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Australia’s 2026/27 Federal Budget indicates a shift towards prioritising onshore visa applicants and reforms that target highly skilled and qualified migrants in the medium to long term.
It reinforces that skilled migration and applicants already in Australia will be a key focus, especially for occupations and industries with long-term demand.
Faster recognition of overseas qualifications and skills for trades workers is one example of this focus.
Permanent Migration and Net Overseas Migration
| 185,000 places for permanent migration The current planning level will remain in 2026/27. 70% allocated for Skilled Migration and 30% for Family Migration pathways. |
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| 70% of places for onshore migrants 129,590 permanent places will prioritise skilled and family migrants already in Australia. |
30% of places for offshore migrants 55,110 permanent places mainly for highly-skilled offshore migrants meeting long-term skills needs. |
The permanent migration program will remain stable and retain the 70/30 skilled and family migration split, but this year, it clearly prioritises migrants already in Australia.
Accounting for temporary-to-permanent migration within overall permanent migration planning levels will help to control factors affecting Australia’s elevated Net Overseas Migration levels that may not have been considered in the past.
Net Overseas Migration measures population changes driven by the difference between international arrival and departure numbers over a 12-month period.
The government has increased Net Overseas Migration (NOM) forecasts in its Federal Budget due to international departures staying longer than it had expected in the last year.
| ↑ 35,000 2025/26 NOM Forecast Revised to 295,000 (up from 260,000) |
↑ 20,000 2026/27 NOM Forecast Revised to 245,000 (up from 225,000) |
| NOM target: 225,000 2027/28 NOM Forecast 225,000 (originally set for 2026/27) |
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2026/27 Skilled Migration Shifts
As the government seeks to reach its NOM forecast of 225,000, which has now been extended to 2027/28, the Federal Budget outlines several key policy changes that will be achieved over the next few years.
Streamlined recognition of overseas qualifications for trades workers
$85.2 million has been committed over four years with the aim to facilitate an additional 4,000 skilled trades workers into the workforce each year.
The initiatives are expected to reduce the time taken to enter the workforce by up to six months by streamlining occupational licensing, skills assessment and skills recognition processes.
This will be a welcome change following recent reports, which indicated Australia’s skills recognition and licensing processes are often slow, inconsistent, and duplicative across states and professions.
Initiatives include:
- A new skills assessment system for Trades Recognition Australia (TRA). This will involve streamlining occupational licensing for priority trades such as electricians and plumbers via a pilot program in direct liaison with states and territories.
- A new program of skills assessments for onshore visa holders to have their existing qualifications and practical trade experience recognised.
Other budget allocations will support:
- Assessing the requirements for establishing a Skills Migration Commissioner.
- Improving the efficiency of recognising VET qualifications.
Working Holiday Maker (WHM) program reforms
The budget states that reforms such as expanding the use of ballots in the WHM program will “better control numbers, reduce barriers to work, provide a fairer allocation of WHM visas, and support Australia’s national interests.”
‘Points test’ changes for Independent Skilled Migration Visas
The points test for independent skilled migration ranks participants on factors such as age, English ability, work experience, and qualifications to determine who receives an invitation to apply for a Skilled Independent Visa.
This test will be optimised to select better qualified, higher‑skilled and younger workers to migrate to Australia.
Focus on visa integrity
$167.4 million in funding over four years will be committed to “strengthen the integrity of the migration system.”
This includes $19.8 million over four years for “enhanced scrutiny of onshore and offshore student visa applications, ensuring the integrity of the international student visa system.”
$27 million has also been committed over two years to extend the Protecting Migrant Workers—Information and Education Grants Program, supporting migrants with information about workplace protections and compliance related to migration laws.
Sustainable people strategy: Global talent
To meet the extended 225,000 NOM forecast through to 2027/28, the government appears to be balancing tighter policy settings with a renewed focus on aligning the migration program with Australia’s long-term skilled needs.
Interstaff supports employers requiring sustainable global talent strategy to strengthen workforce capabilities.
Access our immigration insights to explore:
- Work rights and visa conditions
- Skilled visa changes
- Temporary and permanent visa pathways
Sources:
Interstaff’s Registered Migration Agents (MARN: 0533879)
Migration Institute of Australia
SBS News
News.com.au
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
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