The 2024–25 Permanent Migration Program Update

On May 15, 2024, the Australian government announced the immigration visa quotas for the new fiscal year. The planned number of immigrants for 2024-25 is 185,000, with a ratio of approximately 70:30 between skilled and family immigrants. The specifics are as follows:

Skilled stream are allocated 132,200 places, accounting for about 71% of the program. This visa category aims to enhance the productive capacity of the economy and fill skill shortages in the labor market.

Family stream are allocated 52,500 places, accounting for about 28% of the program. This category mainly consists of Partner visas, allowing Australians to reunite with overseas family members and provide them with pathways to citizenship. Of the family visas, an estimated 40,500 places are allocated to Partner visas and 3,000 places to Child visas.

Special Eligibility Stream is allocated 300 places, catering to those with special circumstances, including permanent residents returning to Australia after a period overseas.

Employer Sponsored Visa Category quota has been increased from 36,825 in 2023-24 to 44,000 in 2024-25.

State/Territory Nominated Visa Category has been increased to 33,000 places, with an equal number allocated to the Regional category. These two categories account for 36% of the overall planning level and 50% of the skilled category. Increasing the quotas for state and regional nominations will allow Australia to attract skilled migrants to address specific economic and labor force challenges.

Skilled Independent Visa Category: In the 2024-25 migration plan, the government has allocated 16,900 places for Skilled Independent visas. This is a reduction from the 30,375 places allocated in 2023-24 but remains significantly higher than the COVID-era planning levels of 7,500 and 6,500 places in 2020-21 and 2021-22, respectively.

Business Innovation and Investment Program (BIIP): The government has reduced the planned number of BIIP visas from 1,900 in 2023-24 to 1,000 for the 2024-25 permanent migration program. As an alternative, the Department of Immigration has decided to introduce a new visa: the National Innovation Visa. This new visa will be launched at the end of 2024.

BIIP will be permanently closed from July 2024, and new applications for the Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) (subclass 188) visa will no longer be accepted. The Migration Review concluded that BIIP delivers poor economic outcomes for Australia. Submitted subclass 188 BIIP visa applications will continue to be processed according to government priorities and migration program planning levels. BIIP policy guidance will be tightened to ensure that all business migrants coming to Australia through this program have had a successful business career overall and will bring economic benefits to Australia.

Holders of subclass 188 visas who meet the relevant criteria for the Business Innovation and Investment (Permanent) (subclass 888) visa can still continue on this pathway after July 2024.

Global Talent Visa: The government has slightly reduced the planning level for the Global Talent Visa Program to 4,000 visas for the 2024-25 migration program.

This planning level aligns with broader government reforms around talent and innovation and marks the final year of the Global Talent Visa Program as it transitions to the new arrangements under the forthcoming National Innovation Visa.