Skilled migration to Brisbane made clear. BYD’s registered agents at Eight Mile Plains help with the 189, 190 and 491, points and Queensland state nomination. Call us.
If you’ve got skills and experience Queensland needs, skilled migration is your route to living and working in Brisbane permanently, with no employer sponsor required. It runs on a points system, and small differences in your score can decide whether you get invited to apply. For anyone settling in Brisbane, there’s an extra layer worth understanding: Queensland state nomination, which is run by the state and can add the points that get you over the line. BYD Education & Immigration Consultants helps skilled workers get all of this right, from our office at Eight Mile Plains.
Our migration work is led by a registered migration agent (MARN 1794201), so the strategy you get is accountable and built around your real numbers.
Skilled migration, sometimes called General Skilled Migration, is a group of points-tested visas for workers in occupations Australia wants. You don’t need a job offer for most of them. Instead you submit an Expression of Interest through SkillSelect, get ranked against everyone else by your points, and wait to be invited to apply.
The three main visas are:
Skilled Independent visa (subclass 189): permanent residency, not tied to any state or employer. The most flexible, and the most competitive.
Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190): permanent residency, nominated by a state or territory. Queensland nomination gives you extra points.
Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491): a five-year provisional visa for people nominated by a state or sponsored by an eligible relative in regional Australia. It leads to permanent residency through the subclass 191.
You can read the full breakdown on our Skilled Migration page.
Here’s a point that trips up a lot of people planning to live in Brisbane. For the 491 regional visa, greater Brisbane is treated as a metropolitan area, not regional, so you generally can’t claim the 491 by planning to live in the Brisbane CBD or the inner suburbs. Much of the rest of Queensland, including plenty of large centres, does count as regional. This matters because it shapes which visa you should aim for.
If you want to live and work in Brisbane, the 190 Queensland nomination is usually the pathway to focus on. Queensland runs its own skilled nomination program with its own occupation lists and its own requirements, which can include things like already working in Queensland in your nominated occupation, or having a genuine commitment to living here. The state’s criteria change from year to year, so getting current advice before you lodge an Expression of Interest is worth it. We keep across the Queensland program and match it to your profile.
Your points come from a mix of things, and this is where we spend a lot of time with clients, because a few points in the right place can move you up the queue.
Age (younger applicants score more, up to a point).
English language ability (the higher your test scores, the more points).
Skilled work experience, both in Australia and overseas.
Qualifications, from trade certificates through to doctorates.
A skills assessment in your nominated occupation.
State nomination or a partner’s skills, plus other factors like a professional-year program.
We look at your profile and find the legitimate ways to lift your score, whether that’s a stronger English result, a partner skills assessment, or targeting Queensland nomination for your occupation.
Before you can claim points for your occupation, you need a positive skills assessment from the relevant assessing authority. Each occupation has its own authority and its own rules, and this step catches people out constantly. Getting your paperwork, references and qualifications in the right format the first time saves months. We help you prepare it properly.
That depends on your occupation, your points, and how flexible you are about where you live. If your score is strong and your occupation is in demand, the 189 might be within reach and it lets you settle anywhere, Brisbane included. If you’re a few points short, Queensland’s 190 nomination can be the smarter play. And if you’re open to living in regional Queensland rather than Brisbane itself, the 491 opens up. We’ll map your realistic options rather than pin your hopes on the most competitive visa.
If you studied in Australia and you’re a recent graduate, look at the Temporary Graduate visa (485) as a stepping stone while you build your points.
We calculate your points accurately and find the honest ways to improve them.
We guide your skills assessment so it’s right the first time.
We check whether Queensland nomination fits your occupation and situation.
We prepare and submit your Expression of Interest and manage the full application once you’re invited.
We meet you at Eight Mile Plains or work with you online, in Brisbane or anywhere.
Both work. We’re at Garden City Office Park, Eight Mile Plains, right on the M1 near Sunnybank and Mount Gravatt, with parking on site. Some clients like to come in and map out their points across a table, others do it all by video. You get the same registered agent either way.
No, not for the 189, 190 or 491. These are points-based. You do need a suitable occupation and a positive skills assessment. Some Queensland nomination streams do look favourably on Queensland work experience, so it’s worth discussing.
Generally no. Greater Brisbane is treated as metropolitan for the 491, so that visa is aimed at regional Queensland and other regional areas. If you want to stay in Brisbane, the 190 Queensland nomination is usually the pathway to look at.
The 189 isn’t tied to any state and gives you full flexibility. The 190 is nominated by a state, which adds points but comes with an expectation that you’ll live and work in that state, Queensland in this case.
You need a minimum to be eligible, but in practice you’re competing against other applicants, so a higher score gives you a much better chance of being invited. We’ll tell you where your score sits and how to lift it.
Yes. If your partner has a suitable skilled occupation, competent English, or is under the age limit, you may be able to claim additional points. It’s one of the most overlooked ways to boost a score.
Occupation lists change, and the national 189 or a different pathway may still work even if Queensland doesn’t nominate your occupation this year. Don’t assume you’re out. Let us check the current lists against your background.
It varies with your occupation, your points, and how quickly you’re invited. The skills assessment and the invitation round are the two big variables. We’ll give you a realistic timeframe for your situation.
