Australia · Talent & extraordinary ability
National Innovation Visa (subclass 858)
Launched 7 December 2024, replacing both the Global Talent visa (which used the same subclass 858) and the closed BIIP. It is invitation-only and permanent from the moment of grant. The allocation has already been cut, from 5,300 places in 2025–26 to 3,500 for 2026–27, with Home Affairs signalling a deliberate narrowing toward internationally recognised exceptional achievement.
The NIV is not the SIV with a new name. It is a different product for different people, and the numbers make that clear. Since launch, more than 9,000 EOIs have produced roughly 304 invitations and about 85 visas granted. In the January-March 2026 quarter alone, 1,815 EOIs yielded 146 invitations, about 8%. Wealth is not a criterion here and does not help.
Qualifying routes
There is no investment threshold of any kind. AUD 4,985 is the base visa application charge for the primary applicant (2025–26), plus AUD 2,495 per additional applicant 18 and over and AUD 1,250 per applicant under 18.
The facts
- Minimum
- 5k AUD
- Total landed cost
- AUD 4,985 for the primary applicant, plus AUD 2,495 per adult dependant and AUD 1,250 per child, before health, police, translation and professional fees. There is no investment component. This visa cannot be purchased.
- Route type
- By qualification
- Timeline
- 6–24 months (The EOI sits in a pool indefinitely, with no service standard attached. Once invited, the applicant has 60 days to lodge, and processing follows from there.)
- Physical presence
- The visa itself imposes no presence requirement. But a permanent visa's 5-year travel facility must be renewed through a Resident Return Visa, which requires 2 years' residence in the preceding 5. That is the real presence trap.
- Family
- PartnerDependent childrenOther dependent relatives, all of whom receive permanent residence from grant
- Permanent residency
- Permanent residence applies from the moment of grant. There is no provisional stage.
- Citizenship
- 4 years lawful residence, including the last 12 months as a permanent resident, with absences under 12 months across the 4 years and under 90 days in the final year
- Language test
- There is no English requirement for the visa. Citizenship requires basic English and the citizenship test.
- Dual citizenship
- Permitted
- Requirements
- an internationally recognised record of exceptional and outstanding achievementstill prominent in the area of expertisewould be an asset to the Australian communityno difficulty finding employment or becoming established independently in Australianomination by an eligible Australian nominator with national standing in the fieldan invitation from the Department of Home Affairs following an EOIhealth and character requirements
- The conversion rate tells the real story: roughly 9,000 EOIs to roughly 85 grants since December 2024. Treat this as a lottery on an exceptional record, not as a plan.
- Because the NIV is permanent from grant, holders get no temporary resident tax concession. They are full Australian tax residents on worldwide income from day one. That is the exact opposite of the New Zealand transitional-resident treatment, and it is the most expensive misunderstanding available in the region.
- Places were cut from 5,300 to 3,500 for 2026–27, even as EOI volume rose. Selectivity is tightening, not loosening.
- Tier One sector concentration is real. Of recent invitations, 66 went to Critical Technologies, 34 to Health Industries and 18 to Renewables. Outside those sectors, the odds fall further.
- An EOI can sit in the pool indefinitely. There is no feedback, no queue position and no service standard.
- A nominator with national standing in the applicant's field is required. A weak nomination is a common, quiet way for an application to fail.
- Permanent residence does not mean permanent travel rights. Leaving Australia for extended periods without a Resident Return Visa can strand the family outside the country.