A new visa pilot has been developed between the Victorian Government and the Commonwealth Department of Home Affairs under the Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) Visa (subclass 188).

LaunchVic has been appointed as an Authorised Recommending Partner [ARP] by the Victorian Government along with Hatch Quarter, MAP and TRAM. ARPs can only provide letters of recommendation to startup owners that have completed or are nearing completion of one of their programs.

About the scheme

The 188e Visa seeks authentic, distinguished early-stage startup founders and co-founders who showcase proven capacity to be successful in the Victorian startup ecosystem. Some criteria the prospective applicant MUST meet include:

• Company is registered with ABN and ACN;
• Company has undertaken satisfactory market research and gap analysis for their product;
• The product/ service has commercial value;
• Any relevant IP has been protected / applied to be protected (if relevant) and is owned in part or full by the applicant or their co-founders/company (Trademark / Patent); and
• Holds shares in the company.

For LaunchVic to consider providing a letter of recommendation, we require the following information:

• Applicant Name, Address, email and phone number;
• Startup Name Address, email & phone number
• Name and completion date of LaunchVic-funded accelerator programs they have completed (or at least 75% thereof);
• Being active on findingstratups.launchvic.org;
• A summary of your existing connection to the Victorian startup ecosystem and alignment to the candidate profile by:
  • An outline of your startup.
  • Details of what you learnt through the LaunchVic funded accelerator program
  • An outline of your startup’s progress after the program (if applicable) including growth plans; and
  • Details of funding your startup has received to support your growth plans.

If you believe you fulfil these criteria please complete this form to be considered by LaunchVic.

At its absolute discretion LaunchVic may provide a letter of recommendation to the Victorian Government for them to invite you to apply under this visa class.

Further details on this visa including eligibility requirements are available on the Victorian Government’s Live in Melbourne website and Commonwealth Government’s Home Affairs website.

Please use the form below to submit your request