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188 – Business Innovation stream

Queensland welcomes migrants interested in owning and managing a new or existing business in Queensland.

This visa is a state-nominated 4-year provisional visa. It is a stream of the Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) visa (subclass 188) and a pathway to permanent residency through the Business Innovation and Investment (Permanent) visa (subclass 888).

State nomination for this visa is managed by the Queensland Government, through Migration Queensland, in collaboration with the Australian Government’s Department of Home Affairs.

Eligibility criteria

To be considered for Queensland state nomination, you must first meet the Home Affairs Immigration Eligibility Criteria.

You must also meet the Migration Queensland criteria below, which is different for each visa stream.

Business Innovation stream

To seek Queensland state nomination, you must:

  • demonstrate that you have net business and personal assets of at least A$800,000, to be transferred to Queensland within 2 years of the visa being granted,
  • make a business investment of at least A$200,000 after your visa is granted, and
  • commit to living in Queensland.

Note:

  1. Entry level small retail businesses – such as convenience stores, cafes, and restaurants – will only be accepted if the proposed business is established in regional Queensland.
  2. General importing businesses will not be accepted unless the imported products are highly innovative, advanced in technology, or currently unavailable in Queensland. The applicant should also provide a value-adding service to the imported products, such as a customised design, assembly or installation, testing, repair, or maintenance.
  3. Property development businesses will not be accepted.

Application process

Step 1

Review your eligibility criteria, visa conditions, and document checklist on the Department of Home Affairs website and the Migration Queensland website. Ensure that you meet both the Home Affairs and Migration Queensland criteria and that you have all your documentation ready before you apply.

Step 2

For Queensland state nomination, submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) with SkillSelect. Ensure that all information, such as work experience, is included in your EOI. Preference will be given to applicants who select “Queensland” as their nominating state of choice over applicants who select “Any” state.

Step 3

Migration Queensland assesses all EOIs that meet the above Home Affairs and Migration Queensland criteria. If you are successful, you will receive an email invitation to lodge an application and be requested to provide the following documents.

  • Queensland State Nomination Application form
  • Business Proposal
  • Home Affairs Form 1139A

Note: You must upload these documents digitally through the Document Portal link in your invitation email. Migration Queensland no longer accepts documents sent by email or post. You can only upload one document per file. If you have multiple documents, merge, and save them as one file.

Step 4

When you have received your invitation from Migration Queensland:

  1. upload the required documents, and
  2. pay the non-refundable application fee to finalise your application. Do not pay the fee until you have been invited to apply and all your documents have been uploaded.

Migration Queensland will then review your application and request any further information.

Note: You will be given 14 days to finalise your application from the date of invitation. If you are unable to provide the relevant information within this time frame, you must seek an extension from Migration Queensland. Applications not finalised within the time frame will be closed and applicants will need to submit a new EOI if they wish to seek Queensland nomination again.

Step 5

Once Migration Queensland has received and approved your completed application, you will receive an invitation from the Department of Home Affairs to lodge your visa application. You will be given 60 days to lodge your application with them.

Note: If you realise that you have made a mistake on your submitted EOI after receiving a nomination, or if you miss the lodgement date, you will have to wait 6 months before applying again.

Nomination extension

You can apply to extend this visa for an additional 2 years under a Business Innovation Extension stream. You can only apply for this extension stream once, giving you a maximum of 6 years on this provisional visa.

As per the Home Affairs Immigration Eligibility Criteria for the extension stream, you must:

  • already hold a visa in the Business Innovation stream, and have had it for at least 3 years
  • demonstrate a need for you to be a resident in Australia to operate the main business
  • have a current nomination from Queensland
  • have maintained an ownership interest in your nominated business, which must have been operating actively in Queensland for at least 2 years and
  • have maintained your commitment to stay directly involved in the day-to-day management and decision-making of the business.

If your extension visa is granted, this gives you extra time to meet the criteria for the Business Innovation and Investment (Permanent) visa (subclass 888).

To request an extension to your visa, email Migration Queensland (migration@qld.gov.au), providing reasons for an extension of your visa. You will need to include your full name, date of birth, and current visa subclass.

Migration Queensland will assess your current circumstances and decide whether you are eligible to apply for an extension. If you are eligible, we will send an email requesting further information. A processing fee will apply.

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