General program requirements

There are three investment streams for the BIIP in Australia. Each with increasing values and separate criteria:

AUD 2.5m investment through the Investor Stream;
AUD 5m investment through the Significant Investor Stream

Eligible investments

At least 20% in venture capital and growth private equity funds;
At least 30% in approved managed funds investing in listed, emerging companies;
A balancing investment of 50% in managed funds.

Program benefits

• Path to citizenship;
• Minimal physical presence requirements;
• Permits dual/multiple citizenship;
• Safety and security;
• Warm climate;
• Enhanced education opportunities;
• Enhanced business access to large economies;
• English as official language

Requirements to qualify for citizenship

The initial 188 BIIP visa is valid for 4 years and 3 months and there are varying criteria for obtaining permanent residency depending on the investor stream: 

Under the Investor stream, applicants are eligible for PR after four years;
Under the Signficant Investor stream, applicants are eligible for PR after three years;
Under the Premium Investor stream, applicants are eligible for PR after 1 year.

For the Investor and Significant Investor streams, though not for the Premium Investor stream, eligibility for permanent residency is contingent on having been physically present in Australia for at least two years and absent for no more than 90 days during any year.

In order to obtain citizenship, an applicant needs to have held their permanent residency for at least 12 months and had legal residency for 4 years in Australia. Mastery of English language the history of Australia are required.

Applications for this program may be directed to:

Department of Home Affairs 

Legislation upon which this program is based:

Migration Regulations 1994 Statutory Rules No. 268, 1994 Schedule 2 Subclass 188

See more statistics on this program, and dozens of others, in the IMI Data Center.