190 State Nomination: What Happens After a State Selects Your EOI?

Each state and territory runs its own nomination program.

A jurisdiction may use its own registration, invitation, ROI or
nomination-application process before it formally nominates a candidate
in SkillSelect.

Another jurisdiction may use a different process.

For federal subclass 190 purposes, the important event is the formal
nomination by a state or territory government agency.

Home Affairs states that when a state or territory nominates a candidate
in SkillSelect, the nomination triggers an invitation to apply for the
visa.

Home Affairs expressly states that all state and territory government
agencies have their own criteria for deciding who they will nominate.

Jurisdictions use their nomination programs to address their own
workforce and demographic needs.

Requirements can therefore differ in areas such as:

• occupation
• points
• employment
• residence
• skills shortages
• connection to the jurisdiction
• English
• work experience
• other state or territory priorities

The process can also change during a program year.

Always follow the current official guidance of the jurisdiction
considering your EOI.

For subclass 190, state and territory agencies can view completed EOIs
and identify candidates they may wish to nominate.

Your EOI includes information such as:

• nominated occupation
• skills assessment
• English
• age
• employment
• qualifications
• partner circumstances
• points claims
• visa subclasses you are interested in

The EOI should remain accurate while you are waiting for selection.

Subclass 190 nomination gives you 5 points under the General Skilled
Migration points test.

These nomination points form part of the points score used for the
subclass 190 pathway.

But the five points do not replace the other eligibility requirements.

You still need to meet the points score stated in the Home Affairs
invitation and satisfy the visa criteria.

State nomination and the federal visa decision are separate.

The state or territory decides whether to nominate you under its own
program.

Home Affairs then assesses whether you meet the subclass 190 visa
criteria.

Home Affairs specifically states that receiving an invitation does not
mean the visa will be granted.

The invitation comes through SkillSelect.

It identifies the subclass and the points score you need to meet based
on the EOI.

From that point, the federal visa-application deadline begins.

Home Affairs states that this period cannot be extended.

The visa application is lodged through ImmiAccount.

Do not treat the 60-day period as additional time to create evidence for
claims that were not genuinely true when required.

Once an invitation has been issued, the EOI is suspended during the
invitation period and cannot be updated in the normal way.

This makes it important to keep the EOI accurate before a state selects
and nominates you.

If circumstances change while the visa application is being prepared,
the legal effect should be checked against the visa criteria rather than
trying to rewrite the invited EOI.

When lodging the visa application, you must show that you can meet that
score.

Evidence can be required for claims relating to:

• age
• English
• skilled employment
• educational qualifications
• Australian study
• regional study
• Professional Year
• credentialled community language
• partner points
• other points-test factors

The state nomination contributes the 5 nomination points.

Home Affairs states that if you cannot show that you meet the points
score on the invitation or the other visa criteria, you should not
apply.

The indicative score in SkillSelect is based on information you entered.

The visa application is where those claims need to be supported with
evidence.

Home Affairs' current guidance states that the applicant must declare
that they have a suitable assessment at invitation.

Following the Thapa decision, Home Affairs currently accepts in
relevant circumstances a suitable assessment obtained within the 60-day
invitation period.

The assessment must also satisfy the applicable migration validity
rules.

Because this timing issue is legally technical, applicants should not
use it as a routine strategy to delay obtaining a skills assessment
until after invitation.

English can also affect the points score.

If your EOI claimed Proficient or Superior English points, the visa
application needs evidence supporting that claim under the relevant
English rules.

A state nomination does not waive the federal English requirement or
validate an unsupported English-points claim.

If you turn 45 after receiving the invitation, Home Affairs states that
you can still apply.

If you turn 45 after submitting the EOI but before invitation, you will
not meet the standard invitation-age requirement.

This makes the invitation date important.

Home Affairs states that if the state or territory government agency
withdraws its nomination after you have applied for the subclass 190
visa, the visa application becomes invalid.

State nomination should therefore not be treated as irrelevant once the
federal visa application is lodged.

Applicants should continue to comply with any obligations to provide
accurate information to both the jurisdiction and Home Affairs.

The Australian Government gives each state and territory nomination
allocations.

Home Affairs states that these allocations are the number of new primary
applicants the jurisdiction can nominate during the program year.

They do not determine the number of visas that will ultimately be
granted.

The Department separately processes the visa applications.

Home Affairs distinguishes state and territory nominated 190/491
pathways from departmental invitation rounds.

States and territories manage their nominations according to their own
priorities.

Departmental invitation rounds principally cover subclass 189 and
family-sponsored subclass 491.

A headline about a federal 189 invitation round should therefore not be
treated as a subclass 190 nomination round.

• identity
• nominated occupation
• skills assessment
• English
• skilled employment
• qualifications
• points claims
• partner and family information
• health
• character
• state nomination
• other visa criteria

The 60-day deadline means it is better to have important evidence
organised before formal nomination.

State and territory nomination programs can have their own declarations,
commitments and post-nomination expectations.

Those are separate from the federal visa criteria.

The requirements of the jurisdiction that nominated you should be
reviewed directly rather than assuming that receiving the Home Affairs
invitation ends every state-level obligation.

• which stage of the jurisdiction's process you have actually reached
• whether formal SkillSelect nomination has occurred
• updated and accurate EOI
• 5 nomination points
• Home Affairs invitation date
• 60-day application deadline
• invited points score
• suitable skills assessment
• English evidence
• employment evidence
• qualification evidence
• partner-point evidence where relevant
• age at invitation
• jurisdiction-specific requirements
• health and character documents
• consistency between the state nomination material, EOI and visa
  application

Do not treat state selection, state nomination, invitation and visa
grant as the same event.

Hans Immigration Services can review your EOI, nomination and supporting
evidence and help you understand the requirements for the subclass 190
visa application.

Book a consultation with Hans Immigration Services to discuss your
subclass 190 pathway.