888 – Significant Investor stream

This visa is the second stage application for permanent residency for holders of the subclass 188 – Significant Investor stream.

State nomination for this visa is managed by the Queensland Government, through Migration Queensland, in collaboration with the Australian Government’s Department of Home Affairs.

Eligibility criteria

To be considered for Queensland nomination, you must:

hold a current 188 visa – Significant Investor stream,
have complied with all the Migration Queensland nomination requirements you undertook for the 188 visa,
demonstrate that you meet the Home Affairs Immigration Eligibility Criteria for the Business Innovation and Investment (Permanent) visa (subclass 888), and
register your application directly with Migration Queensland.

Additional eligibility criteria are based on your original provisional visa and the date of your original EOI submission

Provide evidence of your genuine commitment to Queensland, such as: purchase of properties for family residence, additional investment, study in Queensland, and;
provide evidence of residing in Queensland (applicant 40 days x number of years of holding 188 visa or spouse 180 days x number of years holding 188 visa) – unless outside Australia during a COVID-19 concession period. Please see here for further information regarding COVID-19 concessions including residence requirements.

EOI submitted for 188 visa from 1 July 2021

Provide evidence of having held complying investment of A$5 million for the entire period of your 188 visa.

If you applied for your 188 visa from 1 July 2021, you may be eligible to apply for the Permanent visa (subclass 888) after having held your provisional visa for 3 years.

EOI for 188 visa submitted prior to 1 July 2021

Provide evidence of having held complying investment of A$5 million for the entire period of your 188 visa.

If you applied for your 188 visa prior to 1 July 2015, you may be eligible to apply for the Permanent visa (subclass 888) after having held your provisional visa for 3 years and 11 months.
If you applied for your 188 visa on and after 1 July 2015, you may be eligible to apply for the Permanent visa (subclass 888) after having held your provisional visa for 4 years.

It is recommended that you seek advice from a registered migration agent or lawyer regarding the timeframe of maintaining your complying investment, prior to applying for your 888 visa.

Application process

Step 1

Review your eligibility criteria, visa conditions, and document checklist on the Department of Home Affairs website and the Migration Queensland website. Ensure that you meet both the Home Affairs Immigration Eligibility Criteria and Migration Queensland criteria and that you have all your documentation ready before you apply.

Step 2

Step 3

Lodge the requested documentation:

Queensland Nomination Application form
Home Affairs Form 1414
Copy of your 188 visa grant notification letter
Evidence regarding relevant types of investment(s), which may include bonds, companies, and managed funds – see the Home Affairs document checklist
Overview of current and future business and investment activities in Queensland – including activities in addition to the current investment:
- Undertaken over the preceding 4 years, and;
- Intended to be undertaken in the next 2 years.
Evidence of commitment to living in Queensland

Step 4

After you have uploaded your documents, you will be required to pay the non-refundable application fee to finalise your application.

Migration Queensland will then review your application and may contact you if further information is required.

Note: You will be given 14 days to finalise your application from the date of invitation. If you are unable to provide the relevant information within this time frame, you must seek an extension from Migration Queensland. Applications not finalised within the time frame will be closed and you will need to submit a new application if you wish to seek Queensland nomination again.

Step 5

Once Migration Queensland has received and approved your completed application, you will receive a confirmation of Queensland nomination and a signed copy of the HA Form 1414 to lodge with your visa application. You will be given 90 days to lodge your visa application with the Department of Home Affairs, but you must do so before your provisional visa expires.

Important notice for 188 visa – Significant Investor holders

Note: This notice does not constitute legal advice and Migration Queensland recommends that you seek the advice of a registered migration agent or solicitor as to your individual circumstances.

Holding your complying investment for the entire life of your 188 visa

To meet the Home Affairs criteria to apply for a permanent visa (subclass 888), you must hold your complying investments continuously for the life of your provisional visa (subclass 188).

You can switch between complying investments provided that:

funds you withdraw from an investment are reinvested into other complying investments within 30 days, and;
the sum withdrawn corresponds with the sum reinvested (irrespective of any gains and losses due to market exposures).

Funds reinvested into a complying investment within 30 days are considered to have been held continuously from the original investment date.

188 visa holders with a Queensland Treasury Corporation (QTC) bond designated investment

If you lodged your 188 visa application before 1 July 2015 and you have invested into QTC bonds, you must demonstrate to the Department of Home Affairs that you held the complying investment continuously for the life of your provisional visa.

If your QTC bond matures more than 30 days before the expiry of your 188 visa, you will need to have reinvested into another complying investment to demonstrate to Home Affairs that you have held your complying investment continuously for the life of your provisional visa.