Australia’s 191 Hong Kong stream: How do you count the three years on a qualifying visa?
To apply under the subclass 191 Hong Kong stream, you must still hold an eligible visa when you lodge and must have held it for at least three years. Home Affairs assesses usual residence in a designated regional area separately. The date you reach three years on your visa may be different from the date you meet the regional residence requirement.
Identify the visa you expect to hold when you apply
Start with the grant notice and confirm the visa in force and its expiry date using VEVO. The eligible visas are qualifying subclass 457, 482 or 485 visas granted on the basis that you met the primary criteria. The subclass alone does not settle eligibility. Check the details of the grant and the Hong Kong SAR or British National (Overseas) passport you will hold at lodgement.
If you switched from a 485 to a 482, received another grant in the same subclass, or moved onto a bridging visa, put each grant notice in date order. Start the calculation with the qualifying visa you will still hold at lodgement. Avoid assuming that different grants or bridging periods can simply be added together.
Count back from the intended lodgement date
Make a timeline of where you actually lived, worked and studied. Add the date of each move, change of work site or change of campus. Compare the relevant addresses with the official list of designated regional postcodes.
Suppose you moved to a designated regional area six months after receiving your qualifying visa. Its three-year anniversary does not settle whether you meet the separate residence requirement. Count back from the proposed filing date and record any period when you lived, worked or studied outside designated areas so you can check the applicable criteria.
Use records that match the dates and locations
Compare your address history with leases, bills or other genuine dated records. For work, gather employer and payroll records and confirm whether the office address reflects where you performed your duties. For study, check enrolment and campus documents. Where a mailing address differs from your actual residence, document the difference.
Before choosing a lodgement date, compare your grant notices, passport and location timeline. For help reviewing the dates, contact 卓越移民 Premiervisa Group with the relevant grant dates and recent address history.
Sources checked 6 November 2026
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