Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 494)

The Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Subclass 494) is a provisional residency visa available to skilled workers outside of Australia, and those already living and working in Australia. To be eligible for this visa, you must be skilled in an occupation on the Regional Occupation List and be nominated by an employer in a Designated Regional Area.

Skilled workers with an occupation on the Regional Occupation List can apply for this visa once they have an employer nomination. You must have a substantive visa or a bridging visa A, B or C to make a valid application within Australia.

Once a 494 visa is granted, providing you remain in the nominated employment within the designated regional area, they can stay in Australia for up to 5 years, with a permanent residency pathway available after 3 years. Dependent family members may be included and must also live, work and study in the designated regional area.

Qualifying for a subclass 494 visa

To be eligible for a 494 visa, primary applicants must meet the following criteria:

  • Be between the ages of 18 and 44
  • Have Competent English or higher, and their dependent family members over 18 years of age have at least Functional English
  • Completed a skill assessment in the nominated occupation
  • Employed in the nominated occupation for at least 3 years on a full-time basis and at the appropriate skill level
  • Meet health and character requirements

Qualifying for a subclass 494 visa

You must be nominated by an Australian employer whose is operating in a designated regional area of Australia. The employer must be an approved sponsor or have at least lodged an application to become a standard business sponsor.

Obtaining a subclass 494 visa is a 3 stage process:

  1. Sponsorship: The employer must be or have applied for approval of sponsorship.
  2. Nomination:The employer must lodge a nomination that specifies the details of the position and identifies the nominee.
  3. Visa Application:The applicant applies for Subclass 494 visa under a relevant stream.

Moving from a provisional visa to a permanent visa

The 494 visa provides a pathway to apply for permanent residence in Australia. To apply for the Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional) visa (subclass 191) you must have held an eligible visa (491 or 494) for at least 3 years, have had a taxable income at or above the income threshold ($53,900/year) for at least 3 years, and all applicants must have complied with the conditions of their visa.

Permanent residency will enable you to work and study in Australia, enrol in the public healthcare system, sponsor your relatives to come to Australia, and, if eligible, apply for Australian citizenship.

Processing Time

6-9 months

Australian Government Visa Fees

AUD$ 4,240.00 Main visa applicant
AUD$ 2,120.00 Partner included in application
AUD$ 1,060.00 Per child under 18 included in the application

Visa Go Australia Fees

Total fee to process a Skilled Sponsored (Provisional) Visa (subclass 491) is £1,800.00

Our fee is paid in 3 stages as we complete the work on your visa application

£600.00 Deposit
£600.00 Due when Skills Assessment is Lodged
£600.00 Due when EOI is Lodged

Visa Go Australia Processing Service

Visa Go Australia offer a comprehensive processing service to all their clients. A designated experienced Case Processor is allocated to undertake the necessary steps in preparing and lodging each application. They are available to advise and support clients throughout the whole process and their knowledge and expertise is supported by a Registered Migration Agent (MARA 0211214).

Visa Go have been really supportive and knowledgeable in terms of the process. Sue Tempany is really knowledgable and responsive to any questions. I would fully recommend visa go. Swift service!
Gemma McGrath
Gemma McGrath
11:12 22 Mar 23
Our process started with an initial conversation with Darren, before we were assigned our emigration agent Sue. The visa process itself is quite complicated, and I don’t know how we’d have even attempted to do this on our own!

Sue was amazing throughout, keeping us updated each step of the way, and providing detailed guidance at the start of each stage, which enabled us to start preparing and collating everything needed for the next part when the time came. Sue’s replies to the many emails that I've sent her way over the course of this process, were always prompt and patient, and nothing ever seemed to much trouble. Sue’s experience and understanding of the processes, timelines and the strict format in which things had to be done, meant that she was able to advise us and provide guidelines, which meant that when we submitted each stage, we were not having to worry about delays due to incomplete applications.

18 months on from that initial meeting - we have now been living and working in Australia for 8 months, and have recently changed onto a permanent visa.

