Australia Changes Skilled Visa Processing Rules For 10+ Categories. What Applicants Should Know

Australia has changed the order in which it processes several skilled visa applications. The new system came into effect on September 19, 2026, replacing the processing priorities under Ministerial Direction 119.

The change is important for skilled visa applicants because some applications will now be moved ahead of others based on the sector they are linked to, where the applicant was when they applied and, for some temporary visas, the visa stream. It's important to note that this is a change in processing priority, not eligibility.

New Priority Rules For Skilled Visa Applications In Australia 

Under Ministerial Direction 121, covering temporary skilled visas, the highest priority is given to applications related to construction, healthcare, teaching, agriculture, aquaculture, fishing and resources.

Applications connected to Australia's law enforcement and defence interests are also included in this group.

The next priority is given to applications under the Specialist Skills stream of the Skills in Demand visa, subclass 482.

After these groups, the next line is chosen on the basis of where the applicant was when they lodged their application. Applications from people who were in Australia when they applied come before applications where the primary applicant was outside Australia.

For foreign applicants, their application must also not have been combined with another person's application at any time to fall into that priority category.

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All other applications come after these groups. The direction covers the Skills in Demand subclass 482 visa. It also refers to the former Temporary Skill Shortage subclass 482 visa, which was replaced by the Skills in Demand visa on December 7, 2024.

Rules For Permament Visa Applications

When it comes to permanent visas, applications linked to construction, healthcare, teaching, agriculture, aquaculture, fishing and resources, as well as Australia's law enforcement and defence interests, are given prirotiy while processing. 

They are followed by applications that were filed in Australia, and then come those \where the primary applicant was outside Australia when they applied. Of couse, it's important that the application wasn't combined with another person's application. All other application are processed after these groups.

While the new rules came in effect on September 19, they also apply to pending applications that were filed earlier.

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The Department of Home Affairs says processing times can also depend on whether the application contains all required documents, how quickly applicants respond to requests for information, health and character checks, national security checks, the complexity of the application and the number of applications being processed.

For permanent visas, the number of places available under the migration program is another deciding factor.