Australian skilled migration: September visa grant data

How did Subclass 190 and 491 processing and backlogs change in September 2025?

In September, Subclass 190 and 491 processing shifted to three parallel tracks covering different lodgement periods. Grants increased slightly and backlogs continued to fall, with Subclass 190 dropping to just over 30,000 outstanding applications and Subclass 491 to more than 27,000.

By the end of September, the acceptance rate for the 21 August 2025 Subclass 189 round was 53.5%, but was not final; invitees have 60 days to lodge.

It’s the start of the month again, and the 189/190/491 FOI data drop has arrived right on schedule, with figures current up to 30 September 2025.

September at a glance

– The August 2025 round of 189 had an acceptance rate of around 50-55%

– 190 and 491 grants increased slightly

– 190 and 491 grants shifted from two-track to three-track processing

Source data

Our compiled comparison

Comparison of Subclass 189, 190 and 491 lodgements, grants and backlogs

189 —

Lodgements: 189 added 3,135 applications, of which 2,142 were primary applicants, which means that out of the 21 August invitation round, 3,687 invitations had been accepted and converted into visa lodgements by end of September — an acceptance rate of 53.5%.This figure is not yet final, as invitees have 60 days to lodge and some will still show up in the October data, though not many — so the final acceptance rate should land somewhere between 50-55%.

Grants: 189 grants dropped by 408, below the expected average pace. 189 is being processed in fairly strict lodgement-date order. The November 2024 backlog fell by 198, leaving under 300; December 2024 fell by 530, leaving around 1,800.At the actual average processing pace of the past three months, the November and December 2024 batches should be cleared within the next 2-3 months, barring surprises.

Subclass 189 grants and backlogs by lodgement month

Backlog: rose to 8,642 — whenever invitations go out the backlog grows, so this is relatively healthy.

Our internal data tells much the same story — the 189 grants coming through are from December 2024 lodgements.

190 —

Lodgements: State-nomination invitations began to recover slowly in September, with Canberra issuing a small invitation round — and this showed up in lodgements, with 190 new submissions rising by nearly 300.

Grants: broke past 2,000 — 247 more than August, but still 650 short of the expected average pace. And the processing order has thrown up a new wrinkle: the Department is now running three parallel tracks.

The long-standing June 2023 backlog had 252 grants processed, with 1,000+ still waiting at the end of September. From the second half of 2023 through April 2024, the Department worked through around 100 cases a month, then skipped over mid-to-late 2024 and picked up again with some cases from March to June 2025, with September’s peak surprisingly falling on May 2025 — 459 grants that month alone.

Looking at our internal data, We have seen a steady stream of 190 grants over the past 2-3 weeks. Most of our clients lodged in the second half of 2024, so when the October data lands, we may well see some of the mid-to-late 2024 gap filled in.

Subclass 190 processing data for different lodgement months

Backlog: continues to fall, now down to just over 30,000.

491 —

Lodgements: 261 new lodgements, 349 fewer than August. At first glance, with 190 lodgements up and 491 lodgements down this much, it looks as if 491 had far fewer new invitations than 190 — but that is not really the case; rather, more 491 invitations were issued in the final stretch of the previous financial year, which is why August (in the new financial year) still had 610 new 491 lodgements. Once that wave of older invitations was used up, new 491 lodgements dropped off quickly.

Grants: 1,545 visas granted — 335 more than the previous month, but still nearly 800 short of the expected average pace.Much like 190, 491 is now running along three parallel tracks.

June 2023 saw 189 cases processed and July 2023 saw 188, leaving 1,200+ and 1,100+ respectively still waiting. Through the second half of 2023 the Department worked through a few dozen cases each month, then volumes jumped in January and February 2024, September’s peak fell on February 2024, with 200 grants; the focus then jumped to early 2025.

Subclass 491 processing data for different lodgement months

Backlog: 491 is also on a steady downtrend — from 29,000 to 28,000 and now 27,000+ at the end of September.

The Department is likely prioritising more recent lodgements so that average wait times look better and applicants from different periods all have something to look forward to — but this does add an element of unfairness. On the positive side, the 190 and 491 backlogs are genuinely shrinking, which arguably achieves the outcome the federal government was after when it cut quotas or delayed releasing them.

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