New visa extensions for 485 graduate visas and 489 and 491 visa holders

The regulations for the promised extensions and reinstatements of the subclass 485 – Temporary Graduate visa, as well as the two regional visas, the subclass 489 – Skilled – Regional (Provisional) visa and the subclass 491 – Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa, were released on February 18th.

These unprecedented changes to visa grant dates are intended to help people who have been impacted by the pandemic’s border restrictions. There will be no need for an application or notice, since the applicable visa holders, including secondary visa holders, would be granted automatically.

Points to Remember:

• Temporary Graduate Visas – Subclass 485 visas are now valid until September 30th, 2022, for primary applicants who were offshore or in Australia at any time between February 1st, 2020, and December 14th, 2021, held or still hold a subclass 485 visa which would have expired before October 1st, 2022, did not have their 485 visa cancelled and did not receive another visa. In fact, eligible applicants have commenced receiving the visa extensions notices by email.
• Skilled Regional Provisional Visa – Subclass 489.Holders of a Subclass 489 visa can extend the validity of their visa for three years after it expires. 
• Skilled Work Provisional Visas – Subclass 491 and Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional Visas – Subclass 494. Permanent residency criteria for Subclass 491 and 494 visa holders can now be met by extending the validity of their visa for three years beyond the initial expiration date.

To be eligible the primary visa holders must:

• To be eligible for a subclass 489 visa extension, primary applicants must have been outside of Australia between February 1st, 2020, and December 14th, 2021, and must have held or still possess a subclass 489 visa that has not been cancelled.
• To be eligible for a subclass 491 or 494 visa extension, primary applicants must have been outside of Australia between February 1st, 2020, and December 14th, 2021, have possessed a subclass 491 or 494 visa throughout that period that was still valid as of February 18th, and have not had their visa revoked.

Because there is more than a year added to compensate for the maximum possible time the borders were closed, any affected regional visa holder should have plenty of time to meet minimum requirements for either a subclass 887 – Skilled – Regional visa for 489 visa holders, or a 191 – Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional) visa for 494 or 491 visa holders.

Additional information: The aforementioned visa extensions also apply to the principal visa holder’s dependents.

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