MARA-Registered Migration Agents in Melbourne, VIC

Consultation fees by visa type

• Partner visa$200
• Skilled visa (189, 190, 491)$240
• Employer-sponsored visa$240
• Student or graduate visa$188
• Visitor or working holiday visa$200
• Refusal, cancellation or appeal$200 (Australia)
• Citizenship$200 (Australia)
• Business or investor visa$250 (Australia)
• Not sure which visa yet$200

The median of each agent's usual first-consultation quote for that visa type, from quotes on real briefs in the twelve months to 2026-11-01. A place in brackets means fewer than five Melbourne agents have quoted that type, so the wider figure is shown. Agents set their own fees.

What a first consultation costs in Melbourne

The median consultation fee quoted to applicants in Melbourne is $200. Half of all quotes fall between $150 and $245. Each agent's typical quote counts once, so one very active agent cannot move the figure.

That is the price of a first paid conversation — usually 30 to 60 minutes reviewing your situation, with the pathway, costs and timeline in writing afterwards. A full application engagement is priced separately by the agent and commonly runs from roughly $2,500 for a straightforward student or visitor matter to $4,000–$8,000 for a partner visa file.

Based on 147 quotes from 11 agents based in Melbourne, quoted on real applicant briefs in the twelve months to 2026-11-01. Every quote is written by the agent for a specific applicant; Migratio does not set or suggest fees.

Who practises in Melbourne

• 1,209 MARA-registered agents list a Melbourne address on the OMARA register.
• The median agent first registered in 2018 — about 8 years ago.
• 120 have been registered 20 years or longer; 492 registered within the last five.
• Most commonly published practice areas: Student Visa (212), Skilled Visa (148), Employer-Sponsored Visa (117), Family & Parent Visa (95), Partner Visa (80).
• Languages named in agents' own profiles: Vietnamese (16), Spanish (9), Italian (6), Hindi (5), Mandarin (4), Korean (4).

Compiled from the public OMARA register and agents' own published practice details, refreshed with our agent data. Registration year is derived from the MARN prefix. Practice areas and languages are self-published, not verified by Migratio.

Longest-registered migration agents in Melbourne

Registration year is derived from each agent's MARN — the first two digits encode the year they first registered with OMARA. Longer registration means more years practising under the regulator's Code of Conduct, though the right specialisation matters more than tenure alone.

1. Paul Bau Sheng Lee — registered since 1992 (34+ years, MARN 9252946)
2. Ramazan Altintas — registered since 1992 (34+ years, MARN 9255763)
3. Thay Horn Yim — registered since 1993 (33+ years, MARN 9301040)
4. Alexander Lau — registered since 1993 (33+ years, MARN 9301088)
5. Boniface Town — registered since 1993 (33+ years, MARN 9358658)
6. Lawrence Cheng — registered since 1993 (33+ years, MARN 9359115)
7. Paul-Doan Ngo — registered since 1993 (33+ years, MARN 9367342)
8. Diana Mastrantuono — registered since 1995 (31+ years, MARN 9501077)
9. Nicholas Richard Benjamin — registered since 1995 (31+ years, MARN 9576758)
10. Anthony John Henjak — registered since 1995 (31+ years, MARN 9580930)

Melbourne agents by visa type

Student Visa agents in Melbourne · Skilled Visa agents in Melbourne · Employer-Sponsored Visa agents in Melbourne · Family & Parent Visa agents in Melbourne · Partner Visa agents in Melbourne · Business & Investor Visa agents in Melbourne · Citizenship agents in Melbourne · Visa Refusal & Appeal agents in Melbourne · Humanitarian Visa agents in Melbourne

Migration agents by suburb in Melbourne

Every Melbourne suburb with its own page, and how many MARA-registered agents list an address there. Most consultations run by video or phone, so a suburb matters only if you want to meet in person.

