Australian visas are now processed within 16-21 days

Reduced processing time for Australian visas

• Australia has reduced the visa processing time, especially reducing the waiting period for some Australian visas categories, including:

• Student Visas
• Temporary Skilled Visas

• “The Department is streamlining Australia’s visa systems and process leading to big reductions in average visa processing times across a number of categories,” the Australian Department of Home Affairs said in a statement earlier this month.

• According to the statement issued on social media, Student Visas are now being processed within 16 days and Temporary Skilled Shortage 482 visas within 21 days.

• The Student Visa was taking up to 49 days to be processed at the start of the year.

Lowering the visa processing time

The benefits of these processes extend to other visa types also. The following visas are now processed in 1 day:

• The Employer Sponsored Skilled program for healthcare and education visas
• Working Holiday visas (out of Australia)

• The announcement comes one year after reports indicated that the Department faced substantial delays in processing visa applications primarily as a result of the high volume of applications.

• The DHA said it was also clearing permanent skilled visas within seven months, compared with 12 months in February 2023.

• Australia is also working to support Australia’s international tourism industry, the DHA said.

• “Our expedited online and electronic visitor visa options have led to a 140% increase in visitor visa holders in Australia, a huge boost to an industry supporting jobs, investment and growth in communities across the country,” it added.