Australia Overhauls Skilled-Visa Queue With New Ministerial Direction 119
Work-and-Holiday Visa Caps Paused for 18 Countries After 32-Hour Application Surge
Student-Visa Priority List Tweaked: Pacific Applicants and TAFE Courses Advance
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Australia issues new Ministerial Direction 119, formally prioritising on-shore skilled visa applicants
Home Affairs has released Ministerial Direction 119, effective 25 July 2026, which rearranges the skilled-migration queue to give top priority to on-shore applicants—especially those in defence, construction, health and teaching. Offshore skilled-visa files are now the lowest priority, meaning companies that recruit talent directly from overseas could face substantial delays. Businesses are advised to lodge after the worker arrives in Australia or adjust project timelines accordingly.
Global Talent & National Innovation visas move under new Ministerial Direction 120
Home Affairs has published Ministerial Direction 120, creating a four-tier priority system for Global Talent/National Innovation (subclass 858) visas. On-shore nominees and award-winning applicants now top the queue, while equally qualified offshore candidates move to lower priority. The shift urges employers and founders to enter Australia before filing and aligns with the government’s plan to temper net overseas migration while keeping critical skills in country.
Student-visa priority list refreshed; postgraduate research and TAFE stay at the front
Home Affairs has refreshed its student-visa priorities page, reiterating that TAFE, ELICOS, school and postgraduate-research applicants remain Priority 1, while universities that have filled most of their overseas-student cap fall to lower tiers. The clarification follows the 25 per cent visa-fee increase and is expected to prolong processing for high-volume universities, prompting agents to re-route applicants through alternative pathways.