Visa Processing in Recent Years:

“A Love–Hate Relationship”

Not so long ago, visa processing was a “simple”, straightforward affair — you lodged and waited, responded to requests for additional documents, prepared for potential phone interviews, and within a few months a migration visa would come through. Processing followed the order of lodgement, and temporary visas like the 485/500/600 were typically decided within a month.

But roughly three years ago, things changed —

Visa processing became a source of endless anxiety.The anxiety didn’t stem from fear of refusal, but from going months — ten, even twenty months —without receivingany news on your application.

Visa processing became a guessing game — everyone was scouring the internet for data —because no one could get answers from the Department of Home Affairs, and there was no way to move a case officer to action.

Visa processing became completely unpredictable.Two applications in the same category, lodged the same week — one decided in six months, the other in eighteen. A classmate in the same field had their visa granted a year ago, while another hadn’t received even a single request for additional documents.

Visa processing devolved into a law-of-the-jungle situation.A handful of COVID-critical occupations versus the vast majority of non-critical ones — the gap was not measured in days or months, but in years. Non-COVID-critical occupationapplicants who lodged in late 2019 (especially those offshore) were still waiting, while COVID-critical applicants who lodged in early 2022 had already been granted.

The Previous Morrison Government

Where to begin

The pandemic was certainly one cause of the delays and chaos, and some lucky applicants were granted faster than expected.But it is an undeniable fact that migration visa processing was slowing down at least a year before COVID hit.During the pandemic, the government claimed it was prioritising onshore applications due to border closures —yet, without any surge in new applications, the backlog kept growing in most categories, and the number of people onshore on bridging visas broke new monthly records. That, too, is an undeniable fact.

The latest visa backlog figures obtained from Department records (as at early April this year):

– The combined backlog for the three most popular skilled migration pathways — Subclass 189 (points-tested) + 190 + 491 — exceeds46,000 applications

– Subclass 491, a category that only existed from late 2019 with most applicants onshore, saw its backlog grow from a few thousand at inception tonearly 24,000 by early April — the highest of the three categories

– The number of people in Australia holding abridging visa, either awaiting a visa decision or an appeal outcome, isapproaching 400,000

– For Subclass 489 holders and those transitioning to Subclass 887,there has been almost no progress whatsoever

For full details, see:Latest Visa Backlog! By Early April: Subclass 189 Points-Tested Nearly Cleared, Subclass 491 & 190 Both Exceed 20,000, and Subclass 887 Figures Are Staggering…

Employer-sponsored and investor migration has also been processed more and more slowly — otherwise employers would not have been so deeply frustrated.From the Department’s actual processing record, the government’s claimed support was nowhere to be seen.

A New Government, A New Minister

Carries High Hopes

Australia’s borders have been progressively reopening for nearly six months. Many businesses and individuals wanting to rebuild, recover, and grow found themselves held back by visa delays.Public frustration over Australian visa processing had reached a boiling point.

Applicants had long since run out of patience, But no matter how many times the concern was raised, the previous government merely updated its website with figures that were, frankly, [for reference only]. There was never any large-scale rapid clearance of the backlog — things improved slightly, then slipped back.

Gradually, employers too lost patience.Since the new government took office, these calls have not let up:

– Skilled migration visas chronically unresolved — NSW and Victoria’s Premiers alarmed! Both pledged federal cooperation to speed up grants! “Migration must be prioritised now!” — a chorus across multiple industries.

– “Offer permanent residency, support settlement!” Federal minister to discuss attracting migrants with the Immigration Minister!

–The visa grant problem again — industry pleads for visitor visas to be processed faster… “People have given up and gone elsewhere!” PR/citizen parent Subclass 600 visas still granted within about a month!

In short: please, just get on with it!

Finally — the new Minister for Immigration has spoken!

Reducing visa processing times is now the Department’s priority (especially for skilled migration)

Speaking to The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, the Minister said:

“For years, communities and the former Liberal government have been raising the issue of abnormal delays in visa application processing.So resolving the outstanding visa backlog is now a priority for the Australian Government. I have raised my concerns about the current state of visa processing with the Department, and we will work to ensure applications are processed in a timely manner.””

While the Minister did not specify which visa categories were in focus, the context of the article was primarilyresponding to skills shortages — so the emphasis is primarily on skilled migration.

We have waited a long time for a direct statement like this from the Minister for Immigration. There have been some modest signs of improvement in backlog processing recently — we hope this momentum continues.

Clearing the Visa Backlog

A Long Road Ahead

Commentators have noted that clearing the visa backlog is a massive undertaking. Temporary visa processing is also slow, every category wants faster decisions, and each has its own lobbying constituency.The new government therefore needs to establish the true scale of the backlog, and determine whether the solution requires changes to the system’s design, how the rules are administered, or the Department’s resources — or all three.

