Knowledge Centre
190 Visa Processing Times & State Nomination in 2026
Written and reviewed by the Reliance Law Group immigration team · Last reviewed August 2026
The 190 gives you permanent residence and five extra points, in exchange for committing to a state. Applicants often ask how long it takes and get a confusing answer, because the published figure covers only the last of three stages.
Short answer: once nominated, invited and lodged, a 190 is commonly finalised within about 5 to 12 months. The state nomination stage before it can add weeks to many months depending on the state and your occupation.
The three stages
| Stage | What happens | What controls the wait |
|---|---|---|
|
1. Expression of interest |
You enter the pool and apply to a state |
Your points and occupation |
|
2. State nomination |
A state or territory nominates you |
That state’s program, quota and priorities |
|
3. Visa |
Your application is decided |
Completeness of your evidence |
Why the state you choose matters most
Each state and territory runs its own program with its own occupation list, criteria and allocation. Some prioritise occupations in short supply locally, some favour applicants already living and working in the state, some require a job offer for certain occupations, and allocations can be exhausted partway through a program year.
The practical effect is that the same applicant with the same score can be nominated quickly in one state and never nominated in another. Choosing the right state for your occupation and profile is the single biggest lever on your total timeline. Our 190 visa team helps match them.
What the state commitment means
Nomination comes with a genuine expectation that you will live and work in that state, commonly for around two years. The 190 is permanent from grant, so the commitment is not enforced by a visa condition in the way the 491 is however.
What slows the visa stage?
The same evidence issues that affect every skilled visa: an expired or mismatched skills assessment, work references that do not evidence the duties or the hours claimed, unaddressed health or character matters, and police certificates missing for a country you lived in years ago.
A single request for further information can add months, so the aim is an application that can be assessed once.
How to make it faster
Lodge decision-ready. Have a current skills assessment, your English result, employment references that map to the occupation’s duties, and personal documents complete at lodgement rather than promised. Where you have a choice of state, weigh the nomination queue as seriously as the destination. Our skilled visa team prepares applications on that basis.
Frequently asked questions
The 190 generally processes slower than the 189 visa due to additional state nomination step.
You commit to living and working there for two years.
Rules vary by state and some restrict concurrent applications. Check each program’s requirements before applying broadly.
Occupation lists and criteria are reviewed regularly, and are updated every year.
Speak with Reliance Law Group. We will match your occupation and points to the right program.
Speak to an immigration lawyer
Get clear, fixed-fee advice on your matter from Reliance Law Group’s immigration lawyers in North Sydney.