New Ministerial Directions Reshape Visa Processing Priorities

Directions 121 and 122

On 18 September 2026, Immigration Minister Tony Burke signed two new directions under section 499 of the Migration Act 1958 — Direction 121 and Direction 122 — that set out how the Department must prioritise the processing of certain skilled visa applications. Both commence the day after signing and replace or sit alongside earlier processing instructions (Direction 121 revokes Direction 119).

What Each Direction Covers

Direction 121 applies to the temporary skilled visa program — specifically the Subclass 482 Skills in Demand visa (and its predecessor, the Temporary Skill Shortage visa, which it replaced in December 2024).

Direction 122 applies to a broader suite of provisional and permanent skilled visas, including:

• Employer Nomination (Subclass 186)
• Regional Employer Nomination (Subclass 187)
• Skilled Independent (Subclass 189)
• Skilled Nominated (Subclass 190)
• Permanent Residence (Skilled Regional) (Subclass 191)
• Skilled-Regional Sponsored (Subclass 489)
• Skilled Work Regional (Subclass 491)
• Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Subclass 494)
• Skilled (Residence) (Subclass 887)
• Business Skills (Permanent) (Subclass 888)

Both directions exclude cases remitted or already decided by the Administrative Review Tribunal, applications where visa criteria clearly won’t be met, and certain unaccompanied family-unit applications.

The Priority Order

The two directions share a similar structure, ranking applications from highest to lowest priority:

• Priority sector occupations — primary applicants nominating a role in construction, healthcare, teaching, agriculture/aquaculture/fishing, or resources, or an occupation tied to Australia’s law enforcement or defence interests.
• (Direction 121 only) Subclass 482 applications in the Specialist Skills stream get the next tier of priority — a fast-track for highly skilled migrants that doesn’t have an equivalent tier in Direction 122.
• All other primary applicants who are in Australia when they apply.
• Primary applicants outside Australia whose application isn’t combined with anyone else’s.
• Everything else.

Family members combined with a primary applicant’s application inherit that applicant’s priority level.

Priority Occupations, in Detail

Both directions define the priority sectors using specific ANZSCO occupation groups, for example:

• Construction — trades workers, construction/mining labourers, construction and engineering managers, architects, civil engineers, electricians, and various technician and machine operator roles.
• Healthcare — health professionals broadly, health and welfare support workers, medical scientists, counsellors, psychologists, social workers, medical technicians, aged/disabled carers, nursing support workers, and personal care assistants.
• Teaching — school teachers, child care centre managers, school principals, faculty heads, university lecturers, vocational teachers, and child care workers.
• Agriculture, aquaculture and fishing — roles across cultivation, livestock, farm support (irrigation, quality assurance, inspection), and primary product processing.
• Resources — mining engineers, geologists/geophysicists, drillers and miners, production managers, surveyors, metallurgists, and various fitter/machinist trades.
• Defence-related occupations — roles tied to AUKUS Pillar I or II, or nominated/supported by the ADF or Department of Defence.
• Law enforcement — police roles sponsored by the AFP or a state/territory police force.

Where the Two Directions Differ

• Direction 121 carves out an extra priority tier for the Subclass 482 Specialist Skills stream; Direction 122 has no equivalent, since it deals with provisional/permanent pathways rather than the Skills in Demand visa.
• Direction 122 includes a specific provision (section 8) on how priority applies when a section 85 numerical cap is in place for a visa class — a mechanism not relevant to the uncapped temporary program.
• The “exceptions” clause allowing delegates to depart from the standard order for compelling circumstances is broader in Direction 121, which adds Australia’s international relations as a valid reason alongside community safety and continuity of essential religious, cultural or community services. Direction 122 doesn’t include the international relations ground.

Why It Matters

Neither direction changes who is eligible for a visa or alters the underlying occupation lists — applicants still need to satisfy all existing legal criteria. What changes is queue order: employers and applicants in construction, health, teaching, agriculture, resources, defence and policing can expect faster processing relative to other applicants, while the temporary Specialist Skills stream keeps its own fast lane. For migration agents and sponsors, the practical takeaway is that occupation choice and visa stream selection now carry more weight than ever in determining how quickly a case moves through the system.

Source: Direction 121 and Direction 122, made under section 499 of the Migration Act 1958, signed 18 September 2026.

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