Canberra Small Business Owner Pathway: ACT 491 and 190 Visa Guide 2026

You have built a real business in Canberra, with a local team and income you have worked hard for. Permanent residency can still feel like a separate puzzle.

Part of the confusion comes from the numbers online. One page says you need $13,000 of income, another says $16,000. Some guides quote cut-off scores from rounds that have already passed.

The good news is that the Canberra small business owner pathway has one current set of rules. The ACT Government publishes them, and they are easy to check.

The Small Business Owner (SBO) stream lets majority owners of an ACT business seek nomination for a subclass 491 visa or subclass 190 visa. Your occupation does not need to be on the ACT occupation list.

This guide covers the personal and business criteria, Matrix points, the latest round, costs and the path to PR.

Our MARA-registered agents (MARN 2518738 and 2619480) in Harris Park (Sydney) and Melbourne CBD can review your business and Matrix score before you submit. Book a consultation.

What Is the ACT Canberra SBO 491 Visa Pathway?

The ACT Canberra SBO 491 visa pathway is a way to get Australian Capital Territory (ACT) Government nomination through your business. The ACT looks at what your Canberra business does, not whether your occupation is in short supply.

It sits inside the ACT’s Canberra resident nomination rules. You must be the majority owner of an eligible registered business in the ACT and meet every ACT nomination criterion. You also claim Canberra Matrix points in the small business owner category.

Your nominated occupation does not have to be on the ACT Nominated Migration Program Occupation List. It still needs to be on the Home Affairs skilled occupation list for the visa you choose, with a valid skills assessment.

Your SkillSelect Expression of Interest (EOI) must also meet the Home Affairs points test (currently 65 points) and list the ACT as your preferred location. This opens the pathway to owners in hospitality, construction, retail, professional services and trades.

Once nominated, you can apply for a subclass 491 visa or a subclass 190 visa. The 491 visa is a five-year provisional visa that leads to permanent residency. The 190 visa is permanent from the day it is granted.

Who Is Eligible for the ACT SBO Stream?

You need to meet two sets of criteria at the date you submit your Canberra Matrix: personal criteria and business criteria. The figures below come from the ACT Government’s 491 nomination criteria and 190 nomination criteria for Canberra residents, as at 27 October 2026.

Personal Eligibility Criteria

• Residence in Canberra: You have lived in Canberra for at least three months (491) or six months (190) at Matrix submission, and you keep living there until invitation. Your bank statements must show ACT banking activity. Living within a 30-minute commute in NSW, such as Queanbeyan, Jerrabomberra or Googong, also counts.
• Work in Canberra: You have worked in Canberra for at least 13 weeks (491) or 26 weeks (190). Running your own small business counts.
• Spouse or partner: Your partner must live in Canberra for the same three or six months, or live overseas. They cannot be living or working in another state.
• English: Competent English for a 491 nomination. Proficient or Superior English for a 190 nomination, unless your occupation is Chef or sits at Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) skill level 3 to 5.
• Commitment to Canberra: You sign a declaration that you will live and work in Canberra while your visa is processed and for at least two years from the grant.

Business Eligibility Criteria

• Ownership: You own at least 51% of a registered business that is actively operating in the ACT. Interstate or overseas business activity is not accepted.
• Profit: The business is profitable.
• Your income from the business: The business pays you at least $16,000 of taxable income in the last three months (491) or $32,000 in the last six months (190).
• Staff: At Matrix submission you employ at least one Australian citizen, permanent resident or New Zealand citizen. One employee must have worked at least 13 weeks at 20 or more hours a week. Those weeks do not have to be continuous, and the employee must live in Canberra.
• Trading history and turnover: Six months of trading with $100,000 turnover earns 10 Matrix points. Twelve months of trading with $200,000 turnover earns 20 points.
• Statutory declaration: You sign a declaration covering your ABN, staff numbers and how long they have worked for you, business location, start date, duties and annual income.

What Types of Businesses Are Not Eligible for ACT SBO Nomination?

The ACT Government lists five business types that cannot be used for SBO nomination, even if the revenue and ownership figures look right.

