October Invitation Round 2021: Subclass 189 and Subclass 491

The second SkillSelect round for 2021, known as the October Invitation Round, was released on the 29th of October 2021. In this October Invitation Round, a total of 400 invitations have been issued by the Department of Home Affairs for the following visa categories.

• Skilled Independent Visa (Subclass189)
• Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 491)- Family Sponsored.

The invitation rounds for Skilled Independent Visa (Subclass189) and Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 491)- Family Sponsored are expected to run on a quarterly basis. The dates for each of the rounds are not set prior to the round and they tend to vary. In fact, the total number of invitations issued also varies depending on the number of applications the Department of Home Affairs processes.

However, it’s vital to know that the number of nominations from the State or Territory governments for Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 491) is not affected by the departmental invitation rounds. The number of nominations approved by State and Territory Governments for the following skilled visas have also been released:

• Subclass 190 Skilled – Nominated visa; and

• Subclass 491 Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) State Nominated visa.

The following sections discuss which category of occupations and visas received how many invitations for the October Invitation Round; including the minimum point thresholds for the October Invitation Round. Along with latest statistics and information on the number of nominations from the State or Territory governments.

October Invitation Round 2021: Breakdown

The table below outlines the total number of invitations issued for the October Invitation Round on 29th of October 2021 for each of the visa categories.

Visa Subclass	Number
Skilled Independent Visa (Subclass 189)	200
Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 491)- Family Sponsored	200

 

October Invitation Round 2021: Invitation Process

Typically, applicants with the highest point totals are invited to apply for the appropriate visa. For applications with identical points scores, the order of invitation is determined by the moment they reached their points score for that subclass (referred to as the date of effect). It’s important to remember that the Expressions of Interest (EOI) with earlier dates of effect are given precedence for an invitation relative to the EOI with later dates of effect.

The next section discusses this with the most recent statistics.

October Invitation Round 2021: Thresholds

This table illustrates the minimum points score and the latest date of effect month for the October Invitation Round 2021.

Visa Subclass	Minimum Points Score	Latest date of effect month
Skilled Independent Visa (Subclass 189)	90	November 2020
Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 491)- Family Sponsored	80	April 2020

October Invitation Round 2021: Occupation List Subject to Pro-rata

Usually there is quite a significant number of applications from certain occupation types for Subclass 189 and Subclass 491. Therefore, to ensure a program-year-long availability of invitations, the pro-rata arrangements are made for these occupations. This arrangement ensures that the department is able to issue invitations through-out the program year.

Among all the applications received by the Department, the SkillSelect gives most priority to the applications for the Skilled Independent visa (Subclass 189). Once the allocation has been made for Subclass 189, the remaining places are given out to the applicants for Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (Subclass 491)- Family Sponsored. There will be no invites issued for subclass 491 visas in these occupations if all subclass 189 visas are filled.

The table below lists the occupations subject to pro-rata arrangements. The remainder of invitations have been issued for non-pro-rated occupations in the October 2021 round.

Subclass	Occupation ID	Description	Minimum Points Score	Latest date of effect month
189/491	2211	Accountants	N/A	N/A
189/491	2212	Auditors, Company Secretaries and Corporate Treasurers	N/A	N/A
189/491	2334	Electronics Engineer	N/A	N/A
189	2335	Industrial, Mechanical and Production Engineers	90	November 2020
491	2335	Industrial, Mechanical and Production Engineers	N/A	N/A
189	2339	Other Engineering Professionals	N/A	N/A
491	2339	Other Engineering Professionals	N/A	N/A
189/491	2611	ICT Business and System Analysts	N/A	N/A
189/491	2613	Software and Applications Programmers	N/A	N/A
189/491	2631	Computer Network Professionals	N/A	N/A

 

When invitations are issued under the independent, and skilled regional (provisional) visas, an “occupation ceiling” might be applied. Occupation ceiling refers to an upper limit imposed on the total number of EOIs that will receive invitations for skilled migration from a particular occupation group. This allows the skilled migration program to maintain balance and pursue attracting migrants that will fill out a variety of skilled occupations.

This occupation ceiling values are dependent on a percentage of stock employment figures for each occupation.  The Australian Bureau of Statistics provides the required employment numbers, that rightly depicts the total number of people employed in Australia in each occupation.

