What IELTS score do you need for NSW 190 or 491 nomination?

Home Affairs sets each level per skill, not as one overall score, and a state can only use these levels. Sources: Competent, Proficient and Superior English pages. On the 190 and 491 points tests Competent earns 0 points, Proficient 10 and Superior 20. A citizen holding a valid passport from Canada, New Zealand, the Republic of Ireland, the United Kingdom or the United States meets Competent English without a test, but needs a test score to claim Proficient or Superior.

NSW nomination itself adds 5 points on the 190 points table and 15 points on the 491 points table. Because NSW ranks within each occupation group, moving from Competent to Proficient English (10 more points, and a stronger English factor) is often the cheapest way to climb. If you hold a PTE score, our PTE to IELTS converter shows the IELTS equivalent.

Both the 190 and the 491 pages carried an important notice: applications are closed for the current program year because all available nomination places have been fully allocated. Applications already lodged will be finalised once Home Affairs allocates new places, and NSW says it is reviewing settings and eligibility for the next program year. On the 491 page, Pathways 1 and 3 were marked 'Closed to new applications'.

When NSW does invite, the page says rounds happen throughout the financial year with no announced dates, an invitation is valid for 14 days and is not extended, and an application is usually assessed within six weeks.

State programmes change between and during programme years, often at short notice. Check the NSW 190 page before you book a test or lodge an Expression of Interest. This guide restates official pages read on 14 October 2026; it is not migration advice.