188 – Business Innovation stream

Queensland welcomes migrants interested in owning and managing a new or existing business in Queensland.

This visa is a state-nominated 5-year provisional visa. It is a stream of the Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) visa (subclass 188) and a pathway to permanent residency through the Business Innovation and Investment (Permanent) visa (subclass 888).

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 nomination for a Business Innovation and Investment visa, you must first meet the Home Affairs Eligibility Criteria.

You must also meet the Migration Queensland criteria below:

Business Innovation stream

• Must demonstrate a genuine commitment to Queensland.
• Must have net business and personal assets of at least A$1.25 million ready to be transferred to Queensland after visa grant.
• Must invest in one or two qualifying business(es) in Queensland after being granted visa:
  • business investment of at least A$400,000 if the proposed business will be established in the Greater Brisbane and Gold Coast regions; OR
  • business investment of at least A$300,000 if the proposed business will be established in regional Queensland.

Additional Requirements

• Export business must develop international markets for Queensland products.
• General importing business will not be acceptable unless the imported products are highly innovative, advanced in technology, or currently unavailable in Queensland. You should also provide value-adding service to the imported products such as customised design, product assembly installation, testing, repair, maintenance, etc.
• Property Development business will not be accepted.

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 criteria and Migration Queensland criteria and that you have all your documentation ready before you apply.

Step 2

For Queensland state nomination, submit an Expression of Interest (EOI) with SkillSelect. Ensure that all information, such as employment experience, is included in your EOI. Preference will be given to applicants who select “Queensland” as their nominating state of choice over applicants who select “Any” state.

Step 3

Migration Queensland assesses all EOIs that meet the above Home Affairs and Migration Queensland criteria. If you are successful, you will receive an email invitation to lodge an application and be requested to provide the following documents. 

• Queensland State Nomination Application form
• Business Proposal Form
• Home Affairs Form 1139A
• Passport Bio-page

Note: You must upload these documents digitally through the Document Portal link in your invitation email. Migration Queensland no longer accepts documents sent by email or post. You can only upload one document per file. If you have multiple documents, please merge and save them as one file.

Step 4

When you have received your invitation from Migration Queensland:

1. upload the required documents, and
2. pay the non-refundable application fee to finalise your application. Do not pay the fee until you have been invited to apply and all your documents have been uploaded.

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

Step 5

Once Migration Queensland has received and approved your completed application, you will receive a confirmation of Queensland nomination and an invitation from the Department of Home Affairs to lodge your visa application. You will be given 60 days to lodge your visa application.

Note: If you realise that you have made a mistake on your submitted EOI after receiving a nomination, or if you miss the visa application lodgement date, you may have to wait 6 months before applying for Queensland nomination again.

Nomination extension

You can apply to extend this visa for an extra 2 years under a Business Innovation Extension stream.

As per the Home Affairs criteria for the extension stream, you must:

• already hold a visa in the Business Innovation stream, and either:
  • have had it for at least 3 years, or
  • have a current nomination from Queensland,
  • have a genuine intention to live in Queensland, and
  • have maintained ownership interest in your nominated main business (ie your business must have been operating actively in Queensland, Australia for at least 2 years immediately before applying for this visa).

To request a nomination application for your 188 visa extension, please email Migration Queensland, providing reasons for an extension of your visa. You will need to include your full name, date of birth, and a copy of your 188 visa grant notification letter.

Migration Queensland will assess your current circumstances and decide whether you are eligible to apply for an extension. If you are eligible, we will send an email requesting further information. An application processing fee will apply.

If your extension visa is granted, this gives you extra time to meet the criteria for the Business Innovation and Investment (Permanent) visa (subclass 888).