AN OVERVIEW OF THE 2023–24 AUSTRALIAN PERMANENT MIGRATION PROGRAMME
On the 9th of May 2023, the Australian Government announced that the planning quota for the 2023–24 Permanent Migration Programme will be established at 190,000 allocations.
The 2023–24 Permanent Migration Programme is structured as follows:
• Skill stream (comprising 137,100 allocations, approximately 72% of the programme) – This segment is strategically designed to bolster the nation's economic productivity and address skill deficits within the labour market, especially in regional Australia.
• Family stream (consisting of 52,500 allocations, approximately 28% of the programme) – Primarily encompassing Partner visas, this component enables Australian citizens to reunite with family members from foreign countries and offers pathways to citizenship. Notably, this stream anticipates approximately 40,500 Partner visas and 3,000 Child visas for the 2023–24 period. It is important to recognize that these allocations are demand-driven and are not constrained by a ceiling.
• Special Eligibility stream (comprising 400 allocations) – This category caters to visa applications from individuals facing special circumstances, including permanent residents returning to Australia after an extended overseas stay.
SKILLED INDEPENDENT VISA CATEGORY
The 2023–24 Permanent Migration Programme has reserved 30,375 allocations for Skilled Independent visas, which is relatively consistent with the 2022–23 allocation of 32,100 places.
The reduction in the planning level for this category in 2023–24 is attributed to the cessation of the New Zealand stream for the subclass 189 (Skilled – Independent) visa as of 1st July 2023.
This change stems from the introduction of a new direct path to citizenship for Special Category Visa holders meeting the citizenship eligibility criteria.
BUSINESS INNOVATION AND INVESTMENT PROGRAMME (BIIP) VISA CATEGORY
The government has opted to diminish the planning level for the BIIP from 5,000 visas in 2022–23 to 1,900 visas for the 2023–24 Permanent Migration Programme.
STATE AND TERRITORY NOMINATED VISA CATEGORIES – NOMINATION ALLOCATIONS
Within the framework of the Migration Programme, states and territories retain the authority to nominate applicants for specific visa categories. These categories encompass:
• Skilled – Nominated (subclass 190)
• Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) (subclass 491)
• Business Innovation and Investment Programme (BIIP)
(Source: https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/what-we-do/migration-program-planning-levels)
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