The Australian Government has confirmed that the national Migration Program for the 2025–26 year will remain capped at 185,000 places—matching the current ceiling—after consultations with every state and territory wrapped up on 20 December 2025. Seventy-one per cent of places (132,200) will again sit in the Skill stream, with the Family stream allocated 52,500 positions and a residual 300 reserved for Special-Eligibility categories.
For employers and mobility teams the announcement means continuity: the headline cap, mix of streams and underlying processing targets introduced in 2024 are essentially being rolled over. Program stability allows workforce-planning models built around Employer-Sponsored, State-Nominated and Global Talent pathways to remain valid for another 18 months, reducing the likelihood of unexpected shortages or quota blow-outs that plagued earlier pandemic years.
Alongside those planning efforts, employers can tap VisaHQ’s Australia portal (https://www.visahq.com/australia/) for simplified visa checks, real-time status updates and specialist support across Employer-Sponsored, State-Nominated and regional subclasses—helping mobility teams compile error-free packets and avoid delays.
![Government keeps 2025-26 permanent migration cap at 185,000 visas]()
At the same time, skilled-migration competition will remain intense. Internal Home Affairs figures show that demand for Subclass 482 and Subclass 186 places is running 46 per cent above allocation, while points-tested subclasses face ever-higher invitation thresholds. Companies should therefore continue to front-load Skills-in-Demand applications with complete evidence packs and be prepared to sponsor regional visas when metropolitan caps tighten.
The unchanged cap also sends a political signal: the government believes overall migration settings introduced in the May 2025 Budget strike the right balance between labour-market needs and community concerns about housing and infrastructure. Migration-program size was a flashpoint in the October by-elections, and Home Affairs officials privately concede that any upward revision—however economically justified—would have been difficult to sell before the 2026 federal poll.
Practical next steps for HR and global-mobility leaders include reviewing occupation lists as they are refreshed early in the new calendar year, preparing nomination documents in anticipation of fast-moving state allocations, and advising prospective applicants that high English-language scores and tightly-evidenced skills assessments remain critical differentiators.
For employers and mobility teams the announcement means continuity: the headline cap, mix of streams and underlying processing targets introduced in 2024 are essentially being rolled over. Program stability allows workforce-planning models built around Employer-Sponsored, State-Nominated and Global Talent pathways to remain valid for another 18 months, reducing the likelihood of unexpected shortages or quota blow-outs that plagued earlier pandemic years.
Alongside those planning efforts, employers can tap VisaHQ’s Australia portal (https://www.visahq.com/australia/) for simplified visa checks, real-time status updates and specialist support across Employer-Sponsored, State-Nominated and regional subclasses—helping mobility teams compile error-free packets and avoid delays.
At the same time, skilled-migration competition will remain intense. Internal Home Affairs figures show that demand for Subclass 482 and Subclass 186 places is running 46 per cent above allocation, while points-tested subclasses face ever-higher invitation thresholds. Companies should therefore continue to front-load Skills-in-Demand applications with complete evidence packs and be prepared to sponsor regional visas when metropolitan caps tighten.
The unchanged cap also sends a political signal: the government believes overall migration settings introduced in the May 2025 Budget strike the right balance between labour-market needs and community concerns about housing and infrastructure. Migration-program size was a flashpoint in the October by-elections, and Home Affairs officials privately concede that any upward revision—however economically justified—would have been difficult to sell before the 2026 federal poll.
Practical next steps for HR and global-mobility leaders include reviewing occupation lists as they are refreshed early in the new calendar year, preparing nomination documents in anticipation of fast-moving state allocations, and advising prospective applicants that high English-language scores and tightly-evidenced skills assessments remain critical differentiators.