• Sub-tenancy arrangements.
• Ride-share and taxi services.
• Delivery and courier services.
• An on-sold business that someone else has already used to qualify for ACT nomination.
• Any business whose activity takes place outside the ACT.

If your business has been trading for less than six months, it cannot yet earn SBO business points. That is a timing issue, not a dead end. Keep trading and building your records, then submit once you reach the six-month mark.

Most problems we see in this stream come from how the revenue, income and staff records line up, not from the business itself. Our MARA-registered agents (MARN 2518738 and 2619480) in Harris Park, Sydney and Melbourne CBD check those records against the ACT criteria before you submit. Book an assessment with our team.

How Does the Canberra Matrix Work for SBO Applicants?

The Canberra Matrix is the ACT Government’s points-based ranking. It decides who is invited to apply for ACT nomination, and SBO applicants are ranked in their own group.

Unlike the federal points test, the Matrix rewards your connection to Canberra. Points can be claimed for:

• Small business ownership: 10 or 20 points, based on trading history and turnover.
• Length of ACT residence: up to 25 points for five years or more.
• English: 15 points for Superior, 10 for Proficient, 0 for Competent.
• Skilled employment, formal qualifications, ACT study and close family ties in Canberra.
• An occupation on the ACT occupation list: 20 points. SBO applicants whose occupation is not on the list score 0 here, which is why business and residence points matter.

Your documents must prove each claim as at the date you submitted or last updated your Matrix. You can update the Matrix while you wait, so you can add points as your residence and trading history grow.

How Many Points Do I Need for ACT State Nomination Under the SBO Stream?

There is no fixed pass mark. In the 12 October 2026 invitation round, the ACT invited 18 SBO applicants for 190 nomination at a minimum Matrix score of 120, and no SBO applicants for 491 nomination.

The ACT says its minimum scores are an indication only. Places are set per round from the annual allocation, and the 2026-27 allocation had not been announced at 27 October 2026. In 2025-26 the ACT had 800 places for the 190 and 800 for the 491.

The tentative 2026-27 round dates are:

• Week starting 12 October 2026 (subclass 190 only).
• Week starting 25 January 2027.
• Week starting 22 March 2027.
• Week starting 24 May 2027.

Practical ways to lift your Canberra Matrix score include:

• Building a longer ACT residence period before you submit or update your Matrix.
• Moving from Proficient to Superior English, which adds 5 points.
• Reaching 12 months of trading and $200,000 turnover, which lifts business points from 10 to 20.
• Adding Australian qualifications or ACT study.
• Documenting close family ties in Canberra.

Which Is Better for Small Business Owners in the ACT: a 190 or a 491 Visa?

The 491 visa asks for less time in Canberra, while the 190 visa gives permanent residency straight away. The right choice depends on how long you have lived and worked in Canberra, your English level and your Matrix score.

For owners who have been in Canberra for less than six months, or who have Competent English, the 491 visa is usually the realistic starting point. The October 2026 round invited no SBO applicants for the 491, so plan around the January and March 2027 rounds. You can read a full comparison in our guide on the difference between the 491 and 190 visas.

How Does the ACT SBO 491 Visa Lead to Permanent Residency?

The 491 visa leads to permanent residency through the subclass 191 visa (Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional)). Canberra counts as a designated regional area.

To apply for the 191 visa after holding a 491 visa, you must:

• Have held your 491 visa for at least three years.
• Have lived and worked in a designated regional area, such as Canberra, while holding it.
• Provide Australian Taxation Office (ATO) notices of assessment for three income years from your time on the visa.

There is no minimum income for the 191 visa. The Home Affairs Regional Provisional stream page says so directly. The $53,900 figure still quoted online comes from an older version of the rules. Our guide to the 191 visa income requirement explains why you may see two answers.

For business owners, the ATO notices come from the income you draw from your ACT business each year. The full journey from Matrix to permanent residency looks like this:

• Submit your Canberra Matrix and receive an invitation from the ACT Government.
• Apply for ACT nomination by the date set in your invitation.
• Receive your SkillSelect invitation from Home Affairs and lodge your 491 visa application within 60 days.
• Live and work in Canberra on your 491 visa for three years, keeping your tax returns up to date.
• Apply for the subclass 191 visa.

