Registered Nurse in Western Australia: State Nomination, Registration and Which Visas Reach It

What WA's own occupation search says about Registered Nurse

Querying WA Migration Services' occupation search for each Registered Nurse code — 254412 through 254425, plus 254499 Registered Nurses nec and 411411 Enrolled Nurse — returns the same pattern for every one of them: status "Available", Priority Occupation "Yes", Regional WA only "No", minimum 65 points, and BOTH the subclass 190 and 491 marked "Yes". Each code appears twice in the results — once under the "Graduate" stream and once under "General – WASMOL Schedule 1" — meaning both a recent WA graduate and a general applicant nominating the occupation can use it, on the same terms.

The "Regional WA only: No" flag is the detail worth pausing on. Some occupations on WA's list are restricted to positions genuinely located in regional WA; Registered Nurse is not one of them — it's available on the general statewide list. That statewide availability then interacts with a separate, federal fact: the whole of Western Australia, including Perth, is a designated regional area for subclass 491 purposes (a federal migration designation, not a WA state policy choice), so a Perth-based Registered Nurse nomination and a regional-WA one both reach the subclass 491 the same way — there's no Perth carve-out the way Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane are excluded from "regional" in their own states.

What "Priority Occupation" and the points settings mean in practice

WA's own search flags nursing a Priority Occupation across every code checked, on both streams, and a minimum-points setting of 65 — the same as the Department of Home Affairs' own points test pass mark. State nomination itself adds points on top: WA's general skilled migration criteria add 5 points to the federal points test for a subclass 190 nomination and 15 points for a subclass 491 nomination, on top of whatever the applicant's underlying points score already is.

WA's own general eligibility criteria layered on top of list membership: a valid Expression of Interest in SkillSelect naming Western Australia, at least Competent English (evidenced by an approved test or an exempt-country passport — UK, Canada, New Zealand, USA or Ireland), and a commitment to live and work in WA for at least 2 years after the visa is granted. These conditions are WA's general process, not something specific to nursing, but they're the frame the priority-occupation flag sits inside.

Registration: the same national process as everywhere else

As in every state, being on WA's occupation list has nothing to do with professional registration. To practise as a Registered Nurse in WA you need registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia through AHPRA — the same national scheme covered on Migratio's ANMAC and NMBA assessment guide. WA nomination and NMBA registration are assessed by entirely separate bodies against entirely separate criteria, and clearing one says nothing about the other.

Which visas actually reach this occupation

Beyond WA's own 190/491 nomination, the specific Registered Nurse codes sit on the national MLTSSL and CSOL, which reaches the points-tested subclass 189 with no state nomination at all, the Skills in Demand subclass 482 and its subclass 186 permanent-residence follow-on, the Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional subclass 494, the Temporary Graduate subclass 485, and the subclass 407 Training visa. See /occupations/254499-registered-nurses-nec for the occupation entity page and /occupations/visa/190 or /occupations/visa/491 for the full reverse index of occupations each visa currently reaches.

Pay and demand: what this page does and doesn't claim

WA Health's own remuneration pages and the WA branch of the nursing union are not publicly reachable — a WA Country Health PDF link returned a generic error page rather than the actual document, and the union's own domain failed to connect entirely — so no WA-specific pay figure is stated here. Migratio's Registered Nurse: Sydney vs Melbourne pay article carries verified NSW and Victorian figures with their own effective dates as the nearest sourced comparison available.

Jobs and Skills Australia's Internet Vacancy Index and Occupation Shortage List — the government's own vacancy data — are not covered here, so this page makes no demand or shortage claim for nursing in WA specifically. The "Priority Occupation" flag above is WA's own nomination-list designation, not a vacancy count, and is reported as exactly that.

Migratio's directory of agents specialising in skilled visas covers Western Australia at /agents/skilled-visa/wa, and the full WA directory is at /agents/in/wa.

Is Registered Nurse a priority occupation in Western Australia?

Yes. WA Migration Services' own occupation search flags every Registered Nurse code checked — including the general "nec" code and Enrolled Nurse — as a Priority Occupation on both the Graduate and General WASMOL Schedule 1 streams, available statewide with no regional-only restriction.

Do I need to live in regional WA to be nominated as a nurse?

No. WA's occupation search marks Registered Nurse "Regional WA only: No" — it's on the general statewide list. Separately, the whole of WA (Perth included) is a federally designated regional area for subclass 491 purposes, so a Perth-based nomination and a regional-WA one both reach the 491 the same way.

How many points do I need for WA nomination as a nurse?

WA's occupation search sets a minimum of 65 points for Registered Nurse on both the Graduate and General streams — the same as the Department of Home Affairs' own pass mark. State nomination then adds 5 points (subclass 190) or 15 points (subclass 491) on top of the applicant's underlying score.

Is English required for WA nomination?

At least Competent English, evidenced by an approved test result or a passport from an exempt country — the UK, Canada, New Zealand, the USA or Ireland.

Do I still need nursing registration if WA nominates me?

Yes. WA's occupation list and the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia's registration process are entirely separate. State nomination doesn't grant or imply registration, and registration doesn't grant or imply state nomination.

What visas can a Registered Nurse in WA actually use?

Beyond WA's own 190 and 491 nomination, Registered Nurse sits on the national skilled lists reaching the points-tested subclass 189, the Skills in Demand 482 (and its 186 permanent pathway), the Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional 494, the Temporary Graduate 485, and the 407 Training visa.

What does a Registered Nurse get paid in WA?

This page could not verify a current WA-specific figure — WA Health's remuneration pages and the WA nursing union's site are both not publicly reachable. See Migratio's Sydney vs Melbourne pay comparison for verified NSW and Victorian figures with their own effective dates.

Is nursing in high demand in WA?

This page makes no such claim. Check Jobs and Skills Australia's own vacancy data directly — "Priority Occupation" here describes WA's own nomination-list flag, not a vacancy or shortage figure.