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Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189)

Updated 22 July 2026

This is general information, not migration advice. Visa rules, fees and eligibility change often — always confirm on the Department of Home Affairs website, and speak to a registered migration agent about your own situation.

Overview

The Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189) is a permanent visa for invited workers, eligible New Zealand citizens and eligible Hong Kong or British National (Overseas) passport holders with skills Australia needs, to live and work permanently anywhere in Australia. It has separate streams: the Points-tested stream and the Hong Kong stream (the New Zealand stream permanently closed to new applications on 1 July 2023). In the Points-tested stream you do not need a sponsor or nominator, but you must be invited to apply and must satisfy the points test. With this visa you can stay in Australia permanently, work and study anywhere in Australia, enrol in Medicare, sponsor eligible relatives for permanent residence and, if eligible, become an Australian citizen. How long you can stay: Permanently. Home Affairs states: "This is a permanent visa. It lets you stay in Australia indefinitely. The visa has a travel component that expires 5 years after the date of visa grant." You become a permanent resident on the day the visa is granted. After 5 years you need a Resident Return (RRV) visa (subclass 155 or 157) to re-enter Australia as a permanent resident.

Step by step

  1. Step 1: Step 1 - Before you apply: submit an expression of interest (EOI) through SkillSelect to let the Department know you want to apply for this visa; check your occupation is on the relevant skilled occupation list, obtain a suitable skills assessment, and it is preferred that you organise health examinations before you apply.

  2. Step 2: After you submit your EOI you are ranked against other intending applicants and may be invited to apply. Invitations are issued regularly through SkillSelect. (Hong Kong stream applicants follow that stream's separate requirements instead of the points test.)

  3. Step 3: Step 2 - Gather your documents: collect the documents that support the claims you made in your EOI and show you meet the visa criteria (identity, skills assessment, English, relationship, dependants, character documents), translated and scanned as required.

  4. Step 4: Step 3 - Apply for the visa: once invited, apply online. Log in to your SkillSelect account and click 'Apply for visa', which takes you to ImmiAccount; create or log in to ImmiAccount, attach your documents, pay the visa application charge and note your transaction reference number (TRN). You have 60 days from the date of your invitation to apply.

  5. Step 5: Step 4 - After you apply: the Department confirms receipt; complete any health examinations and biometrics if requested, attach any further information asked for through ImmiAccount, stay lawful in Australia, and tell the Department if your circumstances change.

  6. Step 6: Step 5 - Visa outcome: you can be in or outside Australia when the decision is made, but not in immigration clearance. The Department notifies you of the decision in writing.

Eligibility & requirements

  • Points-tested stream: you must be invited to apply for the visa - you can only apply if the Department invites you, after submitting an EOI in SkillSelect.
  • Points-tested stream: 'Be able to score 65 points or more'. Home Affairs states that if you do not obtain a score of 65 points you will not be invited to apply, and that your invitation will state the number of points you must score at assessment (which may be higher than 65 depending on your EOI claims). Use the official points calculator to work out your score.
  • Points-tested stream: you must be aged under 45 when the Department invites you to apply. You can still apply if you turn 45 after the invitation is issued.
  • Points-tested stream: your occupation must be on the relevant list of eligible skilled occupations for the Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189) Points-tested stream, and you must declare a suitable skills assessment for that occupation at the time of invitation (obtained in the 3 years before the invitation date).
  • Points-tested stream: at the time of invitation you must have at least competent English.
  • If you are in Australia when you apply you must hold a substantive visa, or a Bridging visa A (010), B (020) or C (030). If you hold, or your last substantive visa was, a subclass 491 or 494, you must have held it for at least 3 years when you apply.
  • You and any family who apply with you must meet the health requirement and the character requirement (character applies to family members aged 16 and over); you must have repaid or arranged to repay any debt to the Australian Government.
  • If you are 18 or older you must sign the Australian values statement, and the Department will consider your immigration history - a previous visa cancellation or refusal may make you ineligible.
  • The Skilled Independent (subclass 189) New Zealand stream permanently closed to new applications on 1 July 2023. A separate Hong Kong stream exists for eligible Hong Kong or British National (Overseas) passport holders, with its own criteria on its own page.

Costs

ItemIndicative cost
Application charge (main applicant, Points-tested stream)From AUD6,135.00 (concessions apply in limited circumstances)
Second instalment charge for family members (less than functional English, aged 18+)AUD4,885.00
Cost concession for eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste applicantsFrom 1 July 2026, a lower visa cost applies to eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste citizens who lodge a valid visa application (exact lower amount not published on the visa page)

Key links

Contacts

Registered migration agent (MARA)
For advice about your own circumstances, use a registered migration agent or a legal service. This page is general information only.