MIGRATION PROGRAM PLANNING LEVELS | 2023-2024

On 9 May 2023, the Australian Government has announced that the planning level for the 2023-24 permanent Migration Program will be set at 190,000 places.

The 2023-24 Migration Program has been designed to address persistent and emerging skills shortages and support the transition to a net-zero emissions economy by attracting specialist skillsets that are difficult to find or develop in Australia. The Program has the following composition:

Skill stream: This stream comprises 137,100 places and focuses on enhancing the productive capacity of the economy by filling skill shortages in the labor market. It also aims to address skill shortages in regional areas of Australia.

Family stream: The family stream consists of 52,500 places and primarily includes Partner visas. This stream allows Australians to reunite with their overseas family members and provides pathways to citizenship. Within this stream:

40,500 places are allocated for Partner visas. It’s important to note that this category is demand-driven and not subject to a specific limit.
3,000 places are allocated for Child visas. Similar to Partner visas, this category is also demand-driven and not subject to a specific limit.

Special Eligibility stream: This stream includes 400 places and is designed for individuals with special circumstances. It covers visas for permanent residents who are returning to Australia after a period of living overseas.

These numbers represent the estimated allocation of visa places for planning purposes in the 2023-24 Migration Program. It’s worth mentioning that these figures may be subject to change based on government policies, priorities, and demand.

Migration Program planning levels as announced as part of the 2022-23 and 2023-24 Federal Budgets

VISA STREAM	VISA CATEGORY	2022-23 PLANNING LEVELS	2023-24 PLANNING LEVELS
Skill	Employer Sponsored	35,000	36,825
	Skilled Independent	32,100	30,375
	Regional	34,000	32,300
	State/Territory Nominated	31,000	30,400
	Business Innovation & Investment	5,000	1,900
	Global Talent (Independent)	5,000	5,000
	Distinguished Talent	300	300
	Skill Total	142,400	137,100
Family	Partner¹	40,500	40,500
	Parent	8,500	8,500
	Child¹	3,000	3,000
	Other Family	500	500
	Family Total	52,500	52,500
	Special Eligibility	100	400
	Total Migration Program	195,000	190,000

For 2023-24, delivery of the Partner and Child visa categories are demand driven, with indicative planning levels only.

State and territory nominated visa categories – nomination allocations

Under the Migration Program settings, nomination allocations are made available to States and Territories in the following visa categories:

Skilled – Nominated (subclass 190)
Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) (subclass 491)
Business Innovation and Investment Program (BIIP)

States and Territories each assess eligible applicants against criteria unique to their jurisdiction.

Further information on State and Territory nomination requirements can be found at:

ACT – Skilled Visa – ACT nomination and Business Migration Guidelines
NSW – Visas and Immigration
VIC – Live in Melbourne
QLD – Business & Skilled Migration Queensland
NT – Northern Territory Visa nomination eligibility
WA – Business Migration Western Australia (BIIP) or Skilled Migration Western Australia (190 and 491 visas)
SA – Move to South Australia
TAS – Migration Tasmania