Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke has confirmed that Australia’s permanent-migration intake will remain at 185,000 places for the 2025-26 programme year, resisting calls from the Opposition to slash numbers amid housing-affordability protests. Seventy-one per cent of places (132,200) will again be reserved for the Skill stream, while 52,500 visas are allocated to the Family stream and 300 to Special Eligibility.
The headline, however, is the debut of a new Talent & Innovation visa with 4,300 allocations. The category folds the Global Talent Independent, Distinguished Talent and the forthcoming National Innovation visa into a single, points-free pathway targeting “exceptional individuals in future-facing industries.” Existing GTI applications will be transitioned automatically.
Officials argue that holding the overall cap steady provides certainty for state-nomination programmes and employer-sponsored pipelines, while the re-engineered talent route simplifies what had become a complex suite of niche visas. Business groups have cautiously welcomed the move but warn that processing speed—not headline numbers—will determine whether Australia can compete with Canada and the UK for high-growth-tech talent.
![Government keeps 2025-26 migration cap at 185,000; launches consolidated Talent & Innovation visa]()
At this juncture, companies and applicants seeking to leverage the refreshed migration settings can lean on VisaHQ’s dedicated Australia team (https://www.visahq.com/australia/) for step-by-step support—from preliminary eligibility checks to document preparation and filing—for the new Talent & Innovation visa as well as existing Skill and Family streams, ensuring submissions stay on track while internal HR resources stay focused on growth.
For HR and mobility managers the implications are twofold: labour-market-testing exemptions remain available for the new visa, but wage thresholds will be indexed to 85 per cent of the Average Weekly Earnings benchmark from 1 July 2026. Companies planning innovation-hub expansions should audit upcoming talent cases against the fresh criteria before the legacy subclasses close mid-2026.
The Government has promised an online “Talent Portal” by March to streamline expressions of interest, with decisions expected within 90 days for priority sectors such as quantum, clean energy and advanced manufacturing.
The headline, however, is the debut of a new Talent & Innovation visa with 4,300 allocations. The category folds the Global Talent Independent, Distinguished Talent and the forthcoming National Innovation visa into a single, points-free pathway targeting “exceptional individuals in future-facing industries.” Existing GTI applications will be transitioned automatically.
Officials argue that holding the overall cap steady provides certainty for state-nomination programmes and employer-sponsored pipelines, while the re-engineered talent route simplifies what had become a complex suite of niche visas. Business groups have cautiously welcomed the move but warn that processing speed—not headline numbers—will determine whether Australia can compete with Canada and the UK for high-growth-tech talent.
At this juncture, companies and applicants seeking to leverage the refreshed migration settings can lean on VisaHQ’s dedicated Australia team (https://www.visahq.com/australia/) for step-by-step support—from preliminary eligibility checks to document preparation and filing—for the new Talent & Innovation visa as well as existing Skill and Family streams, ensuring submissions stay on track while internal HR resources stay focused on growth.
For HR and mobility managers the implications are twofold: labour-market-testing exemptions remain available for the new visa, but wage thresholds will be indexed to 85 per cent of the Average Weekly Earnings benchmark from 1 July 2026. Companies planning innovation-hub expansions should audit upcoming talent cases against the fresh criteria before the legacy subclasses close mid-2026.
The Government has promised an online “Talent Portal” by March to streamline expressions of interest, with decisions expected within 90 days for priority sectors such as quantum, clean energy and advanced manufacturing.
