Your Complete Guide to Moving from Hong Kong to Australia in 2026

What Ended on 8 July 2025, and What Didn't

The Migration Amendment (Hong Kong Passport Holders) Regulations 2020 did two things for Hong Kong passport holders. First, a transitional rule stretched 457, 482 and 485 visas that were already in effect on 9 July 2020 so they ran until 8 July 2025, with family members on the same visas covered too. Second, it changed the 482 itself, so a primary 482 granted on or after 9 July 2020 to a Hong Kong passport holder runs for five years from grant. The Migration Legislation Amendment (Hong Kong) Regulations 2021 extended the same treatment to British National (Overseas) passport holders and created the Hong Kong stream of the subclass 189 and the Hong Kong (Regional) stream of the subclass 191, open to applications from 5 March 2022.

The transitional extension is the part that has ended: those visas stopped on 8 July 2025. The five-year 482 has not. In the Migration Regulations as at 1 July 2026 (compilation 288), a primary 482 (Skills in Demand) visa granted to someone holding a Hong Kong passport or a BN(O) passport still runs to the end of five years from grant, and a visa granted on or after 9 July 2020 with that five-year stay still counts towards the Hong Kong streams.

How the 189 and 191 Hong Kong Streams Work

Under Schedule 1 of the Migration Regulations, a primary applicant for either Hong Kong stream must hold a Hong Kong or BN(O) passport and hold an eligible 457, 482 or 485 visa, meaning one granted before 9 July 2020 that ran to 8 July 2025, or one granted on or after 9 July 2020 with a five-year stay. For the subclass 189 Hong Kong stream the applicant must have held that visa for at least four years and been usually resident in Australia for a continuous four years before applying. For the subclass 191 Hong Kong (Regional) stream the figure is three years, and during those three years the applicant must not have lived, worked or studied outside a designated regional area (subject to classes of people the Minister can exempt by instrument).

The stream criteria in Schedule 2 don't include a SkillSelect invitation, a points test or a skills assessment. They do include substantial compliance with the conditions of the visa held, and the health and character criteria that apply to the 189 and 191 generally. Your own grant dates and conditions decide which stream you can use and when, so check them against the Home Affairs Hong Kong stream pages.

If You're Moving From Hong Kong Today

The route into the Hong Kong streams is still open to a new arrival with a Hong Kong or BN(O) passport: an employer-sponsored 482 granted now runs for five years, which is long enough to reach the four-year (189) or three-year regional (191) holding period. That needs an approved employer sponsor and a nomination in the first place, which is the hard part for most people.

The standard pathways are open as well, on the same terms as for applicants from anywhere: the points-tested subclass 189 or state-nominated 190, the regional subclass 491, employer sponsorship through the 482 and then the 186, the student-to-graduate 500 and 485 route, or a partner visa if it applies. These use the ordinary criteria, including the points test and skills assessment where the visa requires them.

BN(O) Passports and English Tests

Many Hong Kong residents hold a British National (Overseas) passport alongside their HKSAR passport. For the Hong Kong streams and the five-year 482, the Migration Regulations treat the two the same: a Hong Kong passport or a BN(O) passport qualifies.

English evidence is different. Where Home Affairs accepts a passport as evidence of English, it is framed around being a citizen of the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, New Zealand or the Republic of Ireland and holding that country's passport (the wording Home Affairs uses for functional English, September 2026). A BN(O) holder is a British national, not a British citizen, so plan on an approved English test for any visa that needs one. Which passport to use for a particular application is a question to settle before lodging.

Moving Money

Mainland China limits outbound personal foreign-exchange purchases under SAFE rules; Hong Kong has no equivalent quota on sending your own money overseas. Banks and transfer providers in both places still carry out their own identity and reporting checks on international transfers. See our China overview guide for the mainland comparison.

What the Move Costs

Visa application charges are indexed every 1 July. Base charges for the main applicant from 1 July 2026, as published by Home Affairs: subclass 189 (including the Hong Kong stream) $6,135; subclass 190 $6,140; subclass 482 $4,015 in every stream; subclass 500 (higher education) $2,500; subclass 485 $5,750. Holding a Hong Kong or BN(O) passport doesn't change the charge. Additional applicants in your family attract their own charges, listed in the Visa Pricing Estimator.

Beyond the visa charge, budget for English testing, skills assessment fees where your pathway needs one, health examinations, police certificates, document authentication, and settlement costs: bond, advance rent and living expenses before your first Australian pay. Our cost guide for moving from Hong Kong breaks these down further.