• Tarneit (30)
• Box Hill (23)
• Point Cook (22)
• Prahran (20)
• Craigieburn (19)
• Glenroy (18)
• Truganina (18)
• Dandenong (17)
• Clyde North (16)
• Footscray (13)
• Berwick (12)
• Docklands (12)
• Pakenham (11)
• Werribee (11)
• Brighton (10)
• Keysborough (10)
• Richmond (10)
• South Yarra (10)
• Southbank (10)
• Springvale (10)
• Wollert (10)
• Hoppers Crossing (9)
• Bentleigh East (8)
• Bundoora (8)
• Cranbourne East (8)
• Cranbourne West (8)
• Glen Waverley (8)
• Mitcham (8)
• Weir Views (8)
• Williams Landing (8)
• Camberwell (7)
• Carlton (7)
• Clayton South (7)
• Hawthorn (7)
• St Albans (7)
• Aintree (6)
• Blackburn (6)
• Carnegie (6)
• Caulfield North (6)
• Clayton (6)

Is Melbourne a regional area for visas?

Melbourne is Category 1, and every Victorian postcode from 3000 to 3210 is Category 1 except 3097 to 3099 and 3139, which are Category 3. Victoria's Category 3 list also takes in 3430 to 3799, 3809 to 3909, 3912 to 3971 and 3978 to 3996, so 75 of the 272 postal areas the ABS places in Greater Melbourne are regional, including Pakenham (3810), Doreen and Mernda (3754) and Mornington (3931), while Cranbourne (3977), Sunbury (3429) and Bundoora (3083) are not.

For the second Temporary Graduate (subclass 485) visa, Home Affairs treats Melbourne residence as Category 1 and marks it not eligible. A graduate whose campus and home were both in Victoria's listed regional postcodes is assessed on those instead: 1 extra year if either was Category 2, 2 extra years if both were Category 3.

Only a fringe of Melbourne counts for working holiday specified work: Victoria's Regional Australia list starts at 3139 and then 3211, and 23 of the postal areas the ABS places in Greater Melbourne are on it, such as Pakenham (3810), Wallan (3756) and Gisborne (3437). Inside the city, recovery work after floods, cyclones or severe weather can count in declared council areas, which include Melbourne, Yarra and Moonee Valley.

No DAMA covers Melbourne: Victoria's two agreements on the Home Affairs list of 13 are for the Goulburn Valley and the Great South Coast.

Which outer postcodes and suburbs count: regional postcodes in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

These facts describe the rules, not whether you qualify. Every postcode and both categories are on our guide to regional areas for migration. Sources: Migration (Designated regional areas for certain skilled and temporary graduate visas) Instrument (LIN 22/022) 2022, F2022L00231 (in force); Department of Home Affairs: Designated regional areas (page updated 28 February 2025); Department of Home Affairs: Designated regional area postcodes (page updated 23 September 2024); Department of Home Affairs: Temporary Graduate visa, Second Post-Higher Education Work stream (page updated 13 October 2026); Department of Home Affairs: Specified work, Working Holiday visa (subclass 417) (page updated 12 October 2026); Department of Home Affairs: Specified work, Work and Holiday visa (subclass 462) (page updated 12 October 2026); Migration (Specified work and areas for subclass 417 visas) Instrument (LIN 22/012) 2022, compilation 3 (from 5 April 2025); Migration (Specified work and areas for subclass 462 visas) Instrument (LIN 22/013) 2022, compilation 3 (from 5 April 2025); Department of Home Affairs: Designated area migration agreements (page updated 7 October 2026); Australian Bureau of Statistics: ASGS Edition 3 allocation files (mesh blocks to postal areas, suburbs and localities, and Greater Capital City areas, 2021).

State nomination in Victoria

Victoria nominates through Live in Melbourne with separate published criteria for onshore and offshore applicants rather than one general test. Onshore applicants who hold a temporary visa must already be living and working in a skilled role in regional Victoria to be considered, and applicants already living in another state or territory are not eligible for Victorian nomination at all. Offshore applicants can register for either subclass without first working in Victoria, but must show a genuine intention to settle in Victoria (190) or regional Victoria (491) after the visa is granted. The subclass 190 nominates for anywhere in Victoria including Melbourne; the 491 is restricted to regional Victoria.