It is important to note that the occupation ceilings, however,  do not apply to State or Territory Nominated or Business Innovation and Investment visa subclasses.

Invitation Issued During 2021-2022 Program Year

This table lists the total number of invitations that have been issued for the 2021-2022 program year, so far. We can see that till now, 450 invitations have been issued for Subclass 189 and 700 invitations have been issued for Subclass 491.

It’s important to note here that the invitations issued by Australian States and Territories are not included here, more on that is discussed in the subsequent section.

Visa Subclass	July Invitation Round	October invitation Round	Total
Skilled Independent Visa (Subclass 189)	250	200	450
Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 491)- Family Sponsored	500	200	700
Total	750	400	1150

 

October Invitation Round: State and Territory Government Nominations

The following table shows the total number of applicants who have received a nomination from the State and Territory government in October 2021.

Visa Subclass	ACT	NSW	NT	Qld	SA	Tas.	Vic.	WA	Total
Skilled Nominated visa (Subclass 190)	51	248	37	0	126	132	122	188	904
Skilled WorkRegional (Provisional) visa (Subclass 491) State and territory nominated	121	112	68	0	236	221	46	20	833
Business Innovation and Investment (provisional) Visa (Subclass 188)	<20	100	0	0	50	0	31	<20	192
Total	174	460	105	0	412	353	199	226	1929

Next SkillSelect Invitation Round

If you want to apply for and receive an Australian Skilled visa in the next SkillSelect Invitation round, you can check the occupations on the priority list to check if your nominated occupation falls in or not. There are currently 44 occupations on the priority migration occupation list.

 

Description	ANZSCO code	Description	ANZSCO code
Chief Executive or Managing Director	111111	Hospital Pharmacist	251511
Construction Project Manager	133111	Industrial Pharmacist	251512
Accountant (General)	221111	Retail Pharmacist	251513
Management Accountant	221112	Orthotist or Prosthetist	251912
Taxation Accountant	221113	General Practitioner	253111
External Auditor	221213	Resident Medical Officer	253112
Internal Auditor	221214	Psychiatrist	253411
Surveyor	232212	Medical Practitioners nec	253999
Cartographer	232213	Midwife	254111
Other Spatial Scientist	232214	Registered Nurse (Aged Care)	254412
Civil Engineer	233211	Registered Nurse (Critical Care and Emergency)	254415
Geotechnical Engineer	233212	Registered Nurse (Medical)	254418
Structural Engineer	233214	Registered Nurse (Mental Health)	254422
Transport Engineer	233215	Registered Nurse (Perioperative)	254423
Electrical Engineer	233311	Registered Nurses nec	254499
Mechanical Engineer	233512	Multimedia Specialist	261211
Mining Engineer (excluding Petroleum)	233611	Analyst Programmer	261311
Petroleum Engineer	233612	Developer Programmer	261312
Medical Laboratory Scientist	234611	Software Engineer	261313
Veterinarian	234711	Software and Applications Programmers nec	261399
ICT Security Specialist	262112	Maintenance Planner	312911
Social Worker	272511	Chef	351311

If you are all set to apply for a skilled visa in Australia this year through the most relevant skilled visa category, you may get your eligibility status checked by a qualified migration lawyer in Australia.

Visa Application Assessment

If you are someone who is actively looking for permanent residency in Australia and would like professional consultation regarding your personal situation then do not hesitate to contact us. At Path Migration, we have a team of immigration lawyers who specialize in immigration law.

Given the mammoth of experience the team brings in, we provide feasible and practical counselling on your successful pathway to Australia. The team is well adept with knowing what helps increase the chances of success for your application. You can get your points checked by an expert, and accordingly, the immigration expert at Path Migration will suggest which program is suitable for you to apply for the visa.

If you are unsure whether this visa category applies to you or not or if you are looking to be successfully nominated, then don’t hesitate to contact us or directly email us at hello@pathmigration.com.

 

You may also be interest in:

• New South Wales Skilled Migration Program for 2021-2022

• South Australia’s Skilled Migration Program from 2021-2022

• Victoria’s Skilled Migration Program for 2021-2022

• Tasmania Skilled Migration 2021- 2022: 190 and 491 visa

• Return of International Students in Australia by 2021: Australian International Border Opening