Getting Your Documents Ready

The Hague Apostille Convention applies to the Hong Kong SAR, and the Registrar of the High Court (with the Administrative Secretary and the High Court's deputy registrars) is the designated competent authority, according to the Hague Conference's register of authorities. The fee listed there is HK$125 per apostille. You will also need a police certificate for any visa with a character requirement, and any document not in English needs an English translation that meets Home Affairs' translation rules. Our Hong Kong document authentication guide covers the process step by step.

Where Hong Kong Migrants Settle

By state, the Australian Bureau of Statistics estimated about 49,700 Hong Kong-born residents in New South Wales, 26,320 in Victoria and 13,590 in Queensland at 30 June 2021, with smaller numbers elsewhere. If you're considering the 191 Hong Kong (Regional) stream, check where you plan to live against the designated regional area postcodes in LIN 22/022 first: the three years must be spent in a designated regional area, and most of the Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane metropolitan postcodes are not in it.

How a Migration Agent Helps

Eligibility for the Hong Kong streams turns on passport type, which visa you hold, when it was granted, how long you've held it and where you've lived. A MARA-registered migration agent, ideally one who works in Cantonese, can check your grant history against the regulations and say which stream, if any, fits. Migratio matches you with registered agents who quote a consultation fee up front.

Next Steps

If you hold a 457, 482 or 485 as a Hong Kong or BN(O) passport holder, write down its grant date and expiry date and count your time in Australia against the four-year (189) and three-year regional (191) holding periods.

If you're moving from Hong Kong now, the five-year 482 route needs an employer sponsor first; otherwise, look at the standard points-tested, employer-sponsored, student or partner pathways.

If your pathway needs a skills assessment or English test, start those early; each assessing authority publishes its own processing times.

Start document authentication through the High Court apostille service well before you need the documents.

For a read on which pathway fits your visa history, get matched with a MARA-registered migration agent through Migratio.

Related Migratio Resources

See our full visa options guide for Hong Kong residents, our cost breakdown for the move, our document authentication guide, and our guide to settling in Australia from Hong Kong. If you're a finance or IT professional, our occupation-specific guides cover the skills-assessment detail for those fields.

Is the Hong Kong stream within subclass 189 and 191 still open to new applicants?

Yes, as at the 1 July 2026 compilation of the Migration Regulations. What closed is the transitional extension of visas already held on 9 July 2020, which ran to 8 July 2025. A primary 482 granted to a Hong Kong or BN(O) passport holder still runs for five years, and a visa granted on or after 9 July 2020 with that five-year stay counts towards the 189 Hong Kong stream (after four years) or the 191 Hong Kong (Regional) stream (after three years in a designated regional area).

What were the 2020 and 2021 Hong Kong visa changes?

From 9 July 2020, 457, 482 and 485 visas already held by Hong Kong passport holders were extended to 8 July 2025, and new primary 482 visas for Hong Kong passport holders were given a five-year stay. The Migration Legislation Amendment (Hong Kong) Regulations 2021 extended the same treatment to BN(O) passport holders and created the Hong Kong streams of the subclass 189 and 191, open to applications from 5 March 2022.

Does a BN(O) passport give the same benefits as a UK passport for Australian immigration?

Not for English. Home Affairs frames its passport-based English evidence around citizens of the UK (and the US, Canada, New Zealand and Ireland) holding that country's passport, and a BN(O) holder is not a British citizen, so plan on an approved English test. For the Hong Kong streams and the five-year 482, though, a BN(O) passport counts the same as a Hong Kong passport.

Is there a capital transfer limit from Hong Kong to Australia?

Hong Kong has no quota on sending your own money overseas, unlike the annual limit on personal foreign-exchange purchases on the mainland under SAFE rules. Banks and transfer providers at both ends still run their own identity and reporting checks.

What should someone moving from Hong Kong today actually plan around?

Two sets of options. With an employer sponsor, a 482 granted to a Hong Kong or BN(O) passport holder runs five years and can lead to the 189 or 191 Hong Kong streams. Without one, the standard points-tested skilled visas (189/190/491), employer sponsorship (482 to 186), the student-to-graduate route (500 to 485) and partner visas apply, on the same criteria as for anyone else.

Where do Hong Kong migrants settle in Australia?

By state, mostly New South Wales, then Victoria and Queensland: the ABS estimated about 49,700, 26,320 and 13,590 Hong Kong-born residents respectively at 30 June 2021. If you're aiming for the 191 Hong Kong (Regional) stream, your three years have to be spent in a designated regional area, which leaves out most Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane metropolitan postcodes.