Commonwealth of Australia
Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491): total cost to complete
By Sam Parks · Last checked:
A source-linked budget for a single offshore subclass 491 applicant: SkillSelect EOI, state/territory nomination or eligible-relative sponsorship gate, the current Home Affairs visa application charge, skills assessment, English test, health exam, police certificates, settlement declarations, family charges, and the 191 transition income-evidence rule separated from upfront cash costs.
What does the Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491) actually cost?
Mandatory non-refundable costs are A$7,506-A$9,010. Refundable proof-of-funds requirements are tracked separately at none tracked, because that money is shown or blocked rather than normally lost.
Verified against Home Affairs - SkillSelect Expression of Interest on 1 July 2026.
Australia skilled-route cost and points layer
Australia skilled points, nomination and Skills in Demand cost answer
Use this answer stack to compare Australia points routes with the sponsor-led Skills in Demand route without merging applicant costs, employer costs and salary evidence.
Calculator context
A points result does not guarantee an invitation, nomination or visa grant. It only says whether the profile clears the 65-point SkillSelect EOI floor. Skills assessment, occupation demand, state nomination, sponsorship, salary thresholds and post-invitation fees still need separate evidence.
| Australia route | Points or sponsor trigger | Mandatory paid-away baseline | Skills, nomination or salary dependency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subclass 189 Skilled Independent | Points-tested SkillSelect route. The EOI floor is 65 points; there is no sponsor or state nomination bonus. | A$7,501-A$8,705 | A$550-A$1,200 skills assessment before the EOI can become usable. No fixed salary floor in the route model; invitation depends on occupation demand and invitation rounds. |
| Subclass 190 Skilled Nominated | Points-tested SkillSelect route plus state or territory nomination. Nomination can add 5 points after the state gate is met. | A$7,506-A$9,010 | A$550-A$1,200 skills assessment plus A$0-A$300 state or territory fee exposure. No employer sponsor or national salary floor; state criteria can add occupation, residence and funds declarations. |
| Subclass 491 Skilled Work Regional | Points-tested regional route. State/territory nomination or eligible-relative sponsorship can add 15 points. | A$7,506-A$9,010 | A$550-A$1,200 skills assessment plus A$0-A$300 nomination or eligible-relative gate exposure. No upfront national salary floor; later subclass 191 context is income-evidence timing, not an upfront 491 fee. |
| Subclass 482 Skills in Demand | Sponsor-led route. It is not a points-tested SkillSelect invitation route. | A$10,381-A$13,335 | A$0-A$1,200 skills-assessment exposure where required by occupation, nationality or stream. A$420 sponsor fee, A$330 nomination fee and A$4,800-A$7,200 SAF levy are employer-side; A$79,423/yr CSIT or A$146,576/yr SSIT, plus AMSR where the stream requires it. |
| Comparator route | Route type | Paid-away baseline | Do not collapse these lines |
|---|---|---|---|
| Singapore S Pass | Employer-sponsored pass with quota, levy and insurance duties. | SGD 16,405-SGD 18,205 | SGD 15,600 levy and SGD 600-SGD 2,400 insurance stay employer-side; SGD 39,600-SGD 45,600 salary evidence is not a visa fee. |
| New Zealand AEWV | Employer-accredited work route with job-check approval before the worker applies. | NZ$3,060-NZ$4,325 | NZ$775 accreditation and NZ$735 job check are employer-side; variable market-rate job evidence is not paid away. |
| New Zealand SMC | Residence route with points, skilled-employment evidence and post-invitation filing. | NZ$6,810-NZ$8,925 | NZ$0 EOI and NZ$6,450 resident-stage application; NZ$72,800-NZ$109,200 skilled-job pay evidence is not a fee. |
| Austria Red-White-Red Card | Points and employer-declaration route with AMS assessment. | €228-€363 | €218 application fee; €0 points and labour-market gate; €41,580 salary evidence remains a category condition. |
- Australia points calculator
- Subclass 189 guide
- Subclass 190 guide
- Subclass 491 guide
- Skills in Demand guide
- 189 cost-to-complete
- 190 cost-to-complete
- Skills in Demand cost
- Skills in Demand fees
- Australia salary thresholds
- Singapore S Pass cost
- New Zealand AEWV cost
- New Zealand SMC cost
- Austria RWR cost
- Austria RWR calculator
- Cost-to-complete JSON feed
- How our skilled-route cost figures compare
Source dates: Australia cost and salary data checked 1 July 2026; comparator cost rows checked 1 July 2026. Latest source record in this cluster: 1 July 2026. This cluster supports retrieval and review, not ranking, traffic, AI-citation or market-share outcome claims.
What it actually costs
A source-linked budget for a single offshore subclass 491 applicant: SkillSelect EOI, state/territory nomination or eligible-relative sponsorship gate, the current Home Affairs visa application charge, skills assessment, English test, health exam, police certificates, settlement declarations, family charges, and the 191 transition income-evidence rule separated from upfront cash costs.
