Early November brought several noteworthy changes to Australian migration policy and visa processing. This week’s highlights include the resumption of Subclass 143 parent migration processing, longer stays again being granted on Subclass 600 visitor visas for some parents of permanent residents, Queensland opening state nomination ROIs for the new financial year, the impending policy banning secondary applicants on Subclass 485 visas, and continued acceleration in the processing of skilled migration visas such as Subclass 189 and 190.
We have also compiled this week’s actual state nomination invitations, visa grants and skills assessment cases for applicants’ reference.
1. Subclass 143 processing resumes; 12-month stays return for some PR parents’ visitor visas
2. Queensland state nomination opens, with only one year of work experience required for offshore applicants
3. The ban on secondary applicants for Subclass 485 is set to take effect in the coming weeks
4. Official October Subclass 189 invitation report and faster processing across skilled migration
5. This week’s visa grants, invitations and skills assessment results
1. Subclass 143 processing resumes, and some PR parents again receive visitor visas allowing 12 months per visit
Early November brought several noteworthy changes to parent visas.
First, processing and grant arrangements for Subclass 600 visitor visas have begun to change. Recently, one of our family-visit clients received a one-year multiple-entry visa allowing three months per visit. This was followed by parents of permanent residents receiving Subclass 600 visitor visas valid for three years, allowing 12 months per visit.
For nearly four months before this, many visitor visas were generally being granted with around six months’ validity. The recent reappearance of cases with three years’ validity and 12 months per visit is therefore noteworthy.
However, five-year visas allowing 12 months per visit have not yet fully returned. We also have clients who have already received a Queue Letter but have currently been granted the three-year arrangement.
More significantly, Subclass 143 parent migration applications began showing renewed processing activity and requests for further documents on 6 November.
On the morning of 6 November, a Subclass 143 application lodged on 17 December 2018 received a request for medical examinations and an AFP check. Another application, lodged on 7 December 2018, subsequently received a request for Assurance of Support (AoS) documents.
Throughout 6 November, we received around 10 requests for further documents on Subclass 143 applications, mainly those lodged in early December 2018.
Previously, factors including end-of-financial-year allocations and processing priorities had left actual Subclass 143 processing at roughly late November 2018, with only a small number of early December 2018 applicants receiving requests for further documents.
The renewed concentration of requests for further documents indicates that processing in this category is moving forward again. Applicants who lodged around December 2018 should keep a close watch for requests from the Department of Home Affairs in the near term.
2. Queensland state nomination opens, with relaxed work experience requirements for offshore applicants
Queensland opened its ROI application portal for this financial year at around 11 am on 6 November. At the subsequent state government policy briefing, it provided further details of the 2026–27 state nomination requirements.
Queensland has received its official allocation for this financial year, but cannot disclose the number for now. This year’s aim is to hold one invitation round per month where possible; the date of the first round has not yet been confirmed.
One important change to note this financial year is that ROIs submitted last year must be resubmitted.
The occupation lists have changed little overall. Technician and draftsperson occupations have been added to the construction priority pathway, while the list for offshore applicants is mainly focused on healthcare and construction and engineering fields.
Overall, work experience requirements have been relaxed this year.
For Queensland’s onshore worker and graduate pathways, Subclass 190 applicants need to have accumulated nine months of work experience in the 12 months before submission, while Subclass 491 applicants need six months in the preceding nine months. The experience no longer needs to be continuous, and gaps are allowed.
Work experience from multiple jobs can be combined, and qualifying casual work is accepted, but applicants must meet the requirement of 20 hours per week. They must also still be working in Queensland when they submit their ROI.
For the graduate pathway, any Skill Level 1 job can count towards Queensland’s prerequisite work experience requirement. However, this is separate from the work experience used to claim skilled migration points in an EOI.
Work experience requirements for offshore applicants have been relaxed further. Applicants no longer need to remain continuously employed when submitting their ROI. They only need at least one year of work experience in the past three years, in their nominated occupation or a closely related occupation.
The onshore construction priority pathway still requires three months of prior work experience closely related to the nominated occupation. Applicants must also be working in a relevant job when submitting their ROI.
