In short: Victoria nominates from registrations of interest lodged on its own portal, read against a matching SkillSelect expression of interest. The visa charge is $6,140 for the 190 or the 491. For a founder, the answers the registration asks for depend on how the business is structured.
Meera runs a two-person data consultancy from a shared office in Richmond on a temporary visa. She holds a positive skills assessment as a data analyst and a score above the 65 pass mark. Victoria's registration of interest asks who employs her, in what occupation, and where. Her company employs her. Or she employs herself. Or she is a director of a company that invoices clients. Each answer is true of the same week, and each reads differently on a nomination file. This note is about what the registration asks and what the business structure answers.
Two records, read together
Victoria selects from the registration of interest on the Live in Melbourne portal. It then checks that registration against the expression of interest in SkillSelect. The state cannot nominate a candidate whose two records disagree, and it does not chase the discrepancy. It selects someone else. Every change to one record goes into the other on the same day. That includes a new employer, a new score, a new address and a new company name.
What the registration asks a founder
| Question | What Victoria is reading | What the structure answers |
|---|---|---|
| Nominated occupation | Does it match the skills assessment? | Always the assessed occupation. "Director" is not an occupation on any list. |
| Current employment | Are you working in that occupation, in Victoria, now? | An employment contract with your own company, payslips and superannuation, or invoices and activity statements as a sole trader. |
| Employer | Who pays you, and where are they? | The company's name and Australian Business Number, with a Victorian principal place of business. |
| English | The level claimed in SkillSelect | A test result at that level, current at invitation. |
| Commitment to Victoria | Will you stay? | The lease, the client base and the company's registered office all say something. |
Victoria has given weight to candidates already living and working in the state in their nominated occupation. It has accepted self-employment in that occupation where the evidence shows the duties being performed. The current year's guidance sets the detail, and the streams and priority sectors move each program year. We explain how to read a state's list without misreading it in state nomination: how to read the lists.
The founder's fork
Who pays you for the work in your nominated occupation?
190 or 491 for a Victorian business
A 190 nomination lets the company operate anywhere in Victoria, Melbourne included, and the visa is permanent on grant. A 491 nomination confines the holder to regional Victoria for the life of the visa. Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo are regional for this purpose, so the restriction is narrower than the word suggests. For a founder, a 491 means the principal place of business, the lease and the daily work all sit regionally. The 15 nomination points may be what lifts the score, and the 191 follows at $630 after three years. Income drawn from the company counts toward the 191 where it reaches the personal tax return.
The sequence for a founder
- Step 1Skills assessment obtained in the occupation the business actually performs.
- Step 2Structure settled. Company or sole trader, and who employs whom, decided before any registration is lodged.
- Step 3Employment evidence created: contract, payslips, superannuation, or invoices and activity statements.
- Step 4Expression of interest lodged or updated in SkillSelect, naming Victoria and both visas the lists allow.
- Step 5Registration of interest lodged on Live in Melbourne the same day, with every field matching SkillSelect.
- Step 6Invitation to apply for nomination answered by the state's deadline, then the visa lodged within the 60-day window.
Step 2 is the one founders skip. Our commercial practice sets up the company, the constitution and the employment contract so that the migration team has something to evidence. We set out the options in business structures for founder visa holders.
Does the company's registered office have to be in Victoria?
No rule requires it, but the registration asks about commitment and the state reads the file as a whole. A Victorian registered office, a Victorian lease and Victorian clients tell one story. An interstate registered office with a Melbourne co-working desk tells another. Align the corporate records with the life you are describing.
The program year and what it means for timing
Victoria receives its nomination places from the Commonwealth for each program year from 1 July. An interim figure often comes first. The places are split between the 190 and the 491 and are spent across the year. Selection favours candidates the state can nominate without delay, which means evidence assembled before selection, not after. A registration lodged with the structure unresolved sits in the pool looking incomplete. Victoria sets its own nomination fee position each program year, so check the current figure before budgeting.
What it costs
For either visa, the charge is $6,140 for the main applicant, $3,070 for a partner and $1,535 for each child. A 491 holder later pays $630 for the 191. Company setup, the skills assessment, an English test and health checks are separate. Our migration practice prepares the registration and the expression of interest together. If you are a founder weighing a Victorian nomination against the shape of your company, contact us before you lodge either record.
Frequently asked questions
Can work for my own company count as employment in my nominated occupation?
Generally yes, where the evidence shows you performing the duties of the assessed occupation and being paid for them. A contract, payslips and superannuation from the company are the clearest proof. Victoria's current guidance sets the detail, so check it before registering.
Should I register as a director or in my assessed occupation?
In the assessed occupation, always. The registration and the expression of interest must name the same occupation as the skills assessment. A director title describes your role in the company, not the work the assessing authority tested.
Do I have to be living in regional Victoria before I register for the 491?
Not in every stream, but a candidate already living and working in a regional area presents a stronger file. If you plan to move the business, do it before you register. The registration describes the present, not the plan.
Does a Victorian registration of interest expire?
Victoria sets a validity period, and a registration can be updated while it runs. A registration that no longer matches your circumstances is worse than none. The state treats the mismatch as unreliable information.
Could my company sponsor me instead of Victoria nominating me?
A company you control can become a standard business sponsor. A nomination where the applicant controls the sponsor is examined closely for genuineness. For most founders with a strong occupation and score, the state route is the cleaner one.
Figures verified against Home Affairs visa pricing as at 1 July 2026.
General information as at 2 September 2026. Not legal advice. Speak to us about your own circumstances before acting on it.