WA State Nomination for the 190 Visa: WASMOL, Employment Contracts, and the Graduate Stream

Western Australia received an allocation of 2,000 Subclass 190 places for the 2025–26 program year. The state's economy is heavily driven by resources, construction, and infrastructure, and its migration program is structured directly around those industrial priorities.

The primary differentiator for WA — the thing that catches applicants off guard most often — is the employment contract requirement. For many WA streams, you don't just need a job. You need a finalized, full-time employment contract in Western Australia before you can finalize your state nomination application.

How WA Selects Candidates

Western Australia operates through two primary streams: the General Stream and the Graduate Stream.

For most applicants, nomination comes via SkillSelect — WA officials search the database for eligible candidates and issue invitations. Applicants can also submit expressions of interest directly in some cases, but the foundation is always a valid SkillSelect EOI with WA designated as a preferred state.

WA runs invitation rounds on a rolling basis. The state prioritizes candidates who are already living and working in WA, followed by offshore or interstate candidates in critical shortage sectors. Points serve as a tiebreaker among equally eligible candidates, not as the primary ranking metric.

The General Stream: WASMOL Schedule 1 and 2

The Western Australian Skilled Migration Occupation List (WASMOL) governs which occupations qualify for the General Stream. It is divided into two schedules with different requirements:

WASMOL Schedule 1 — Health and Medical Occupations

This schedule targets health and medical roles. To qualify for a 190 nomination through Schedule 1, you need:

• At least one year of relevant work experience in your nominated occupation within the past ten years (Australian or overseas)
• A full-time employment contract in WA for a minimum of six months, at a minimum of 35 hours per week

The employment contract must be with a WA employer in a role closely related to your nominated occupation. An employment contract in another state does not satisfy this requirement.

WASMOL Schedule 2 — Broader Professional and Trade Occupations

Schedule 2 covers a broader range of professional, technical, and trade roles. Importantly, Schedule 2 eliminates the work experience requirement that Schedule 1 imposes. However, the six-month full-time employment contract in WA remains mandatory for Subclass 190 consideration.

For building and construction trades, WA makes an additional concession: the standard employment contract requirement is waived, and proof of an offer of work (rather than a finalized contract) may be sufficient for certain roles. WA has been aggressively prioritizing construction trades to support major infrastructure projects, and this flexibility reflects that priority.

The Graduate Stream

The Graduate Stream is specifically designed for international students who completed their qualifications at a WA institution. If you studied in Western Australia, this pathway removes both the work experience requirement and the employment contract requirement that apply to the General Stream.

To qualify:

• You must have completed a Certificate III qualification or higher
• The qualification must have been achieved through at least two academic years of full-time study at an accredited WA institution
• The qualification must have been completed (not just enrolled in) — partial completion doesn't count

For WA graduates, this is one of the cleanest pathways to a 190 nomination in the country because neither employment history nor a current job offer is required. The challenge is that many graduates who completed their studies in WA have since moved to Melbourne or Sydney for work, which disqualifies them from the Graduate Stream and forces them back to General Stream requirements.

How WA Ranks Invitation Rounds

WA's invitation process operates on a hierarchy:

1. Candidates who are currently living and working in WA receive absolute first priority
2. Offshore or interstate candidates targeting critical shortage sectors are considered next
3. Aggregate DHA points serve as the tiebreaker among candidates at similar levels

This means that two candidates with the same point score — one in Perth working full-time in their nominated occupation, one offshore in India — are not competing on equal terms. The WA-based candidate will be prioritized almost regardless of whether the offshore candidate has marginally higher points.

If you're offshore and targeting WA, the strongest pathway is typically Schedule 1 (health) or Schedule 2 (construction trades) where WA is actively recruiting internationally, rather than general professional roles where the local candidate pool is highly competitive.

The Practical Challenge of the Contract Requirement

The six-month employment contract requirement is what distinguishes WA's pathway from states like NSW or Victoria. NSW simply requires six months of residency — you don't need a current employment contract. Victoria prioritizes earnings, not contract documents.

For WA, the process often looks like this: secure a job offer, get a formal employment contract (minimum 35 hours per week, minimum six months duration), then finalize your state nomination application. This effectively makes the WA nomination pathway contingent on a successful job search in Western Australia.

Offshore applicants targeting WA need to either:

• Secure a job offer from a WA employer remotely (feasible for technical roles where WA companies recruit internationally)
• Relocate to WA on a bridging or temporary visa to secure local employment before applying for nomination

Neither path is simple, but for applicants in construction, mining engineering, or health roles, WA's large allocation and genuine skill shortages make the effort worthwhile.

For a complete breakdown of WA's WASMOL occupation lists, the specific industries where WA runs international recruitment rounds, and how WA's requirements compare against the other seven states for your specific situation, the Australia Skilled Nominated Visa (190) Guide provides the state-by-state comparison framework you need before committing to any single jurisdiction.