Income requirements for applicants in Queensland
This financial year, Queensland will use applicants’ taxable income for 2025–26 directly as the relevant income measure.
The state government explained that this provides a more complete picture of applicants’ economic contribution and can include non-wage income and income from multiple jobs.
Higher wages generally mean higher taxable income, which may offer some advantage. However, the state government also said it would try to avoid excluding applicants outright because of lower income.
How does Queensland select ROIs?
On the first morning after ROIs opened, Queensland had already received around 800 applications.
The state government explicitly stated that ROI submission timing itself does not affect the likelihood of an invitation, and each applicant can have only one ROI.
Queensland also does not select applicants directly by EOI points, instead considering a range of factors.
One factor explicitly identified by the state government is how remote the work location is. The more remote an applicant’s workplace, the greater the advantage they may have in receiving an invitation.
3. Ban on secondary applicants for Subclass 485 expected to take effect in the coming weeks
In an interview with Australian media this week, the Minister for Home Affairs said the policy banning secondary applicants on Subclass 485 Temporary Graduate visas was expected to take effect in the coming weeks and would be implemented within 2026.
With the final two weeks of the year usually falling within the holiday period, applicants who meet the current rules and plan to include a spouse in a Subclass 485 application should keep an eye on the implementation date.
Applicants who are eligible, wish to include their spouse as a secondary applicant on a Subclass 485 visa and are already in a position to lodge should prepare the relevant documents as soon as possible.
Regional graduates who meet the requirements for a second Subclass 485 visa can, in principle, apply immediately after receiving their first Subclass 485 visa. They do not need to wait until the first visa is close to expiry.
If they also wish to include a spouse in the second visa application, they need to plan ahead in light of the current policy and their individual circumstances.
Students expecting to complete their course at the end of the year are also advised to prepare the English test results and course completion documents needed for Subclass 485 early, to avoid a lack of time affecting their subsequent visa arrangements.
4. Official October Subclass 189 invitation report released as skilled migration processing continues to accelerate
Official EOI data for the October Subclass 189 round has been released, confirming a final total of 20,000 invitations. The official release also includes the EOI lodgement cut-off times for different occupations and points bands.
We had previously expected at least 15,000 invitations in this round; the final number reached 20,000.
Given the size of this round, another Subclass 189 round of the same scale is relatively unlikely in the short term. With skilled migration points-system reform currently expected to take effect next March, this round is very likely to be one of the last large rounds before the reform.
Meanwhile, the Department of Home Affairs again updated the pace of skilled visa processing this week in line with a new ministerial direction.
For points-tested skilled migration, offshore Subclass 189 grants have gradually begun to appear for non-priority occupations, with some mainly involving applicants invited previously. Processing of onshore priority occupations for Subclass 189 and 190 has reached around October 2026. Onshore priority occupations for Subclass 491 have also progressed, but allocation limits mean overall processing remains significantly slower than for Subclass 189 and 190.
For employer-sponsored visas, overall Subclass 482 processing has slowed, while both onshore and offshore Subclass 186 applications have seen some progress. Subclass 494 processing has slowed again.
For details of progress across the different priority levels, see our earlier analysis of skilled migration processing.
5. This week’s visa grants, invitations and skills assessment results
State government invitations
Tasmanian formal nomination
A Subclass 190 ROI was submitted on 27 October 2026 with a GREEN Pass and an ROI score of 331. A Nomination Invitation was received on 29 October, and the nomination application was lodged that day. An invitation to lodge the visa application was received on 4 November 2026. The occupation was Early Childhood (Pre-primary School) Teacher (241111); the applicant was onshore and single, with 65+5 points.
South Australian formal nominations
Lodged on 2 November 2026 and invited on 2 November: Subclass 190, 90 points, Early Childhood Teacher.
Lodged on 4 November 2026 and invited on 5 November: Subclass 491, 75 points, Chef.
Canberra formal nomination
An application lodged on 20 October 2026 received an ACT Subclass 190 invitation on 3 November 2026. The occupation was Web Administrator.
