494 Visa for Chefs in Regional Australia: Is It Still Open?

The subclass 494 regional visa remains open to new nominations as of September 2026, alongside the standard 482. It fits a restaurant outside Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane hiring a chef with at least 3 years' full time experience and Competent English, in exchange for permanent residence eligibility after 3 years instead of 4. A Designated Area Migration Agreement (DAMA) can relax the age or English bar further, but only where that specific agreement names chef or cook and your site sits in its region.

1. What counts as regional

Home Affairs defines designated regional areas for the 494 as all of Australia except Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. That takes in Perth, Adelaide, the Gold Coast, Hobart, Darwin and many other places where Japanese restaurants trade. Our guides to Perth and Brisbane and the Gold Coast cover the local markets.

The 494 holder must live, work and study only in a designated regional area, and work only for the sponsoring employer in the nominated occupation. A group that later wants to move the chef to a Sydney venue cannot do so on this visa.

2. Chef and cook on the 494 lists

The occupations for 494 nominations sit in a separate instrument, LIN 19/219. In the compilation dated 14 December 2024, chef (ANZSCO 351311) is on the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List and cook (351411) and cafe or restaurant manager (141111) are on the Regional Occupation List. Both lists are valid for 494 nominations. Unlike the 482, neither carries the caveats excluding factory mass production or limited service restaurants, though the position still has to be genuine and at the occupation's skill level.

3. What the chef needs for a 494

The 494 is harder for the worker than the 482:

• Age: under 45 at application, unless an exemption applies.
• Experience: at least 3 years full time in the nominated occupation at the required skill level, generally within the last 5 years. Casual work does not count.
• Skills assessment: a positive assessment from the relevant assessing authority before applying, unless the chef already holds a 482 in the same occupation with an assessment on file.
• English: at least Competent English.
• Length: 5 years, with eligibility for permanent residence (subclass 191) after 3 years on the 494.

Build the evidence file early: employment certificates from Japan stating dates, duties and hours (not just a title), translated into English, plus anything that corroborates them, such as pension or tax records. Skills assessment turnaround varies by assessing body, so start it as soon as the chef is chosen, not after the offer is signed. Our guide to translating employment certificates covers the paperwork.

4. What the employer must do

• Be a standard business sponsor, or have applied to become one.
• Labour market testing. Required unless an exemption applies; Home Affairs notes no trade obligations exempt the 494 program, whatever the chef's nationality.
• Annual market salary rate (AMSR). Below A$250,000 a year, you must show the AMSR, assessed by a Regional Certifying Body.
• Income threshold. Both the AMSR and guaranteed earnings must reach the Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT): A$79,423 for nominations lodged 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027 (A$76,515 the year before). Non-monetary benefits do not count.
• A genuine full time position likely to last at least 5 years, with a signed contract lodged with the nomination.
• Costs: no nomination fee, but a one-off Skilling Australians Fund levy: A$3,000 under A$10 million turnover, A$5,000 otherwise. It cannot be passed to the worker.

5. 494 or 482: a side by side

The 494 suits a senior chef who already clears the 3 year and English bar and wants the shorter path to permanent residence. The 482 is usually faster for a younger cook or one with less English, at the cost of a longer wait for the 186.

6. DAMA: which agreements actually list chef or cook

A DAMA is an agreement between the Commonwealth and a regional body. Employers in the region get endorsement locally, then a labour agreement with Home Affairs applies concessions the standard 494 and 482 do not allow. As of September 2026 there are 13 active DAMAs. We checked the published occupation lists for four; the rest cover similar ground but you must check your own region's list before relying on any of this.

Western Australia also runs Pilbara and East Kimberley DAMAs, and Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria run others (Far North Queensland, Townsville, Orana, Goulburn Valley, Great South Coast among them). We have not checked their occupation lists for this guide. If your site sits in one of these regions, search the region's own DAMA occupation list by ANZSCO code, or contact the local Designated Area Representative, before assuming a concession applies.

7. Choosing a route

Whichever route, budget for the SAF levy, any Regional Certifying Body assessment, and labour market testing before you make an offer.

General information checked against the Department of Home Affairs, the Federal Register of Legislation, Migration WA and regional DAMA occupation lists in September 2026, not legal or immigration advice. Thresholds change each 1 July, DAMA terms differ by region, and we did not verify every active DAMA's occupation list. Confirm with Home Affairs, the relevant DAMA body or a registered migration agent before acting.