Migration advisers are warning corporate mobility managers and travellers to brace for processing delays across most Australian visa classes as the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) works through its annual summer staffing lull. VisaHQ data released on 8 January 2026 show case-officer availability is down roughly 70 per cent compared with mid-November. Numbers of Section 56 information requests and grant notifications have fallen proportionally, leaving thousands of applications—particularly in the skilled, family-reunion and visitor streams—parked in queue.
The slowdown happens every Christmas–New Year period but is more pronounced this year because it coincides with a surge of skilled-migration invitations issued in November 2025. Practitioners estimate files lodged after 20 December are unlikely to move until around Australia Day (26 January) when overtime shifts traditionally kick in to pull service levels back on track.
For organisations and individual travellers needing assistance during this bottleneck, VisaHQ can streamline the paperwork, track real-time status updates and liaise with the Department on your behalf. Its Australia-specific portal (https://www.visahq.com/australia/) provides checklists, expedited courier options and dedicated support teams, helping applicants stay compliant and decision-ready even while DHA processing slows.
![Holiday staffing dip slows Australian visa decisions until late January]()
For businesses, the timing is awkward. Many HR teams planned February start dates for overseas hires on the assumption of the published 15-to-21-day median for Temporary Skill Shortage (subclass 482) visas. Instead, onboarding may slip into March, affecting project timelines and payroll forecasts. Some employers are turning to labour-agreement pathways or on-hire labour firms for short-term cover, although these add compliance complexity and cost.
Seasoned advisers recommend front-loading medicals, police checks and skills assessments so that applications are ‘decision-ready’ when officers return. Companies should also budget for interim travel: if an assignee’s Bridging Visa B expires while they are offshore, re-entry can be refused, triggering quarantine-cost or rerouting headaches. Individual travellers are reminded that airlines will deny boarding without a visa grant recorded in Australia’s Advance Passenger Processing (APP) system.
The DHA has circulated internal memos flagging weekend overtime campaigns later in January, mirroring a 2025 operation that cleared more than 18,000 backlogged cases in three weeks. While the hiatus is temporary, corporates are advised to communicate proactively with stakeholders to manage expectations and avoid last-minute escalations.
The slowdown happens every Christmas–New Year period but is more pronounced this year because it coincides with a surge of skilled-migration invitations issued in November 2025. Practitioners estimate files lodged after 20 December are unlikely to move until around Australia Day (26 January) when overtime shifts traditionally kick in to pull service levels back on track.
For organisations and individual travellers needing assistance during this bottleneck, VisaHQ can streamline the paperwork, track real-time status updates and liaise with the Department on your behalf. Its Australia-specific portal (https://www.visahq.com/australia/) provides checklists, expedited courier options and dedicated support teams, helping applicants stay compliant and decision-ready even while DHA processing slows.
For businesses, the timing is awkward. Many HR teams planned February start dates for overseas hires on the assumption of the published 15-to-21-day median for Temporary Skill Shortage (subclass 482) visas. Instead, onboarding may slip into March, affecting project timelines and payroll forecasts. Some employers are turning to labour-agreement pathways or on-hire labour firms for short-term cover, although these add compliance complexity and cost.
Seasoned advisers recommend front-loading medicals, police checks and skills assessments so that applications are ‘decision-ready’ when officers return. Companies should also budget for interim travel: if an assignee’s Bridging Visa B expires while they are offshore, re-entry can be refused, triggering quarantine-cost or rerouting headaches. Individual travellers are reminded that airlines will deny boarding without a visa grant recorded in Australia’s Advance Passenger Processing (APP) system.
The DHA has circulated internal memos flagging weekend overtime campaigns later in January, mirroring a 2025 operation that cleared more than 18,000 backlogged cases in three weeks. While the hiatus is temporary, corporates are advised to communicate proactively with stakeholders to manage expectations and avoid last-minute escalations.