Nominates for: 190, 491

What Skilled and Business Migration Program, Victorian Government Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions asks for:

• a valid skills assessment in an occupation on Victoria's eligible skilled occupation list
• at least 65 points on the Department of Home Affairs points test, including points for state nomination
• for onshore temporary-visa holders, living and working in a skilled role in regional Victoria at the time of application
• for offshore applicants, evidence of a genuine intention to live and work in Victoria (190) or regional Victoria (491) after the visa is granted
• not currently living in an Australian state or territory other than Victoria

For subclass 491 purposes, regional Victoria is everywhere in the state outside Greater Melbourne. Geelong carries Category 2 regional status but remains within the regional designation. Melbourne itself is not a designated regional area.

Programme details as at 2026-08-19, from Skilled and Business Migration Program, Victorian Government Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions. Nomination criteria and occupation lists change frequently — confirm the current position on the official site before relying on it. Whether a particular situation fits a nomination pathway is a question for a MARA-registered agent.

Where to get help in Melbourne

The agents on this page are private practitioners who charge for their time. If you cannot afford one, or your matter is a protection or refugee claim, these Melbourne services give free or low-cost help. Each sets its own eligibility.

• Refugee Legal (Refugee legal service, Level 5, 333 Exhibition Street, Melbourne) — Gives legal advice and casework on protection visas, family visas and other migration matters, including help with appeals at the Administrative Review Tribunal. Free for people seeking asylum, refugees and disadvantaged migrants; you start by calling its telephone advice line, open Wednesdays and Fridays 10am to 2pm.
• Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (Human Rights Law Program) (Refugee legal service, Level 2, 214-218 Nicholson St, Footscray; legal clinic at 205 Thomas Street, Dandenong) — Gives legal advice and representation to people seeking asylum at every stage of the protection visa process, including people in immigration detention. Free for people seeking asylum who cannot afford a private lawyer and have no access to government-funded legal advice; the legal team is reached by phone, with no walk-in legal help.
• Victoria Legal Aid (Legal Aid, Level 9, 570 Bourke St, Melbourne) — Helps people appeal protection visa decisions and gives preliminary advice on mandatory visa cancellations; contact is by phone, online chat or email. Legal information is free for everyone; advice and representation are limited to people who meet its guidelines, and it does not advise on business, skilled, student or tourist visas.
• AMES Australia (Settlement service) — Delivers the Australian Government's Humanitarian Settlement Program in Melbourne, giving new humanitarian arrivals case-managed help with housing, English, work and study. For people arriving on Refugee (subclass 200, 201, 203, 204) or Global Special Humanitarian (subclass 202) visas; other visa holders are eligible only for the program's Specialised and Intensive Services.
• Spectrum Migrant Resource Centre (Settlement service, Level 5, 61 Riggall Street, Dallas; 163 Harvester Road, Sunshine) — Gives settlement support to new migrants and refugees, and its registered migration agents help with family, partner, skilled, student and visitor visas, citizenship and appeals. Free migration advice (family reunion through the Special Humanitarian Program, and citizenship) for refugees and people seeking asylum who have been in Australia five years or less; other visa work is fee-based.

Department of Home Affairs in Melbourne: Visa and Citizenship office, 808 Bourke Street, Docklands. Offices in Australia see people by appointment only: you need a pre-arranged appointment, and the department sends a letter or invitation with the details if it needs to see you. Office details on immi.homeaffairs.gov.au.

Checked 2026-10-22 on each organisation's own website, immi.homeaffairs.gov.au and art.gov.au. Migratio has no relationship with these organisations and does not assess eligibility; confirm current hours and criteria with them directly.

Citizenship ceremony waits in Melbourne

After citizenship is approved, you attend a ceremony arranged by your local council (or the Department). Home Affairs publishes, council by council, how many approved applicants had not yet attended a ceremony on 30 September 2026 and how long they had waited since approval. Across the 31 councils listed for Melbourne, 17,611 approved applicants were waiting, and 89% of them had waited less than 3 months (Migratio's applicant-weighted calculation from the Home Affairs figures).

The 12 councils with the most people waiting, of 31. Home Affairs shows counts of 1 to 4 as "<5". Source: Home Affairs ceremony wait times. Every council in Australia is on Migratio's ceremony wait data page.

Common questions

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