Insights
Latest data for the three major skilled migration categories, as at end of March (header image). Raw data in Figures 4–5.Overall summary:Header image189 — primarily processing September 2025 lodgements New 189 lodgements are now negligible. Monthly grants are holding at 2,000+, and the backlog has fallen below 8,000. Remaining quota stands at 3,200+. At the Department’s current processing pace, the
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In 2026, with skilled-migration cut-offs climbing ever higher and state-nomination thresholds rising, more and more people are turning to partner migration. It really is a more stable pathway to PR — but the assessment is becoming stricter than ever. 01 The core trend: the Department now “digs deep” into the details of your life Before: marriage certificate + joint account +
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In Australia’s points-based skilled migration today, the hardest part isn’t reaching a high score — it’s that invitations for many common occupations are becoming scarcer and scarcer. Accounting and auditing go without saying; the three big IT favourites are also a disaster zone; and some engineering occupations too… no invitation no matter how high your score — that is the
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Lately a lot of you have been asking us about this: you finished your course early and have already returned home — or simply went home with plans for a short trip abroad — and then received an email from the Department of Home Affairs saying there is an important written notice about your visa that needs to be sent
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In Australia’s new financial year the permanent migration quota holds steady at 185,000, while the employer-sponsored Subclass 186 category has been allocated as many as 58,000 places — more than 14,000 additional places, a remarkable increase. Recently, many offshore applicants have wanted to understand whether, following this reform, they can seize this window of opportunity. At the same time, many
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Only yesterday we noted that the ART President had said everything was ready and that all that remained was formal authorisation from the Department of Home Affairs; today, we have seen the legislation. From 1 June, ART hearings for student visas will be abolished, with decisions made directly on the documentary materials. This covers several of the main common refusal
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This morning we again saw an exclusive update from industry heavyweight Iscah (shown below the feature image). It’s brief, but the main point is that the new points-based system reform is expected to officially take effect from March 2027! It will place greater weight on educational background, high-level skills and age The source of this information is Home Affairs Australia’s
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The FY26-27 permanent residency quota allocation has come with numerous adjustments. A couple of days ago we used the new quotas to work out the new waiting times for parent migration — see the details here: lodging your parent migration application one month later now means waiting an extra year… But the changes and adjustments are actually far greater for
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Breaking Down the Key New Rules Fast-Tracking ART Student Visa Appeals Today let’s talk about some ART updates. As you may know, each year after the federal Budget the Senate invites the heads of the various departments to attend hearings — to answer questions, report on their work and outline their plans for the future. The day before yesterday, the
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Australia’s Latest Visa Processing Update for May: The Overall Picture On 25 May, the Department updated its recent visa processing speeds. With the financial year about to enter its final month, this year differs from previous years: because the PR quota was confirmed relatively late, the Department did not push hard early in the financial year when the quota was
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