Victoria’s state nominated skilled visa program is closed. Now what?
Following the Victorian Government’s recent announcement that it would be closing to new Registrations of Interest (ROIs) on 28 April 2026, Victoria has now officially closed its 2025–26 state nominated skilled visa program:
Victoria’s 2025-26 state nominated skilled visa program is now closed to new Registrations of Interest (ROIs). We will continue to consider all submitted ROIs for the remaining nomination places in the 2025-26 program year. If you withdraw your ROI, you will not be able to submit a new one until the 2026-27 program opens. Information on the 2026-27 program will be published when it becomes available.
This update follows our previous blog post reminding applicants that ROIs had to be submitted by 4:00pm on 28 April 2026 in order to be considered for the remainder of the 2025–26 Victorian skilled visa program.
If you missed the deadline, there is no need to panic and this is not the end of the road - keep reading to find out what your options are.
What happens now that Victoria’s state nominated skilled visa program is closed for 2025-26?
Although Victoria is no longer accepting new ROIs for the 2025-26 program year, the Victorian Government will continue assessing ROIs that were submitted before the deadline of 4:00pm on 28 April 2026 and will continue to issue Subclass 190 and Subclass 491 invitations against any remaining nomination places for the current financial year.
For applicants who already submitted an ROI, your ROI remains in the system and may still be considered for invitation during the remainder of the 2025–26 program year. On the other hand, if you withdraw your ROI, you cannot submit a new ROI until the 2026–27 program opens.
Accordingly, applicants should think carefully before withdrawing an existing ROI, unless of course this is absolutely necessary e.g. due to the details in your existing ROI being outdated or inaccurate.
When will Victoria reopen for the 2026–27 skilled visa program?
The reopening of Victoria’s skilled nomination program will happen sometime in the new financial year, although it is unlikely to occur immediately on 1 July 2026.
There is usually a sequence of steps that occurs at the beginning of each new financial year, prior to the reopening of each state and territory’s skilled nomination program:
Firstly, the Federal Government will determine the nomination allocations for each state and territory for both the Skilled Nominated (Subclass 190) visa and the Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) (Subclass 491) visa.
Secondly, once allocations are announced, each state and territory, including Victoria, will:
review their allocation numbers;
finalise nomination criteria, occupation priorities and program settings for the new financial year; and
formally reopen their programs for new EOIs/ROIs with the relevant nomination criteria.
This means that there is often a waiting period between the end of one program year and the reopening of the next, which can be longer in certain years.
For instance, whilst the Victorian Government was already issuing invitations as early in August in the 2024-25 program, it only received full allocation of nomination places for the 2025-26 program in late November 2025, with the first invitation round for 2025-26 taking place in early December 2025.
I missed the ROI deadline. What should I do now?
If you did not manage to submit an EOI and ROI in time, the most productive thing you can do is use this waiting period to ensure that both your EOI & ROI are fully prepared and ready for submission or consideration when Victoria's state nominated skilled visa program reopens for 2026-27.
This is particularly important because once each state and territory’s skilled visa program reopens, invitation rounds can move quickly and applicants who are “decision-ready” and who can demonstrate a competitive skilled profile are in a stronger position to be considered for nomination.
On this basis, you should now:
obtain a positive skills assessment if you do not already have one;
check whether your skills assessment is still valid (they are generally only valid for up to 3 years), and renew it if it is due to expire or has already expired;
ensure your English test results (such as IELTS, PTE or equivalent) remain current and valid (again, they are generally only valid for up to 3 years);
renew or obtain NAATI accreditation (generally only valid for up to 5 years), where relevant for additional points;
review your points calculation and confirm your EOI is accurate and competitive;
seek legal advice regarding your eligibility if you have any questions about this, including whether you are suitable for subclass 190, subclass 491, or whether there are any alternative skilled pathways available to you where you are not invited to apply for the Subclass 190 visa or Subclass 491 visa.
Once Victoria’s state nominated skilled visa program reopens for 2026-27, you should then review the nomination criteria carefully to assess whether you are eligible, as well as familiarise yourself with the ROI process.
Need help with working out your immigration options in Australia?
Our immigration lawyers at Inclusive Migration have extensive experience in advising prospective migrants to Australia about their employer-sponsored, skilled migration and family migration options in Australia.
Should you wish to discuss your eligibility for a Skilled Visa in Australia, please do not hesitate to email info@inclusivemigration.com.au, submit an enquiry using the contact form on our website or send us a message on WhatsApp.