Money you don't get back
A$7,506-A$9,010
Mandatory fees, services and one month of insurance.
| Cost line | Amount | Type | When / who |
|---|---|---|---|
| SkillSelect Expression of Interest | A$0 | Gov fee | Required before a state or territory can nominate you, an eligible relative sponsorship can be processed, and Home Affairs can invite you to apply. The visa application charge is paid after invitation, not at EOI submission. Home Affairs - SkillSelect Expression of Interest |
| State/territory nomination or eligible-relative sponsorship gate· indicative | A$0-A$300 | Gov fee | Subclass 491 requires nomination by a state or territory government agency or sponsorship by an eligible relative. State fee exposure varies: verified examples include Victoria charging AUD 0, Western Australia charging AUD 200, and ACT listing a AUD 300 service fee. Eligible-relative sponsorship can avoid a state fee but still needs sponsor eligibility and regional evidence. ACT Migration - key documents checklist |
| Visa application charge (subclass 491 primary applicant) | A$6,140 | Gov fee | Home Affairs current pricing table row for Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491), effective 1 July 2026. Eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste concessions may reduce the charge. Home Affairs - current visa pricing table |
| Skills assessment· indicative | A$550-A$1,200 | Service | Required for the nominated skilled occupation before the EOI, nomination/sponsorship and visa path can work. Assessing-authority fees vary materially by occupation. Home Affairs - skills assessment requirement |
| English-language test· indicative | A$410-A$520 | Service | Common applicant case: competent English is required at invitation, with points available for higher bands. Some passport/evidence scenarios can reduce this to zero. Home Affairs - English language visa requirements |
| Immigration health examination· indicative | A$350-A$650 | Service | Home Affairs may require health examinations for the applicant and family members. Panel-physician fees vary by country and exam components. Home Affairs - health requirement |
| Police certificates / character documents· indicative | A$56-A$200 | Service | Character evidence is required and Home Affairs may ask for police certificates. Australian AFP checks and overseas certificates vary by country and by fingerprint/non-fingerprint route. Home Affairs - character requirements for visas |
| Settlement-funds declaration where a state asks(optional) | A$0 | Proof of funds | There is no universal Home Affairs settlement-funds deposit for subclass 491, but state nomination programs can ask for a financial-capacity declaration or asset evidence. ACT overseas applicants, for example, sign a financial declaration for settlement assets. ACT Migration - key documents checklist |
| Subclass 191 income evidence after three years(optional) | A$0 | Service | Not an upfront subclass 491 fee. For the subclass 191 Regional Provisional stream, Home Affairs states there is no minimum income requirement, but applicants must provide ATO notices of assessment for three income years out of the five years of the eligible visa and must have complied with eligible visa conditions. Home Affairs - subclass 191 Regional Provisional stream |
| Biometrics collection where requested(optional)· indicative | A$0-A$120 | Service | Conditional on country, applicant history and collection channel. Treat as a country-specific cash-flow item rather than a universal 491 charge. Home Affairs - biometrics |
| Document translation / certification(optional)· indicative | A$0-A$300 | Service | Conditional: only needed where documents are not in English or the assessing authority/state nomination program requires certified copies. State/territory nomination and assessing-authority document rules |
| Additional applicant charge (18+)(optional) | A$3,070per adult | Gov fee | Optional family-scaling line for each adult additional applicant on the subclass 491 application. Home Affairs - current visa pricing table |
| Additional applicant charge (under 18)(optional) | A$1,535per child | Gov fee | Optional family-scaling line for each child additional applicant on the subclass 491 application. Home Affairs - current visa pricing table |
| Second instalment for adult without functional English(optional) | A$4,885per adult applicant | Gov fee | Charged only where an applicant aged 18 or over is assessed as not having functional English at visa grant; otherwise the second instalment is nil. Home Affairs - current visa pricing table |
Baseline sunk cost is the current subclass 491 primary-applicant VAC, the state/territory nomination fee exposure range or zero-cost eligible-relative sponsorship path, one skills assessment, one English test, a health-exam range, and a police-certificate range for a single applicant. SkillSelect EOI is shown as AUD 0 because Home Affairs charges at visa application stage after invitation. There is no universal federal settlement-funds deposit for subclass 491; state financial-capacity declarations are shown separately as a zero-dollar evidence line. The subclass 191 income-evidence line is included as downstream pathway context because it is not an upfront 491 fee and Home Affairs states there is no minimum income requirement. Optional dependant, second-instalment, biometrics, translation, migration-agent and occupation-specific licensing costs are excluded from the baseline unless the user chooses them. Last checked 1 July 2026.
Cite or reuse this dataset
This cost model is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0. Cite Visa Atlas for the compiled sunk/refundable split and cite each linked authority or provider source for the underlying line item.
Suggested citation
Visa Atlas, "Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491) cost-to-complete model", https://visaatlas.org/cost-to-complete/australia-491-skilled-work-regional-provisional. Last verified 1 July 2026.
- JSON endpoint
- https://visaatlas.org/api/public/cost-to-complete
Primary and supporting sources (9)
- Home Affairs - SkillSelect Expression of Interest
- ACT Migration - key documents checklist
- Home Affairs - current visa pricing table
- Home Affairs - skills assessment requirement
- Home Affairs - English language visa requirements
- Home Affairs - health requirement
- Home Affairs - character requirements for visas
- Home Affairs - subclass 191 Regional Provisional stream
- Home Affairs - biometrics
FAQs
What does the Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491) actually cost to complete?
Mandatory non-refundable costs are A$7,506-A$9,010 in the current model. Separately, refundable proof-of-funds requirements are none tracked. The line table explains each item and source.
Is proof of funds a sunk cost?
No. Proof of funds is money you must show, hold or block. It can still be a cash-flow barrier, but it is different from application fees, document costs and insurance payments that you do not normally get back.
Why are some lines marked indicative?
Some third-party costs vary by country, provider and document count. Those lines use a range and are marked indicative so they are not confused with a single government tariff.