and you happen to be working at a company involved in educational software development, that would satisfy the Subclass 190 application requirements.Victoria also requires that you lodge your application at least 12 weeks before your skills assessment expires — otherwise your application will not be accepted!

A few more points to emphasise about the work requirement:

1. VIC 190 only accepts applicants who are currently employed

2. Casual employment is also acceptable

3. Or the work you are doing is closely related to the nominated occupation

4. The education requirement is: Diploma or bachelor’s degree and above

5. Work experience is not subject to any deduction — all post-graduation work experience is recognised

Invitations this financial year

Victoria has already closed its submission window for new EOI applications this financial year, and both the Subclass 190 and 491 allocations have been nearly exhausted.Another issue for IT in Victoria this financial year is that not many invitations have been issued.Although the EOI application volume ranked second,the number of invitations is estimated to be lower than occupations like early childhood education, secondary school teaching and cooking — suggesting IT is not particularly high on the state government’s priority list.

Overall summary and recommendations

The VIC IT Subclass 190 is one requirement easier than NSW — it doesn’t require 3 years of work experience — but it adds the requirement of working in a specified industry.So for those of you looking at Victoria, it is absolutely critical to find work in one of those 12 specific industries when you graduate.If you can’t find work in a relevant industry, then consider a Digital-sector role in a regional area — especially if you can’t rack up a high points score. It’s a fallback option worth considering. Because Victoria has no work experience requirement, it doesn’t matter whether you’re applying for your skills assessment using the Professional Year (PY) pathway or with one year of work experience.

New financial year — perhaps things will look up

Victoria, as the second-largest state, and with the backing of a Labor government,we hope the new financial year will bring a healthy allocation,and that even with healthcare, social work and teaching taking priority,there will still be some spots left for other popular occupations.

As an applicant,finding relevant work and building up your points score are essential preparation.Just like in NSW, Victoria has no shortage of applicants in these popular fields —so even if the new financial year brings some easing and opportunity, a large number of applicants will flood in and competition will be fierce. If you want to secure a spot in a major city, the most fundamental thing is still to strengthen your hard qualifications!

Queensland currently doesn’t have a very positive attitude toward general skilled migration,and despite being the third-largest state, the allocation it received this financial year is far below that of Victoria and NSW.Although there are invitations available through the general work stream,the priority focus is on the small business category and investor migration.

Still, plenty of people ask about it, so let me give an introduction and somerecommendations.

Queensland has four Streams,as shown in Image 4,

Image 4:

The first Stream: ‘Skilled workers living in Queensland’

Subclass 190 requirements: skilled workers currently in Australia and Queensland PhD graduates

Subclass 491 requirements: reside in a regional area for 5 years; work conditions are flexible — part-time, full-time or self-employment all qualify; 5-year validity.

This Stream overallaccepts applicants from other states to move to Queensland, and ICT is on their list (Image 5) — 200 spots per year. The requirement is that you must have a full-time role (at least 35 hours per week) over the past 6 months. The Subclass 491 also requires 35 hours of full-time work, but only over the past three months — however, you must be residing in a regional area.

Subclass 190 minimum score is 80; Subclass 491 is 65.After obtaining the Subclass 190, you must remain in Queensland for 2 years; for the Subclass 491, it is 3 years.

Image 5:

The second Stream is currently closed for offshore applicants

The third Stream is mainly for students who have graduated in Queensland

The benefit is that you can apply directly after graduation without a full-time work requirement. The downside is thatfor most students, the only option is the Subclass 491 — as everyone knows, the Subclass 491 is a provisional-to-PR pathway that requires at least $53,900 in taxable income per year for three years.

So ultimately,Queensland’s policy attitude is: we can give you the Subclass 491 first, but you still need to have a job and income in the end.If you have graduated with a PhD from Queensland — and it must be 100% a Queensland PhD — you can apply directly for the Subclass 190 with no work requirement.

