Partner Visa backlog increases in Australia

David Coleman, Immigration Minister, has released the Migration Program Report for 2018-19. 

The key highlights from this report are: 

• The backlog for Partner Visa applications have reached 90,000 and is expected to grow even more in 2019-20 
• The backlog for Employer-sponsored Visas is fast decreasing 

The migration report also revealed that 6,209 New Zealand citizens received the Australian PR Visa. These visas, traditionally, have not been counted as part of the migration program, which makes the skilled stream appear larger than it actually is. 

84,260 PR Visas were granted to people who were already living in Australia. These visas were most likely counted as part of net overseas migration. 

Permanent migration program’s contribution to net overseas migration in Australia continues to decline. This is especially true after considering Australian PR holders who leave Australia permanently or long-term. 21,000 Australian PR Visa holders left Australia long-term in 2017-18. 

Partner migration 

Australia issued 39,918 Partner Visas in 2018-19. This was around the same number of visas issued in 2017-18 but 8,000 less than the number issued in 2016-17. 

The number of Partner Visa applications increased from 57,144 in 2017-18 to 61,884 in 2018-19. The backlog for Partner Visas has reached more than 90,000 at present. The number of visa places allocated for Partner Visas in 2019-2020 is 40,000. This means that the backlog for Partner Visas will increase further in the coming year. The wait time for Partner Visas is expected to exceed more than two years. 

Employer-sponsored migration 

Compared to the Partner Visa, the backlog for Employer-sponsored Visas has dropped significantly. The backlog has decreased from 54,673 by June 2018 to 29,513 by June 2019. The application rate has dropped from 71,327 in 2016-17 to 51,969 in 2017-18 to 32,385 in 2018-19. 

The decline can be largely attributed to changes introduced by Mr Peter Dutton in early 2017 and implemented from early 2018. 

The rejection rate for Employer-sponsored Visas is around 16%. With this refusal rate, the Australian Govt. will struggle to meet the intake level of 40,000 for permanent Employer-sponsored visas in 2019-20. 

Y-Axis offers a wide range of visa services and products for aspiring overseas immigrants including Australia General Skilled Migration Program via RMA, Australia Skilled Regional Visa, Australia Temporary Skilled Work Visa, and Australia Temporary Graduate Visa Subclass 485. We work with Registered Migration Agents in Australia.   

If you are looking to Visit, Study, Work, Invest or Migrate to Australia, talk to Y-Axis, the World’s No.1 Immigration & Visa Consultant.   

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