Moving to Australia from Hong Kong: What's Still Open in 2026
A 2020 transitional visa extension for Hong Kong and BN(O) passport holders ended on 8 July 2025 — but the five-year 482 and the Hong Kong streams of the 189 and 191 are still in the Migration Regulations. Covers charges, settlement stats and document authentication. Figures as at September 2026.
Read the full guide, with official sources →
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Chapters
- 0:00 Hong Kong visas:
- 0:14 What ended vs
- 0:32 482 visa: still
- 0:46 Visa charges from
- 1:12 Where Hong Kong
- 1:27 Still in the
- 1:39 Apostille fee:
- 2:03 What decides your
- 2:14 Common mistake:
- 2:27 Where to read more
Transcript
Hong Kong and BN(O) passport holders still get a five-year visa and two fast tracks to permanent residence — but a related visa extension ended in 2025.
The part that ended: a transitional extension of 457, 482 and 485 visas already held on 9 July 2020, which ran out on 8 July 2025. The five-year 482 and the Hong Kong streams did not end.
A primary subclass 482 granted to a Hong Kong or BN(O) passport holder still runs for five years — an arrangement that started 9 July 2020 and remains in the Migration Regulations today.
From 1 July 2026, base charges are: subclass 189, including the Hong Kong stream, $6,135; subclass 190, $6,140; subclass 482, $4,015 in every stream; subclass 500, $2,500; and subclass 485, $5,750.
The ABS estimated about 49,700 Hong Kong-born residents in New South Wales, 26,320 in Victoria and 13,590 in Queensland, all as at 30 June 2021.
As at 1 July 2026, the Migration Regulations still say a primary 482 granted to a Hong Kong or BN(O) passport holder runs for five years.
Hong Kong documents use the Apostille Convention too — the Registrar of the High Court charges HK$125 per apostille.
A BN(O) passport isn't a British citizen's passport. The passport route to English evidence covers UK, US, Canadian, New Zealand and Irish citizens only — plan on an approved test instead.
Which pathway fits depends on which visa you hold, its grant date, how long you've held it, and where you've lived — a MARA-registered migration agent can check that against the regulations.
The mistake to avoid: assuming the whole Hong Kong arrangement ended in 2025. Only the transitional extension did — the five-year 482 and the Hong Kong streams are still there.
The full guide, with the official sources, is on migratio.com.au. The link is in the description. And if you'd like to talk it through, you can compare registered migration agents there, and see their fees before you book anything.
Short versions
- What actually ended in 2025 (0:41)
- The 482 visa that lasts five years (0:32)
- Where Hong Kong migrants actually settle (0:36)
Talk it through with a registered agent
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