Looking for a retirement visa? Australia doesn't run one — its routes are all built around skills and employer sponsorship. See other countries' guides
Working in Australia: do you qualify?
Four skilled and employer-sponsored routes — each is about the job or the skill set, not a sum of money.
When rules change mid-way, the date your application is filed is what often decides which rules apply to you. Where are you right now?
Two ways in, and Australia checks them differently
An employer, a government nomination or an approved body puts its name behind the application.
- Employer Nomination Scheme (Subclass 186)
- Skilled Nominated Visa (Subclass 190)
- Skills in Demand Visa (Subclass 482)A$79,423
You qualify on your own record — skills, points or capital — with no sponsor standing behind you.
- Skilled Independent Visa (Subclass 189)
The conditions behind the routes above
Your degree, work experience or occupation has to clear a bar set for that specific route.
Age, education, experience and language each add up to a score — you need to clear the pass mark.
An employer, a government nomination, or an approved endorsing body has to stand behind the route.
Pick a route, see the real commitment
Every official figure below is what Immimaps has verified for that route against Australia's official programme rules — not a marketing minimum. Service fees are what independent firms publish for the route, shown only once five or more are on file.
The Minister must weigh the financial, household, social and commitment aspects of the relationship for both spouse (reg 1.15A(3)) and de facto (reg 1.09A(3)) applications -- an identical test: joint ownership of assets and pooled finances; joint responsibility for children, living arrangements and housework; how the couple present themselves to others; and the duration and nature of their commitment.
A$5,000 shown as proof of means — nothing is transferred.
A direct-entry, employer-sponsored route to permanent residence — the employer nominates the worker rather than the worker applying independently.
Fully independent — no employer, no state nomination, just the applicant's own occupation and points-test standing.
Similar to the independent route, but a state or territory nominates the applicant, which can open up occupations the independent list doesn't cover.
A temporary, employer-sponsored visa that can lead toward one of the permanent routes rather than granting permanent residence outright.
What each route costs, stage by stage
Added up from the official figures on file for each route — split into money spent for good, money locked and returned later, and money shown but never transferred. Not a modelled estimate.
Australia Partner Visa (Subclass 820/801 onshore and Subclass 309/100 offshore)▾
At application
Decision — reported: 8 months.- Spent for goodOfficial fees: A$9,600 – A$11,710, paid to the government for the initial application.
Australia Working Holiday Visa (Subclass 417)▾
At application
- Spent for goodOfficial fees: A$840 – A$1,000, paid to the government for the initial application.
- Shown, never leaves youA$5,000 shown as proof of means — nothing is transferred.
2 ways to qualify — shown: the cheapest. Alternatives: A$840 (shown) / A$1,000.
Employer Nomination Scheme (Subclass 186)▾
At application
Decision — reported: 1 year, 1 month.- Spent for goodGovernment fees on file: A$6,140, paid to the government for the initial application.
Skilled Independent Visa (Subclass 189)▾
At application
Decision — reported: 4 months.- Spent for goodGovernment fees on file: A$6,135, paid to the government for the initial application.
Skilled Nominated Visa (Subclass 190)▾
At application
Decision — reported: 7 months.- Spent for goodGovernment fees on file: A$6,140, paid to the government for the initial application.
Skills in Demand Visa (Subclass 482)▾
At application
Decision — reported: 1 month.- Spent for goodGovernment fees on file: A$4,015, paid to the government for the initial application.
- Shown, never leaves youA$79,423 shown as proof of means every year — nothing is transferred.
The order Employer Nomination Scheme (Subclass 186) follows
- 2026-07-25From 25 July 2026, a new government processing direction (Ministerial Direction 119) changed how skilled and employer-sponsored applications are prioritised, favouring applicants already in Australia and certain occupations such as healthcare, teaching, construction, law enforcement and defence. source
Strategy Path takes your occupation, your situation and whether you have an employer, and lays the route out step by step — cost, milestone and wait on each leg.
This page sets out the published rules. It does not read your documents or check your figures: advice on your own application should come from a registered migration agent or a lawyer.
To check that an adviser is registered, use the register of migration agents.
Verify them on the official register before you sign anything. Registration confirms a licence — it does not by itself guarantee good advice.
- Register of Migration Agents (Office of the MARA) — Search the agent's full name or MARN and confirm their registration is current and carries no conditions.
Every official figure on this page is checked against Australia's official immigration sources. Service fees are what independent firms publish for a route — not an official figure, and never any one firm's price. Immimaps does not publish success rates, approval odds or any probability score — here or anywhere else.
Don’t take a life-changing move on someone else’s word.
Immimaps is not an agency and takes no placement fees. We show the real figures on every route, show the working, and tell you what it actually costs.
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