Some additional requirements for Queensland graduates applying for the Subclass 491:

1. The Subclass 491 education requirement is bachelor’s degree or postgraduate

2. GPA must be above 6, and you need 3 months of work experience at 20 hours per week, which must match the nominated occupation.

3. You must also already hold a work contract for at least 20 hours per week

4. Degree certificate

5. IELTS 7 in each band

Overall, this Stream’s conditions are quite demanding, and it essentially shuts out the Subclass 190 pathway for Queensland graduates — so it all comes back to the question of ‘whether or not you have a job’

The fourth Stream is: Regional Small Business

To put it simply,you need to have been operating a small business for 2 or more years with a turnover of $200,000 or above, a score of at least 65, and it must be a successful and profitable business.

For IT professionals who want to stay in Queensland but find the general skilled migration pathway too difficult, the small business route is worth considering.This programme is one Queensland will be actively developing in the coming years,priority processing is given, and even when the remaining allocation is limited, spots will be reserved for the small business stream.

Overall summary and recommendations

This financial year, we’ve had quite a few clients land in Queensland through the small business route — particularly those in highly competitive fields like accounting, ANZSCO 2611 and 2613 — when the conventional pathway is too congested, they’ve found another way. IT professionals with entrepreneurial ambitions are welcome to get in touch for an assessment.

In summary for IT professionals pursuing skilled migration through Queensland: the eligible occupations are listed in Image 5 — just five occupations can go through the ‘Skilled workers living in Queensland’ or Stream 2 pathway. 200 spots per year is neither a lot nor a little. For those looking to migrate through Queensland, the most important thing is still: get a job! So whether you’re from interstate or already in Queensland, go and find work — once you meet the work experience requirement, you can compete for those 200 spots.

The ACT’s state nomination basic threshold is not particularly high — the requirements are simply more detailed and strict.

Key IT-related occupations on the ACT Critical List

Primary Subclass 190 requirements are:

– nominated occupation on the ACT Critical List

– for Professional-level occupations, language requirement of IELTS 7 in each band (or equivalent PTE)

– at least six consecutive months of full-time work in Canberra prior to submitting the Matrix (does not need to be in the nominated occupation)

–at least six months of continuous residence in Canberra prior to submitting the Matrix

Primary Subclass 491 requirements:

– nominated occupation on the ACT Critical List

– language requirement of IELTS 7 in each band (or equivalent PTE)

– at least three consecutive months of work in Canberra prior to submitting the Matrix (can be part-time or full-time, does not need to be in the nominated occupation)

– at least three months of continuous residence in Canberra prior to submitting the Matrix

The entry threshold is not high — it mainly comes down to the Matrix score, which can be boosted througha partner’s education/employment/language, a superior language score of 8+ for the primary applicant, work in the nominated occupation in Canberra, length of residence in Canberra, study in Canberraand even property purchase to earn extra points.

Invitations this financial year

The ACT’s IT Matrix scores this financial year have been a rollercoaster. The ACT uses its own Matrix scoring system — once basic requirements are met, applicants are selected based on score and submission time.From the start of the financial year to around mid-year, a score of 85/90 was enough to receive a Subclass 190 Matrix invitation;then the ACT opened up the offshore applicant stream, and the allocation was quickly exhausted — partly because there were suddenly more applicants,the Subclass 190 score kept climbing,100 — 110 — 115 points…

Overall summary and recommendations

That said, the ACT government is very proactive about the new financial year —actively pushing for a larger state nomination allocation,and we hope that once that’s secured,Matrix scores for occupations including IT can come down a little.The ACT also has a small business stream, with conditions more relaxed than Queensland’s,so for applicants from other states who don’t want to spend the time slowly building up a high Matrix score but still want a Canberra Subclass 190，the small business stream is worth considering!

Of course, the ACT also has one fairly clear advantage:stable invitations and transparent policy.This state government operates by the book — this financial year they have consistently issued Matrix invitations every 1–2 weeks, carefully controlling the number issued each round. Policies are not changed arbitrarily,and any policy changes are announced in advance,for example, they have already announced that starting from the new financial year, the occupation list will be updated once a year.

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