This week’s key updates:
- Migration reforms may affect student visa dependants and more onshore lodgements; applicants are advised to lodge promptly
- Tasmania issues its second invitation round of the financial year, with our clients receiving Subclass 491 invitations
- Monthly Subclass 191 backlog exceeds 4,000, and some applicants may have entered the bridging-visa stage
- This week’s visa grants, invitations and skills assessment results
1. Migration reforms may affect student visa dependants and more onshore lodgements—apply promptly
September is almost here. The final announcement of the migration reforms may even be delayed until mid-September, but a “delayed announcement” does not mean the policy changes are not coming.
The debate currently centres more on how far the reforms should tighten settings, which categories should be included, and how to reduce the impact on Australia’s economy and budget. The aim of continuing to reduce net overseas migration remains unchanged.
The Australian has recently reported that international student visas and their secondary applicants are also likely to be a major focus of this round of policy changes.
First, accompanying dependants under the Subclass 500 Student visa—that is, Subclass 500 secondary applicants, not Subclass 590—may face further restrictions.
The government may next impose stricter limits on most international students bringing family members with them or applying for them to join later, with possible exceptions for some courses such as research master’s programmes.
Media reports cite September as the planned implementation date. As it is already the end of August, this may mean the changes will take effect as soon as they are formally announced.
Second, renewing a Student visa onshore, changing courses during university study, and moving from higher education to a lower-level VET course may also face further restrictions.
These three practices are already being treated strictly. For example, holders of visas such as Subclass 485 and Subclass 600 can no longer lodge a Subclass 500 application onshore; Student visa applications involving a move from a higher- to a lower-level course are also assessed strictly; and refusal rates for VET-course applications lodged both onshore and offshore are very high. Further restrictions may follow.
Third, the Subclass 600 Visitor visa may be shortened from 12 months to six months.
This is the first time the Visitor visa has been mentioned “formally”. Even so, it is widely understood that, since July, both visa validity periods and the permitted length of each stay have been substantially shortened, affecting many parents of permanent residents and citizens.
The Australian says this may be implemented in November. It is unclear whether the policy will affect a broader group of people by then.
Fourth, migration law may be amended further to restrict onshore visa renewals or new visa applications.
The onshore visa options affected are likely to be those previously reported by many media outlets: restrictions on lodging family migration applications onshore, including partner, child and parent applications.
In terms of visa conditions, this may be reflected in the recent practice of mandatorily imposing condition 8503 on Visitor visas and others. Hopefully, no stricter measures will follow.
If the primary applicant already holds a Subclass 500 Student visa and their spouse or children are currently in China and have not yet been included in the application, or if two people in Australia hold different visas and the visa of one expires first, with that person later intending to join the other’s visa as an accompanying secondary applicant, they are advised to prepare as soon as possible.
Otherwise, by the time the visa is actually nearing expiry, it may no longer be possible to join the other application.
Anyone planning to apply for family migration onshore, such as Subclass 820 or Subclass 802, is also advised to act promptly.
2. Tasmania issues its second invitation round of the financial year, with our clients receiving Subclass 491 invitations
Tasmania has updated the ROI invitation data for the second round of this financial year, and several of our clients received Subclass 491 invitations in this round.
Only 20 Subclass 190 invitations were issued in this round: 17 Gold and three Green, with a minimum score of 544.
A total of 25 Subclass 491 invitations were issued, with a minimum score of 91.
The pool currently contains 906 Subclass 190 ROIs and 572 Subclass 491 ROIs.
For nomination allocations, 1,050 Subclass 190 places and 748 Subclass 491 places remain.
The current processing backlog is small, with only 15 applications in total.
Because a group of applications carried over in the pool from the previous financial year, together with the large number of Gold Pass applications at present, competition has pushed the Subclass 190 score relatively high. It is expected to ease later.
Our invitation results in this round include:
Lodged on 17 August 2026; invited for Subclass 491 on 27 August 2026; Orange Plus; 91 points.
Lodged on 26 August 2026; invited for Subclass 190 on 27 August 2026; Gold; 1,001 points.
3. Monthly Subclass 191 backlog exceeds 4,000—are some applicants already moving onto bridging visas?
This week, we obtained monthly FOI backlog data for Subclass 191 up to 30 June 2026.