Not sure how your three tax years will look? Our MARA-registered agents can map your 491 to 191 timeline with you. See also our guide to the 491 to 191 visa pathway and the wider regional Australia visa options.

What English Level Is Required for ACT SBO State Nomination?

You need Competent English for a 491 nomination and Proficient English for a 190 nomination. Chefs and ANZSCO skill level 3 to 5 occupations are exempt from the higher 190 level.

Competent English means, for example, IELTS 6 in each band. Proficient English (Home Affairs page updated 21 September 2026) means:

• IELTS: 7 in each band.
• PTE Academic taken from 7 August 2025: at least 58 listening, 59 reading, 69 writing and 76 speaking.
• PTE Academic taken before 7 August 2025: 65 in each skill.
• OET: grade B in each part.
• TOEFL iBT: the scores listed by Home Affairs, and you must register as “Taking TOEFL for Australia”.

A higher result still helps. Superior English adds 15 Matrix points and Proficient adds 10, while Competent adds none.

Step-by-Step: How to Apply for the ACT SBO 491 Nomination

The ACT SBO nomination follows a fixed sequence, and each stage has its own deadline. Knowing the order in advance makes each step easier to prepare for.

The ACT SBO Application Process

• Check your personal and business eligibility. Confirm that you and your business meet every ACT SBO criterion before you start on documents.
• Work out your Canberra Matrix score. Use the ACT’s Canberra Matrix page to estimate your points and spot ways to add more.
• Gather your documents. You will need business financial statements, ABN records, employee evidence, ACT residence and banking evidence, English results, qualifications and your signed statutory declaration. Make sure the figures match across every document.
• Submit your Canberra Matrix. Lodge it through the ACT Migration Application Portal and pay the submission fee. You can update it later as your points change.
• Wait for an invitation. The ACT invites the highest-ranked Matrix submissions in each round.
• Apply for ACT nomination. Lodge your nomination application and fee by the date in your invitation.
• Lodge your 491 visa application within 60 days. After nomination, Home Affairs sends a SkillSelect invitation, and you have 60 days to apply.

What Does Each Step Cost?

• ACT fees are from the ACT Migration application fees page, updated 27 July 2026.
• Visa charges are Home Affairs base charges for the main applicant. Check the Visa Pricing Estimator for your family.

For the federal visa stage after nomination, see our guide on how to apply for a 491 visa in Australia.

How The Migration Helps ACT SBO Applicants

The ACT SBO pathway looks simple on paper. In practice, the ACT checks that your revenue figures, tax records, staff evidence and declarations all tell the same story.

At The Migration, our MARA-registered agents (MARN 2518738 and 2619480) work with ACT SBO applicants from our Harris Park, Sydney and Melbourne CBD offices. You can confirm our registration on the MARA public register. Many owners come to us after trying the Canberra Matrix alone and finding that meeting the criteria and proving them are two different tasks.

Here is how our team supports ACT SBO applicants at each stage:

• Business eligibility check: We review your ownership, ABN history, turnover, profit, the income the business pays you and your staff records against the current ACT criteria.
• Matrix points review: We look for every point you can genuinely claim across residence, English, qualifications and business activity, and tell you when updating your Matrix would help.
• Document preparation: We guide you through each statutory declaration, financial record, employee record and residence document so your submission is consistent.
• Dates and deadlines: We track your invitation, nomination and 60-day visa lodgement dates so each step is ready ahead of time.
• Visa application support: After ACT nomination, we continue with your 491 visa application to Home Affairs and later your 191 visa.

Conclusion

The Canberra small business owner pathway is one of the few state nomination routes that does not depend on your occupation being on a state list. It rewards a real, profitable Canberra business that pays you an income and employs local staff.

The rules are clear once you read them from the ACT Government’s own pages. For a 491 nomination, that means three months in Canberra, $16,000 of income from your business over three months, one qualifying employee and Competent English. From there, the 191 visa offers permanent residency after three years, with no minimum income.

If you would like a second set of eyes on your business records and Matrix score, our MARA-registered agents (MARN 2518738 and 2619480) can help you prepare for the next round. Book your consultation with The Migration.

Frequently asked questions