Migration news
Victoria expects to open ROIs on Monday 26 October 2026, with the first invitation round in November. A summary of the new fees, the 950-point VPT, the two selection methods, and how earnings, partner points, experience and ROI updates are treated.
Huy NguyenAbout the source. This summary is based on the Victorian Skilled Migration information session held on 19 October 2026 and guidance published on Live in Melbourne. The opening date, invitation round plans and answers given in the question session are not yet official written policy; check them against Victoria’s announcement when it is issued (expected 26 October 2026).
On 19 October 2026, representatives of Victoria's Skilled Migration program held an information session for migration agents and others interested in the 2026–27 nomination program for subclass 190 and 491 visas.
The session ran for close to an hour. It explained the Victorian Points Test (VPT), how Registrations of Interest are selected, the new fees, and answered questions about work experience, earnings, qualifications, occupations and partner points.
Most notably, Victoria confirmed that it expects to open Registrations of Interest (ROIs) on Monday 26 October 2026, with the first invitation round expected in November 2026.
Information on this year's nomination allocations and program criteria is also expected to be published on 26 October.
From the 2026–27 program year, Victoria charges a fee to lodge an ROI and a nomination application.
The fees are:
| Application | Excl. GST | Incl. GST |
|---|---|---|
| Registration of Interest (ROI) | $60 | $66 |
| Nomination application, subclass 190 | $180 | $198 |
| Nomination application, subclass 491 | $180 | $198 |
GST of 10% applies to applicants who are in Australia at the time of payment.
One helpful detail is that the ROI fee is charged only once per program year. If an applicant withdraws an ROI and lodges a new one in the same year, for example to switch from subclass 190 to 491, no further ROI fee applies.
The nomination application fee, however, is charged for each application. If a nomination application is refused and the applicant later receives a new invitation, the next nomination application attracts the fee again.
Victoria also stressed that paying a fee does not guarantee that an ROI will be invited or that a nomination application will be approved.
Applicants who lodged an ROI in an earlier year: no ROI from a previous program year carries over to 2026–27. Applicants must lodge a new ROI and pay the new fee.
A SkillSelect EOI, by contrast, can still be used if it remains valid and its information is up to date.
One of the most important parts of the session was Victoria's detailed explanation of the Victorian Points Test (VPT).
The VPT is not entirely new. Victoria has used it in previous years but has only now published the weight given to each factor.
The VPT has a maximum of 950 points across seven factors:
| Factor | Maximum points |
|---|---|
| Age | 300 |
| English language | 200 |
| Earnings from skilled employment in Victoria | 150 |
| Work experience | 100 |
| Qualification | 100 |
| Occupation skill level | 50 |
| Partner skills | 50 |
| Total | 950 |
It is important to note that the VPT does not replace the Department of Home Affairs SkillSelect points test.
Applicants must still score at least 65 points on the federal points test and meet the requirements of the visa. Victoria uses the VPT to rank applicants and select the most competitive ROIs.
Victoria has no fixed minimum VPT score for an invitation.
This means a score of 750 does not automatically lead to an invitation, while a lower score may still be invited in a different round, depending on the selection group, the number of competing ROIs and the nomination places remaining.
Estimate your VPT score. The Victorian Points Test calculator on this site applies the seven published Victorian point tables, with the 2026–27 priority occupations and a PDF report that carries a verification code.
Under the VPT, English language is scored as follows:
Moving from Proficient to Superior therefore adds 100 VPT points.
This is a large difference, particularly in competitive occupations such as accounting, IT and engineering.
Victoria's representatives also encouraged applicants to consider improving their English, as it is one of the factors applicants can actively change to become more competitive.
However, an extra 100 VPT points does not guarantee an invitation.
Victoria continues to use earnings from skilled employment in Victoria as a ranking factor.
Under the published table:
A notable point from the question session was that earnings do not have to come from the occupation nominated in the skills assessment.
Victoria's representatives confirmed that earnings from work in an ANZSCO Skill Level 1, 2 or 3 occupation may be considered, provided they meet the program's requirements for skilled employment and how annual earnings are calculated.
For example, a person with a skills assessment as an Early Childhood Teacher (Skill Level 1) who currently works as an Educator (Skill Level 2) will not necessarily have those earnings excluded just because the current job differs from the nominated occupation.
Whether particular earnings are accepted still depends on the nature of the work, the occupation classification, the supporting documents and Victoria's official requirements.
For offshore applicants, Victoria confirmed that expected earnings from a job offer cannot be claimed for annual earnings points.
Earnings must come from actual work in Victoria, not a salary that will be paid in the future.
As a result, offshore applicants can score a maximum of 800 VPT points, compared with 950 for applicants with eligible earnings in Victoria.
A common question is whether Victoria favours applicants in Australia over those offshore.
Victoria's representatives confirmed that there is no fixed quota for offshore or onshore applicants.
However, because only applicants with eligible earnings in Victoria can receive up to 150 points for annual earnings, the VPT gives a competitive advantage to people already working in Victoria.
Even so, offshore applicants can still be invited if they score well on the other factors.
According to information shared in the session, around 20% of nominations in the previous program year went to offshore applicants.
This figure reflects only last year's outcome. It is not a quota or a guaranteed share for 2026–27.
This may be the most important point for people in occupations such as Accountant, Software Engineer, ICT Business Analyst, or any occupation not on the priority list.
Victoria confirmed that it uses two selection methods in each invitation round.
All ROIs in eligible occupations are ranked by their VPT total.
The highest-scoring ROIs are selected, regardless of occupation.