We are extremely glad that we chose to work with Visa Go, and want to say a massive thank you to Sue, Darren and the team for all of their support and assistance throughout.
Lindsay Woolston
Lindsay Woolston
01:09 06 Mar 23
This was one of the most difficult challenges of my life to obtain a regional skilled migration visa for Australia. There were so many obstacles and hurdles to jump due to Covid lockdown and a race against ageism rules of turning 45. I certainly could not have done this without the help of visa go! Managed to secure an Invitation to apply from the Australian Government and with the assistance of my wonderful agent managed to fast track my ITA four days before my birthday! Never give up on your dreams. I now have my visa that can lead to PR thanks to Visa Go! You guys were awesome and really appreciate your help. ☺️
Callum Davidson
Callum Davidson
12:49 20 Aug 22
I can’t thank Kimberley and Darren enough for all the time, effort and support they gave us whilst going through our visa process. They answered any and all questions and made such a daunting undertaking much less stressful with all their advice and guidance. Would highly recommend!
Ashley Fleming
Ashley Fleming
07:28 26 Jul 22
We would just like to say a huge thank you to the Visa Go Australia team, especially Sue our caseworker who has been fantastic since the start, everything went smooth through the whole process, we was kept updated and informed along the way. We would definitely recommend and we can’t wait to head down under now our Visa has been granted. Couldn’t of done it without you. Thank you again!
Sarah Gething
Sarah Gething
14:17 25 Jul 22
After 4 1/2 years since our first contact with Visa Go Australia, and just over 3 years since starting our process with them, our visa has finally been granted and I cannot thank Sue and Darren enough! We had a very complex skill assessment stage but without Sue helping us with what we had to do, it wouldn’t of been possible without her. I highly recommend using Visa Go if you’re ready to start your journey to Australia or anywhere else, they have made our dreams come true! Thank you Sue, Darren and Kimberley 😁
Darren Castle
Darren Castle
04:54 20 Jul 22
I would highly recommend visa go.
Darren always took the time to answer any questions and help me through the process.
Within weeks he had my partner visa submitted and now I have my permanent residency!
I couldn’t thank Darren and the team enough 👍
Chris Lobb
Chris Lobb
23:35 19 Feb 22
Visa Go Australia are experts in their field.
My case officer, Sue, has been very professional and knowledgeable throughout the process providing great customer service, from providing the documents required to promptly replying to all queries.
So, to Darren, Kimberley and Sue, thank you all for your support to achieve my Visa.
Rosie Whitmarsh
Rosie Whitmarsh
09:38 16 Dec 21
Good and efficient services, clear information on what documents to provide and quick answers to my questions. Got two visas approved with Kimberleys help 😊.
Lesley Botschuyver
Lesley Botschuyver
03:09 17 Oct 21
Visa Go Australia provided amazing service when applying for a partner visa. They provide great support and advice throughout the process to ensure your application is done perfectly. Kimberley was always very patient answering my questions, and following up on things I missed. I would highly recommend Visa Go to anyone applying for an Australian visa.
Rebecca Wolody
Rebecca Wolody
10:01 07 Oct 21
Visa Go were fantastic at helping me secure my partner visa . The whole process was very simple and well explained - and I got the permanent residency after only a few months which was amazing. Kimberley was very helpful and supportive throughout the process and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them to anyone!
Sam Hodson
Sam Hodson
11:11 17 Sep 21
Kimberley and Darren helped myself and my partner with our Australian residencies and we couldn’t be happier. Even through lockdown Kimberley was attentive and on the ball at all times, my visa process took no time at all! I’ve already recommended friends to visa go as they truly know what they are doing and are there to help and make the process as straight forward as possible. Highly recommend!!!
Mary Pegasiou
Mary Pegasiou
21:20 16 Sep 21
I used Visa Go to apply for my Partner Visa and I have been super impressed with the service and turnaround time. Kimberley was very thorough with her communication and kept us updated through out the whole process. I can’t recommend the service enough!
Jake Forrest
Jake Forrest
14:06 20 Jul 21
