Image Credit: Grant Higginson

About the Subclass 494 Visa

The Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 494) aims to attract young, skilled, English speaking migrants to areas of Australia where they are most needed.

Generally, skilled migrants are under 45 years of age, have competent English, at least diploma/trade level qualifications or above (nominated position must be an ANZSCO skill level 1-3 occupation) and relevant work experience.

This 5 year visa enables skilled migrants to work for a regional employer for a minimum of three years and enjoy the lifestyle of regional Australia.

The Department of Home Affairs website has information about the Subclass 494 for both applicants and sponsors.

There are three streams for the Subclass 494:

  • Employer Sponsored stream

  • Labour Agreement stream

  • Subsequent Entrant stream

The information on this page concerns the Employer Sponsored Stream. For information about the eligibility criteria and application process for the Subclass 494 - Employer Sponsored stream check the Home Affairs website.

What occupations are eligible for the Subclass 494 - Employer Sponsored stream?

 

Australian Market Salary Rate and TSMIT

Under the subclass 494 visa employers must meet certain salary requirements. To find out more about these requirements check the Home Affairs website. If you cannot meet these salary requirements the Orana DAMA may allow you to apply for concessions to these requirements. See https://rdariverina.org.au/dama for more information.

 

Regional Certifying Body (RCB) Assessment

When you nominate someone for a Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 494) under the Employer Sponsored visa stream, a regional certifying body must assess the annual market salary rate (AMSR) for the nominated position. RDA-Riverina is the Regional Certifying Body (RCB) for the Riverina region.


Submit a request to RDA Riverina for RCB assessment

If you are ready to submit a request to RDA Riverina for RCB Assessment, please send an email to us at info@rdariverina.org.au. The email should include the documents required for RDA Riverina to perform the assessment. These documents are listed in the checklist below. Please complete the checklist and include it with your application.

Before submitting a request for an RCB Assessment please ensure the position is located in the Riverina region.  

Applications for a RCB assessment incur an administration fee of $770 (GST Inc). This fee is non-refundable. Once the application documents have been received you will be invoiced for the fee. We will not be able to begin the assessment until we have received payment. Please note that the employer may also be required to pay an additional fee to the Department of Home Affairs. See the Department of Home Affairs website for details.

Please allow approximately one month for RCB assessment applications to be processed.

Enquiries

If you require additional information please contact the RDA-Riverina Skilled Migration Team on either (02) 5924 5861 or by email at info@rdariverina.org.au to discuss the further.


Please note: RDA Riverina are not able to provide migration advice. If you require migration advice or assistance with your visa application, you may wish to speak with a migration agent. You can fin out more about choosing a migration agent at the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority (OMARA).

You can also find out more about who can and cannot legally provide migration advice here: https://www.mara.gov.au/get-help-with-a-visa/helpers-not-registered

 

Image Credit: Samantha Blackett