The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry CEO has also argued that the governmentneeds more resourcesto reduce the protracted visa processing wait times.

Our Advice

For most straightforward applications, the Department typically requestspolice clearances and a medical examination. Given the lengthy wait times, there is also apossibility of being asked to provide updated partner relationship evidence. Some of our past clients have also been asked by the Department tosubmit an updated Form 80. We therefore recommend that applicants who lodged in 2019 or 2020 consider the following:

1. You can proactively prepare updated police clearances.If you obtained a Chinese police clearance and have since remained continuously in Australia without leaving, you only need to update your Australian police check — and vice versa. Australian police checks are now available electronically; the application process is largely unchanged and results are delivered by email quickly.

2. A significant number of our past clients were asked by the Department to submit an updated Form 80 (though not all of them). Since Form 80 has been updated in recent years and the Department requires current details of your residential and employment history, please prepare in advance by accurately recalling this information so you can complete the form promptly when asked.

3. If your application includes a partner, you can prepare or refresh standard partner relationship evidence in advance.After such a long wait, the case officer simply needs to confirm the relationship is genuine and continuing — there is no need to stress about this.

4. Medical examinations are valid for one year but cannot be renewed proactively. When a case officer contacts you requesting additional documents, book your medical appointment immediately —nowas appointment slots are in quite high demand at the moment.

The news is improving step by step.

We wish everyone a prompt request for additional documents —

and ultimately, a swift and successful visa grant!

This Week’s Feifan English Update

Study & Migration Resource Recommendations

Click the image to read the full article

Previous Recommendations

The Complete Guide to Recognising Work Experience in VET Skills Assessments!

NSW Issues Subclass 190, South Australia to Close Applications, Two Ministers to Discuss Attracting Migrants!

NSW and Victoria Premiers Pledge Federal Cooperation to Accelerate Visa Grants! Migration Must Be Prioritised!

Offshore Applicants Who Can Apply Directly for Subclass 190 Permanent Residency — An Even Better Option!

Migration Information & Q&A Community Group

Step 1: Press and hold to add our customer service contact

Step 2: Once added, please

Attention！Verify you have found a genuinegenuineNewstars consultant!

Study & Migration Consultations by City

↓↓ Tap our consultants ↓↓

Sydney

Melbourne

Canberra

Brisbane

Adelaide

Hobart

Beijing

Guangzhou

Shenyang

Scan to follow the Newstars official WeChat account

Reply in the WeChat official accountwith any of the following numbers or keywords (not via the article comment section), toreceive the most up-to-date and professional migration news!Reply [A] to view the full index (all topics included)!

Reply: 0000 → View the 16 Nov policy update (Subclass 491 + skilled migration points)

Reply: 000 → Latest visa/citizenship processing wait times

Reply: 001 → Latest Subclass 189 EOI official report

Reply: 002 → Subclass 189 Skilled Independent migration

Reply: 003 → Subclass 190 state nomination by state

Reply: 004 → Subclass 489 regional state nomination

Reply: 005 → International student business and investor migration

Reply: 006 → Parent migration visa

Reply: 007 → Employer-sponsored visa

Reply: 008 → Subclass 485 Graduate Work visa

Reply: 009 → Partner migration / points boost

Reply: 010 → Work experience points

Reply: 011 → PY points

Reply: 012 → NAATI/CCL points

Reply: 013 → Regional area points

Reply: 014 → Visitor / family visit visa

Reply: 015 → Working holiday visa

Reply: 016 → TAFE study

Reply: 017 → Australian international students migrating to Canada

Reply: 018 → Subclass 407 Training visa

Reply: 019 → Subclass 408 Temporary Activity visa

Reply: 020 → New Zealand migration

Your visa is expiring soon but you still haven’t received an invitation — what are your options?Click “original link”to explore all your options!

Finally! Immigration Minister Acknowledges: Priority Processing of Visa Application Backlog Ordered, Processing Times to Be Reduced — Especially for Skilled Migration!

The Complete Guide to Recognising Work Experience in VET Skills Assessments!

NSW Issues Subclass 190, South Australia to Close Applications, Two Ministers to Discuss Attracting Migrants!

NSW and Victoria Premiers Pledge Federal Cooperation to Accelerate Visa Grants! Migration Must Be Prioritised!

Offshore Applicants Who Can Apply Directly for Subclass 190 Permanent Residency — An Even Better Option!

Quick Links

Popular Services

Our Branding Offices

Follow Us