Overview
The 188B visa is a five-year visa for professionals who specialize in various investment activities. This visa does not require the applicant to own a business, but it requires the applicant to have a certain amount of investment experience and obtain certain benefits from it. After the visa is approved, the applicant needs to maintain a designated investment of at least AUD 2.5 million and can transfer to a permanent visa after meeting certain conditions.
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Eligibility
- Be under 55
- You must score at least 65 points on the points test
- Have at least 3 years’ experience managing one or more qualifying businesses or eligible investments
- For at least 1 of the 5 fiscal years immediately before we invite you to apply, have directly managed one of the following:
- A qualifying business in which you, your partner or you and your partner combined had at least 10% ownership interest, or
- An eligible investment of at least AUD 1.5 million owned by you, your partner or you and your partner combined
- For the 2 fiscal years immediately before invite you to apply, you, your partner, or you and your partner together, have business and personal assets with a net value of at least AUD 2.5 million. These assets must have been lawfully acquired and be available for transfer to Australia within 2 years of the visa being granted
- If you were invited to apply for this visa, you must make a complying significant investment of at least AUD 2.5 million. You must hold complying significant investments continuously for the life of your provisional visa.It must be invested in the following proportions:
- At least AUD 500,000 in Venture Capital and Growth Private Equity Funds which invest in start-ups and small private companies
- At least AUD 750,000 in approved managed funds. The managed funds must invest in emerging companies listed on the Australian Stock Exchange
- A ‘Balancing Investment’ of at least AUD 1.25 million in managed funds
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Stay
Up to 5 years (provisional visa)
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Processing Time
Approximately 6 – 9 Months
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After obtaining the 188B visa, the applicant needs to meet all the following conditions to apply for the 888B permanent residence visa:
- Applicants have held a 188B visa for 3 years and have maintained a compliance investment of at least AUD 2.5 million during the 188B visa holding period
- Have lived in Australia for at least 2 years within 3 years before applying for permanent residence