The data show that the backlog is concentrated mainly in the first half of 2026 and the second half of 2025.
Subclass 191 applications are also now being processed along “two tracks”.
The total backlog from 2025 is now below 8,000 applications.
The Department of Home Affairs is progressing applications lodged in early 2026, with Subclass 191 grants now seen for applications lodged in February 2026, while also continuing to process applications lodged in late 2025.
Applicants who lodged in 2025 and have not yet received a grant should continue to wait patiently.
In addition, around 30 applications lodged before 30 June 2024 are still awaiting a decision.
This means some applicants may already have entered the bridging-visa stage.
A Subclass 491 visa is valid for five years, and holders can apply for Subclass 191 after holding it for three full years. Current waiting times for Subclass 191 are approximately six months to one year, so many applicants may not previously have expected to need a bridging visa after applying for Subclass 191.
A brief reminder: after lodging a Subclass 191 application, anyone who still holds a Subclass 491 visa must continue to comply with its conditions and live and work in a regional area.
By the end of the 2025–26 financial year, the Subclass 191 backlog had approached 26,000 applications.
The fastest-moving cases have now reached applications lodged in early February 2026.
4. This week’s visa grants, invitations and skills assessment results
State government invitations
Tasmania ROI invitations:
Lodged on 17 August 2026; invited for Subclass 491 on 27 August 2026; Orange Plus; 91 points.
Lodged on 26 August 2026; invited for Subclass 190 on 27 August 2026; Gold; 1,001 points.
Visa grants
Subclass 189 Skilled Independent visa:
Lodged on 5 June 2026; Subclass 189 granted on 24 August 2026.
Lodged on 8 May 2025; Subclass 189 granted on 26 August 2026.
Subclass 190 state nomination:
Lodged on 14 May 2025; granted on 25 August 2026; Welfare Worker.
Lodged on 2 June 2025; granted on 28 August 2026 with no further documents requested.
Lodged on 3 June 2025; granted on 28 August 2026 with no further documents requested.
Lodged on 12 May 2025; granted on 25 August 2026 with no further documents requested.
Lodged on 20 June 2025; Subclass 190 granted on 26 August 2026.
Subclass 491 regional state nomination:
None this week.
Subclass 191/887 regional permanent residency:
Lodged on 3 December 2025; granted on 22 August 2026.
Lodged on 3 February 2026; Subclass 191 granted on 22 August 2026.
Employer sponsorship
Lodged on 21 April 2026; Subclass 482 nomination and visa approved on 24 August 2026.
Lodged on 16 May 2025; Subclass 407 nomination approved on 23 August 2026; Arts Administrator or Manager.
Lodged on 23 November 2024; Subclass 186 DE nomination approved on 26 August 2026; Computer Network and Systems Engineer.
Lodged on 30 June 2026; Subclass 482 nomination approved on 28 August 2026.
Investor visa/GTI visa
None this week.
Partner migration
Lodged on 25 July 2025; Subclass 820 granted on 23 August 2026.
Lodged on 24 July 2024; Subclass 820 granted on 26 August 2026.
Parent visas
Lodged on 27 May 2026; Subclass 870 sponsorship approved on 27 August 2026 with no further documents requested.
Lodged on 15 December 2018; request for further documents issued on 26 May 2026; second VAC payment requested on 3 August 2026; Subclass 143 granted on 24 August 2026.
Child visas
None this week.
Subclass 485 Graduate Work visa
Lodged on 2 June 2026; Subclass 485 granted on 24 August 2026.
Subclass 500 Student visa
Lodged on 14 July 2026; granted on 23 August 2026.
Lodged on 4 August 2026; Subclass 500 granted on 24 August 2026.
Subclass 600 Visitor visa
Lodged on 29 July 2026; granted on 26 August 2026 for six months with condition 8503.
Lodged on 29 July 2026; granted on 25 August 2026 for six months with condition 8503.
Lodged on 30 July 2026; Subclass 600 granted on 26 August 2026.
Subclass 155 visa
Lodged on 19 August 2026; Subclass 155 granted on 24 August 2026.
Skills assessments
VETASSESS skills assessment, without priority processing:
Lodged on 11 August 2026; skills assessment issued on 24 August 2026.
EA skills assessment:
Lodged on 31 July 2026; Engineering Technologist skills assessment approved on 22 August 2026 through the CDR pathway.