Subclass 189 skilled independent migration
A Food Technologist (234212) application lodged on 11 June 2026 was granted on 3 November 2026. The applicant was onshore and single, with 90 points.
An Engineering Technologist (233914) application lodged on 12 June 2026 was granted on 3 November 2026. The applicant was onshore with a spouse, with 100 points.
An onshore Subclass 189 Solicitor application lodged on 12 June 2026 was granted on 3 November 2026.
Another Subclass 189 application, lodged on 9 June 2026, was granted on 30 October 2026.
Subclass 190 state nomination
A Mechanical Engineer (233512) application lodged on 13 May 2026 was granted on 5 November 2026. The applicant was onshore and single, with 90+5 points.
An application lodged on 2 March 2026 was granted on 3 November 2026.
An onshore ACT Subclass 190 ICT Systems Test Engineer application lodged on 2 June 2025 was granted on 4 November 2026.
An onshore ACT Subclass 190 Systems Administrator application lodged on 12 November 2025 was granted on 4 November 2026.
An onshore ACT Subclass 190 Civil Engineering Draftsperson application lodged on 12 June 2026 was granted on 5 November 2026.
An onshore ACT Subclass 190 Engineering Professionals nec application lodged on 18 May 2026 was granted on 5 November 2026.
Subclass 491 regional state nomination
A Subclass 491 application lodged in September 2026 was granted on 6 November 2026.
Subclass 191 and 887 regional permanent residency
A Subclass 191 application lodged on 2 March 2026 was granted on 31 October 2026.
A Subclass 191 application lodged on 17 March 2026 was granted on 31 October 2026.
A Subclass 191 application lodged on 13 March 2026 was granted on 31 October 2026.
Another Subclass 191 application, lodged on 12 March 2026, was granted on 26 October 2026.
Employer-sponsored migration
A Subclass 482 application lodged on 21 October 2026 was granted on 5 November 2026.
A Subclass 482 employer sponsorship application lodged on 13 October 2026 was approved on 27 October 2026.
Investment visas and GTI
There were no new investment visa or GTI cases this week.
Partner migration
A Subclass 820 application lodged on 28 June 2024 was granted Subclass 820 on 11 August 2025, followed by Subclass 801 on 4 November 2026.
Another Subclass 820 application lodged on 28 June 2024 was granted Subclass 820 on 15 January 2025, followed by Subclass 801 on 4 November 2026.
A Subclass 820 application lodged on 13 June 2024 was granted Subclass 820 on 4 August 2025, followed by Subclass 801 on 5 November 2026.
A Subclass 820 application lodged on 6 June 2024 was granted both Subclass 820 and 801 on 29 October 2026.
A Subclass 309 application lodged on 24 July 2025 was granted on 26 October 2026.
Parent visas
A Subclass 870 Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa application lodged on 7 August 2026 was granted on 4 November 2026.
Child visas
A Subclass 802 application lodged on 9 April 2025 was granted on 2 November 2026.
Subclass 485 Temporary Graduate visas
There were no new Subclass 485 grants this week.
Subclass 500 student visas
Several offshore Subclass 500 student visas were granted quickly this week, including applications lodged on 30 October, 31 October and 1 November 2026. Some were granted within days of lodgement.
An onshore Subclass 500 application lodged on 2 March 2026 was also granted on 4 November 2026; an onshore higher education application lodged on 18 September 2026 was granted on 28 October 2026; and an offshore application lodged on 9 October 2026 was granted on 26 October 2026.
Subclass 600 visitor visas
There continued to be many Subclass 600 visitor visa grants this week, including applications lodged on 15 October, 29 October and 2 November 2026.
Several other applications lodged in mid-to-late October were granted between 24 and 30 October, including both onshore and offshore applications.
Skills assessments
VETASSESS
A skills assessment application lodged on 21 May 2026 completed Chinese qualifications verification on 26 October 2026.
A VETASSESS application lodged on 8 October 2026 received its result on 25 October 2026.
EA
An Electronics Engineer EA skills assessment application lodged on 9 October 2026 passed on 2 November 2026.