This means an Accountant, IT professional, Engineer, Chef, Photographer or Fashion Designer can all be invited if they are competitive enough.
After selecting the most competitive ROIs under method one, Victoria then selects from the remaining ROIs in occupations identified as priorities.
The four priority industries for 2026–27 are:
However, not every job in these four sectors is a priority.
Only occupations named on Victoria's Priority Occupations list are considered under this method.
For example, a Software Engineer working in a school does not automatically become a priority occupation in Education.
On the other hand, a Secondary School Teacher on the priority list can be considered under both methods.
This gives priority occupations an advantage, because they have an additional chance of selection in each round.
Victoria also confirmed that subclass 190 and 491 ROIs are ranked separately and do not compete directly with each other in the same group.
Victoria confirmed that Early Childhood Teacher has its own additional selection factors within the priority industries.
To be prioritised for selection, the applicant needs:
These criteria apply to the main applicant being considered as an Early Childhood Teacher. They do not automatically apply to a partner when partner skills points are assessed.
In the question session, Victoria's representatives confirmed that if a partner has an Early Childhood Teacher skills assessment but not yet one year of work experience, the main applicant can still receive the 50 partner points, provided all other partner skills requirements are met.
This is an important distinction between the ECT priority criteria and the requirements for partner skills points.
Under the published guidance, the applicant receives 50 partner skills points when all of the following are met:
If the partner has a skills assessment but the occupation is not on Victoria's priority list, the applicant does not receive these 50 VPT points.
Notably, Victoria determines partner skills points automatically from the information in the ROI and the SkillSelect EOI. Applicants do not select or claim these 50 points separately in the ROI.
Victoria's representatives answered two practical questions in the session.
First, qualification points are based on the highest qualification held, and it does not have to relate to the nominated occupation.
For example, a person holds a Bachelor of Accounting and later completes a Graduate Diploma of Early Childhood Teaching to obtain a skills assessment as an Early Childhood Teacher.
In this case, Victoria confirmed that the applicant receives 50 VPT points for the bachelor degree, even though it is in accounting.
Second, occupation skill level is based on the occupation nominated in the skills assessment and SkillSelect EOI, not the current job.
For example, a person with a skills assessment as an Early Childhood Teacher (Skill Level 1) who currently works as an Educator (Skill Level 2) is assessed on the Early Childhood Teacher occupation for this factor.
Under the VPT, a Skill Level 1 occupation receives 50 points, while Skill Level 2 and 3 occupations receive no points for this factor.
Occupation skill level for the VPT and the type of work accepted for annual earnings are two separate questions and should not be confused.
Victoria confirmed that years of experience in the nominated occupation are taken from the SkillSelect EOI and include experience both in Australia and overseas.
For example, an applicant with one year of experience in Australia and 1.5 years overseas in the nominated occupation has 2.5 years of experience in total.
Victoria's representatives noted that data transferred from SkillSelect is usually shown in whole years, so 2.5 years may be recorded as two years for the purpose of the VPT points band.
This is particularly relevant for people who gained work experience before coming to Australia.
However, the experience must meet the relevant recognition requirements. It should not be assumed that all time in a job with the same title will count.
Not every change requires a new ROI.
Victoria explained that the VPT is calculated from two sources: the SkillSelect EOI and the Victorian ROI.
If age, English, work experience or other information held in the SkillSelect EOI changes, the applicant should make sure the EOI is updated. Victoria can take this information directly from SkillSelect, and the ROI does not need to be withdrawn because of those changes.
On the other hand, if the annual earnings or partner skills information declared in the ROI changes, the applicant needs to withdraw the ROI and lodge it again to update it.
Withdrawing and relodging an ROI in the same program year does not attract another ROI fee.
Victoria expects to hold the first invitation round in November 2026 and aims to hold invitation rounds monthly throughout the program year.
The state said it will spread invitation rounds across the year rather than use all nomination places at the start.
Each round will depend on the number and competitiveness of ROIs at the time of selection.
Victoria also expects to publish data on the score ranges invited after rounds take place.
However, the actual number of rounds and invitations still depends on the allocations provided by the Australian Government and how the program operates.
From the information Victoria confirmed, several practical points stand out for people preparing a subclass 190 or 491 application.
First, a high SkillSelect score does not necessarily translate into an equivalent advantage under the VPT. The two systems serve different purposes.
Second, occupations outside the priority list can still be invited, but they compete on their VPT total against all other eligible occupations.
Third, improving English, building recognised experience, updating eligible earnings and making sure partner information is accurate can all significantly affect an ROI's ranking.
Fourth, declaring earnings or experience inaccurately may lead to a nomination application being refused. In that case, fees paid are generally not refunded.
Finally, an invitation from Victoria is only an invitation to lodge a nomination application. It is not a decision to nominate, and it is not a visa grant.
Victoria's 2026–27 program shows a selection approach that relies increasingly on a clearly weighted ranking system, rather than looking only at an applicant's SkillSelect score or occupation.
Publishing the VPT gives applicants and migration agents a more concrete basis for assessing competitiveness. However, with no fixed invitation score, no outcome can be predicted with certainty from a single number.
For anyone preparing a subclass 190 or 491 application, the most important steps now are to check the visa requirements, update the SkillSelect EOI, confirm the nominated occupation, work through the VPT factors and prepare the application before ROIs are expected to open.
Information on allocations, specific criteria and the 2026–27 ROI form is expected to be published by Victoria on 26 October 2026.
Source: Victorian Skilled Migration information session, 19 October 2026, and guidance published on Live in Melbourne. Current as at 19 October 2026; the program opening and invitation round plans should be checked against official announcements when they are issued.
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