Visa Summary
The Business Innovation and Investment (Permanent) visa (subclass 888) is the second stage of the Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) visa Subclass 188. You can apply for it after you have fulfilled the requirements of your provisional visa.
You do not need to submit a new Expression of Interest or be invited to apply for this visa. You need to be nominated by a state or territory government agency or Austrade on behalf of the Australian government if you are seeking to satisfy the primary criteria.
If you are the holder of a provisional Business Innovation and Investment visa (Subclass 188) and the government entity which nominated you for that visa has not withdrawn the nomination, you have a current nomination by that government entity.
If you are the holder of a Special Category visa (subclass 444), or require nomination from a different nominator than your provisional Business Innovation and Investment visa (subclass 188); you are required to obtain nomination from a state or territory or Austrade on behalf of the Australian government, before you lodge an application for this visa.
The Business Innovation and Investment (Permanent) visa (subclass 888) allows you to manage your business and investments in Australia.
This is a permanent residence visa. It lets you and any family members who have also been granted this visa:
- stay in Australia indefinitely
- work and study in Australia
- enrol with Medicare, Australia’s scheme for health-related care and expenses
- apply for Australian citizenship (if you are eligible)
- sponsor eligible relatives for permanent residence
- travel to and from Australia for five years from the date the visa is granted (after that time, you will need a resident return visa or another visa to return to Australia).
General Requirements:
You might be able to apply for this visa if:
you are the primary visa holder of a provisional Business Innovation and Investment visa (subclass 188) and have met all the requirements of your provisional Business Innovation and Investment visa in the stream in which you first applied; or
- you are the secondary visa holder who is the spouse or de facto partner of a provisional Business Innovation and Investment visa (subclass 188)in the Investor or Business Innovation stream and have met all the primary criteria of provisional Business Innovation and Investment visa in the stream in which you first applied; or
- you hold a Special Category visa (subclass 444) and have met the requirements of the business innovation stream; and
- you and your partner have not been involved in any unacceptable business or investment activities.
In Addition:
- you and your partner have a satisfactory record of complying with Commonwealth laws, and of each State or Territory in which you operate a business and employ employees in the business, relating to your business,
- you have been nominated by an Australian state or territory or by Austrde on behalf of the Australian government,
- you and all your family members meet health and character requirements – you do not need to prove this again if you have already done this for the provisional Business Innovation and Investment visa (subclass 188),
- have a realistic commitment to maintain business or investment activities in Australia.
Other requirements depend on the stream in which you held your provisional Business Innovation and Investment visa (subclass 188).
Health Requirements:
You must meet certain health requirements. However, most applicants for this visa will not be required to complete additional health examinations. Do not arrange a health examination until Department of Home Affairs (DHA) ask you to do so.
Character Requirements:
You must meet certain character requirements. You must be prepared to provide a police certificate from each country you have lived in for 12 months or more during the past 10 years after you turned 16 years of age. Do not arrange a police clearance certificate until Department of Home Affairs (DHA) ask you to do so.
This applies to you and all the dependent family members listed in your application, whether they are migrating or not.
Debts to the Australian Government:
You must have no outstanding debts to the Australian Government or have arranged to repay any outstanding debts to the Australian Government before this visa can be granted.