Home Affairs and Immigration Minister Tony Burke used his National Press Club address on Citizenship Day to announce a package of migration reforms grouped under three headings: who arrives, who stays and who leaves. The Minister said the work behind these measures began last year and was largely finalised by February 2026, and that the measures announced today are those the Government can implement without new legislation, relying on ministerial directions and regulation changes while it continues to seek Coalition support for the rest.

Below is a summary of the key changes and what they are likely to mean for visa applicants, visa holders and employers. Implementation dates and the legislative instruments are still to be released, so treat this as an early guide rather than final advice.

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The context: numbers are falling, but not evenly

ABS data released the same morning put net overseas migration at 292,100 for the year to March 2026, down from 309,500 the year before, with the population growing by 392,700 to 27.9 million. The Minister said this is now 47% below the post-pandemic peak and tracking slightly under the Budget forecast. The Government is targeting net overseas migration of 245,000 in 2026-27 and 225,000 a year from 2027-28.

He rejected the idea that any visa class is irrelevant to the overall numbers, pointing out that working holiday makers alone contributed 48,000 to net overseas migration last year. Asked what would happen if deeper cuts were made, he said it “would trash our medical system, trash our aged care system and not get the construction workers in to build the homes that would actually help with the problem”.

He also addressed the claim that Australia brings in more yoga teachers than construction workers: just under 15,000 construction workers arrived last financial year (triple the earlier figure), and no yoga teachers have been granted visas under the current Government.

The three problems the reforms are aimed at are the largely demand-driven design of the program, “visa hopping” by people with no realistic pathway to permanent residence, and the need to give housing supply time to catch up.

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Who arrives

New skilled points test. The points test has been redesigned with Treasury input to better target economic benefit from the permanent skilled program. A notable new feature is the ability to give particular skills an uplift. On implementation, people skilled in the housing and construction trades will receive broadly the same points as if they held a university-level qualification. If you are considering a subclass 189, 190 or 491 application, this could change your score significantly. See our current skilled visa points test table and points calculator; we will update both once the new test is published.

Processing priorities (Ministerial Direction 119). A new Ministerial Direction will replace the current direction that applies near-identical priority rules to both permanent and temporary programs. Agriculture, fisheries and resources will be added to the priority list, joining construction, teaching and healthcare, which are already prioritised. Employers in these sectors sponsoring workers on 482 Skills in Demand or 186 visas should see faster processing.

Working holiday maker processing. Normal processing speed will be restored for first working holiday visa applications from countries with a regional work requirement. UK applications, which have no regional requirement under the free trade agreement, will continue to be processed slowly. The Minister noted the number of UK backpackers in Australia has grown from roughly 17,000 at the time the agreement was signed to just under 80,000 today.

No family members for new student and graduate visas. International students and graduate visa applicants will no longer be able to attach partners or dependent children to new applications. Exceptions will apply for Pacific and ASEAN nationals and for certain courses such as PhDs. Families already in Australia on existing visas are not affected and will stay as they are until they leave or become eligible for a permanent visa. If you are planning to study in Australia with your family, this is the most significant change in the package. See our Student visa (subclass 500) and Graduate Temporary 485 visa pages.

The Minister also flagged an expression of interest system to manage overall demand, but said this requires legislation and cannot proceed at this stage.

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Who stays

Ballot for second and third working holiday visas. The regional work requirements remain unchanged (88 days for year two, six months for year three), but meeting them will now only qualify you to enter a ballot. Year two will be capped at 45,000 places, compared with 57,000 people who qualified last year. Year three will be cut sharply to 5,000 places, down from around 31,000. Anyone currently on a first or second working holiday visa should factor this uncertainty into their plans. Read more on the Working Holiday visa (subclass 417) and Work and Holiday visa (subclass 462).

No further stay condition on visitor visas. Future visitor visas will carry a “no further stay” condition (8503), with an exception for protection applications. This closes the pathway where a partner enters on a visitor visa, applies onshore and remains on a bridging visa while an offshore partner applicant waits years. The Minister argued this double standard is a major reason the Department has refused genuine visitor visas for weddings and family events. Because visitors will now have to leave when their visa expires, it should be easier to satisfy the genuine temporary entrant requirement, and the Minister said this should make it easier to grant those visas, including for partners visiting for extended periods while an offshore partner visa is processed. Visitor visas already granted, and people already in Australia on a visitor visa, are not affected.

For couples, the practical effect is that the onshore Partner visa (820/801) will no longer be accessible to someone who entered as a visitor once the condition applies. The offshore 309/100 route becomes the expected pathway. When asked about long partner visa processing times, the Minister did not indicate any plans to address them. See our Partner visa and Visitor visa (subclass 600) pages.

Student visa progression. The Minister distinguished three situations. A 12-month extension for illness or provider closure is unchanged. A transfer at the same institution or same level will require a new visa application so its legitimacy can be tested, but remains available. Progression after completing a course will be limited to moving up the qualification scale only. Moving from a bachelor degree to a master’s is fine; hopping across or down to cheaper providers to extend a stay will not be. Transfers to lower-tier providers already require a new visa application under condition 8202, so this is largely a tightening of existing policy rather than a new rule. See Student visas: changing courses and our earlier article on ending visa hopping.

Non-genuine protection claims. The Minister said applicants from countries with refusal rates above 85% make up 80% of the protection caseload and that people are being advised to lodge claims purely to remain in Australia through the review and court process. He wants to address this but confirmed it requires legislation. Asked whether refused protection visa applicants would lose their work rights, he said the idea had never been raised or discussed and is not on the Government’s agenda.

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Who leaves

Migration agent code of conduct. The code will be changed so that registered migration agents who encourage non-meritorious protection claims can be sanctioned and deregistered.

Character and conduct (Ministerial Direction 110). Separately from the speech, the Minister’s media release on the same day confirmed that Ministerial Direction 110, which guides visa cancellation and refusal decisions on character grounds, will be updated to strengthen protections for child crime victims and family violence victims, and to reflect a commitment to stamping out hatred. This will be relevant to anyone facing a notice of intention to consider cancellation or a character-based refusal.

Return to pre-2015 compliance. Australia has an estimated 77,000 visa overstayers. Before the 2015 shift to mandatory visa cancellation, overstayers were routinely placed in detention and typically arranged their own departure within weeks, which the Minister said had a wider deterrent effect. He said detention centres have since been dominated by people arriving from prison, leaving no appropriate capacity for ordinary overstayers. The Government will add 100 compliance officers and 250 beds, use existing alternative places of detention near airports, and is examining the former Melbourne quarantine facility. He was explicit that this is a return to previous practice, “no more and no less”, not the raid-style operations seen overseas.

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What you should do now

The Minister summed the package up simply: apply for a temporary visa if you want to come temporarily, apply for a permanent visa if you want to stay permanently, and leave if you no longer hold a valid visa.

For our clients, the immediate priorities are:

• Students planning to bring family: lodge before the change takes effect if you are eligible now, and confirm whether an exemption applies to your nationality or course.
• Working holiday makers: complete your regional work, but do not rely on a second or third year being granted.
• Couples: if your partner is offshore, the 309/100 pathway is the one to plan around, and expect current partner visa processing times to continue.
• Skilled applicants, especially in housing trades: watch for the new points test and reassess your score.
• Employers in priority sectors: expect improved processing and plan sponsorship timelines accordingly.
• Anyone without a valid visa: seek advice now on your options before compliance activity increases.

We will publish updates as the legislative instruments and commencement dates are released. To discuss how these changes affect your situation, book a consultation with our registered migration agents and immigration lawyers.