Skilled Visa Program in Queensland and New South Wales have closed for the Financial Year 2024-2025

Queensland State Nominated Program for 2024-2025 

Queensland State already closed its nomination visa programs for 2024-22025 on 27 May 2025. Queensland will not open for any registration of Interests (ROI) for onshore, offshore, graduates and regional business owners until they set up the nomination number for the year of 2025-2026.  

However, Queensland will still continue to assess the applications that were already lodged and are currently under assessment.  

The State probably reopens the program in August or September, so it is the time for you to prepare and strengthen your application. You can add up your test points score by:  

• Retake the English test (PTE/IELTS):  

• If you get IELTS 7.0 on each of the 4 components, you can obtain an extra 10 points.  

• If you get IELTS 8.0 on each of the 4 components, you can obtain an extra 20 points.  

• NATTI Exam: If you pass the NAATI exam, you can get additional 5 points for your visa application.  

• Skills Assessment: Submit your skills assessment and have it ready for submission.  

NSW State Nomination Program for 2024-2025 

NSW is allocated 3,000 places for the Skilled Nominated Visa (Subclass 190) and it already reached the capacity on 04 June 2025. This means no further invitations will be released for the Financial Year 2024-2025. The applicants need to wait until the Federation Government allocates a new allocation and NSW State sets up the next year program.  

The good news is that invitations for Skilled Work Regional (Subclass 491) visa will be still issued in June 2025. However, it is expected that it will reach its allocation for this visa subclass soon.  

If you are waiting for an invitation or your current visa is due to expire in the next 4-6 months, you need to prepare for a back up plan. 

• You can consider applying for an employer sponsorship visa (subclass 482/186), or 

• You can consider applying for an education program, and if eligible, you can stay longer in Australia under a student visa  

It’s advisable that you should do the research to see what occupations are in high demand and are likely prioritised in the state you wish to apply for.