The Victorian Government has announced its 2025-26 State Nominated Skilled Migration Program will cease accepting new Registrations of Interest (ROIs) at 4 pm AEST on 28 April 2026. The program reopened only seven months ago with a reduced federal allocation of 3,400 places—down 32 per cent on 2024-25—and demand has already exhausted most remaining nominations. The closure affects Skilled Nominated (subclass 190) and Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) (subclass 491) streams. Candidates who have lodged an Expression of Interest but not yet submitted an ROI must do so before the deadline.
![Victoria to close state-nominated skilled visa program to new registrations on 28 April]()
At this juncture, applicants and sponsoring employers may find it valuable to engage VisaHQ, whose dedicated Australian portal (https://www.visahq.com/australia/) provides end-to-end guidance on state nomination, employer-sponsored alternatives and document preparation. Their advisers can help accelerate ROI submissions before cut-off dates and map contingency pathways should quotas fill, reducing the administrative burden at a critical moment.
The state will continue to assess lodged ROIs but warns that competition is intense; points alone are not decisive, with English proficiency, salary and regional residence among ranking factors. Employers relying on Victorian nomination for permanent residency pathways should fast-track documentation and medicals this week. Those missing the cut-off may need to pivot to employer-sponsored visas or await the program’s reopening in the 2026-27 financial year, typically announced in August. Regional offices may still secure priority if they can demonstrate genuine labour shortages. Mobility managers should brief impacted assignees on alternative routes such as the 494 Regional Employer Sponsored visa or onshore 482 to 186 transition, noting that new minimum salary thresholds take effect on 1 July. Housing and schooling arrangements should be planned with contingencies in mind, as permanent-residency timing now risks slipping into 2027 for late applicants. The announcement underscores a broader tightening of state-nominated allocations as the federal government seeks to slow net migration without harming critical-skills pipelines.
At this juncture, applicants and sponsoring employers may find it valuable to engage VisaHQ, whose dedicated Australian portal (https://www.visahq.com/australia/) provides end-to-end guidance on state nomination, employer-sponsored alternatives and document preparation. Their advisers can help accelerate ROI submissions before cut-off dates and map contingency pathways should quotas fill, reducing the administrative burden at a critical moment.
The state will continue to assess lodged ROIs but warns that competition is intense; points alone are not decisive, with English proficiency, salary and regional residence among ranking factors. Employers relying on Victorian nomination for permanent residency pathways should fast-track documentation and medicals this week. Those missing the cut-off may need to pivot to employer-sponsored visas or await the program’s reopening in the 2026-27 financial year, typically announced in August. Regional offices may still secure priority if they can demonstrate genuine labour shortages. Mobility managers should brief impacted assignees on alternative routes such as the 494 Regional Employer Sponsored visa or onshore 482 to 186 transition, noting that new minimum salary thresholds take effect on 1 July. Housing and schooling arrangements should be planned with contingencies in mind, as permanent-residency timing now risks slipping into 2027 for late applicants. The announcement underscores a broader tightening of state-nominated allocations as the federal government seeks to slow net migration without harming critical-skills pipelines.