My agent with Visa go was Kimberley Chatt. She was fantastic the whole way through. Always had very professional and prompt responses whenever I had a query. I felt like she went above and beyond to help me understand each step of the process. I now have my permanent partner visa in Australia and couldn't be happier. She turned what can often be a long arduous ordeal into a streamlined easy process. I would highly recommend this agency to anyone looking to immigrate to Australia. Thanks again Kimberley!
Ross Findlay
Ross Findlay
09:00 25 Jan 21
My Husband and I used Visa Go Australia to support us through our Visa process. Our Visa advisor was Sue, Sue was great from start to finish, always so helpful and replied to our emails and calls so quickly.
Our visa process took 11 months (as expected for the visa we applied for) and Sue kept us on track and up to date all the time, extremely organised and always happy to help and provide us with her support.
I highly recommend Visa Go Australia, we couldn't imagine trying to go through this process without Sues help and guidance. Samantha Mills
Samantha Mills
Samantha Mills
20:05 17 Dec 20
Visa Go provided an excellent service. They were professional, helpful and efficient throughout the visa process and Sue, my designated migration agent, always had words of encouragement to help deal with the tedium of the paperwork. I am a professional and I thought using a migration agent was probably unnecessary. I thought I could manage the paperwork process myself. However, it quickly became clear to me that an agent's assistance was very necessary. Visa Go's knowledge was invaluable and I have no hesitation in recommending their services.
Lorna Balfour
Lorna Balfour
11:07 17 Dec 20
Using Visa Go Australia was the BEST decision we made when planning for our move to Australia. My husband is British and needed an offshore 309 spouse visa. Sue made our life so much easier supporting us every step of the way. I was impressed with her knowledge, every question I had was answered quickly and with confidence. There is a huge amount of time and effort your agent does in the background so that you don't have to. I always felt like a priority and that I was in the safe hands of an expert. Not to mention how kind and friendly the agents are. I would highly recommend this company to anyone - 5 star service!
Lisa Garside
Lisa Garside
19:48 05 Dec 20
Amazing Darren and deanne changed our lives helping us Emmigrate to a new country.
John Docherty
John Docherty
15:17 19 Aug 20
Visa Go Australia were integral in getting our visas granted, without them the whole process would have been so difficult for us to get everything right, they were always so happy to help no matter how silly the question. They split the process up in to manageable chunks and made sure that we were always ready for the next step which really minimised the stress of it all.
Can't thank Darren and Kimberley enough.
Calam, Charlie and Rory
Chaz Manning
Chaz Manning
20:16 19 Jul 20
Me and my partner Cynthia have successfully been granted our partner visa for Australia and could definitely not have done it without all of the never ending help from Sue. Any visa process is always stressful, yet they helped so much with any problems we had along the way. I can't recommend this company enough! If you're worried about applying for a visa, you can rest assured that with their experience and knowledge, partnered with how lovely they always are even with the smallest of questions that you will be having your visa granted in no time with minimal stress!
Thank so much for all your help!
Jonas & Cynthia
Jonas Forshaw
Jonas Forshaw
12:02 27 Jun 20
We were recently granted a PR Visa and the work that Sue puts in in the background is commendable. Darren and Sue have been great to work with over the last 2 years and we were kept up to date the whole way.
I would highly recommend anyone applying for a visa to do it through them.
They made sure we had all the information at every step of they way and nothing was ever a problem if I called or emailed.
Thank you so much to all of the team!
Denny, Victoria and Caitlyn
Victoria Pullinger
Victoria Pullinger
09:12 31 May 20
I can not recommend these enough, was with us all the way, even when things got frustrating, no fault of the company, just how long the process takes. You do have to be patient and understand they have to wait on the migration department. It is worth using an agent. They completed a PMV300 for us and are now doing the next stage. It really does unburden a lot of stress during what is a stressful time. Even long after I was given advice and guidance when the job had already been completed. Honest, reliable and understanding. Thank you and keep well all. Marie & Jodie
Marie Curly-Locks
Marie Curly-Locks
23:10 14 May 20
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