Australia Migration Planning Level 2022-23

Published 12 Apr 2023 / Updated 03 Aug 2023

Migration Program planning levels

2022-23 Migration Program

On 2 September 2022, the Australian Government announced that the planning level for the 2022-23 permanent Migration Program will increase to 195,000 places. The Government announced a detailed composition of the Migration Program as part of the Budget delivered on 25 October 2022.

The 2022-23 Migration Program will help ease critical workforce shortages where the skilling of Australians can not yet keep pace with industry demand. The Migration Program will have a planning level of 195,000 visa places. The Program has the following composition:

Skill (142,400 places) – this stream is designed to improve the productive capacity of the economy and fill skill shortages in the labour market, including those in regional Australia.
Family (52,500 places) – this stream is predominantly made up of Partner visas, enabling Australians to reunite with family members from overseas and provide them with pathways to citizenship.

From 2022-23, Partner visas will be granted on a demand driven basis to facilitate family reunification. This will help reduce the Partner visa pipeline and processing times for many applicants.
40,500 Partner visas are estimated for 2022-23 for planning purposes, noting this estimate is not subject to a ceiling.
3,000 Child visas are estimated for 2022-23 for planning purposes, noting this category is demand driven and not subject to a ceiling.

Special Eligibility (100 places) – this stream covers visas for those in special circumstances, including permanent residents returning to Australia after a period overseas.

Visa Stream	Visa Category	2021-22 Planning levels	2022-23 Planning levels
Skill	Employer Sponsored	22,000	35,000
	Skilled Independent	6,500	32,100
	Regional	11,200	34,000
	State/Territory Nominated	11,200	31,000
	Business Innovation & Investment	13,500	5,000
	Global Talent (Independent)	15,000	5,000
	Distinguished Talent	200	300
	Skill Total	79,600	142,400
Family	Partner	72,300	40,500
	Parent	4,500	8,500
	Child	3,000	3,000
	Other Family	500	500
	Family Total	80,300	52,500
	Special Eligibility	100	100
	Total Migration Program	160,000	195,000

(1) For 2022-23, delivery of the Partner and Child visa categories are demand driven, with indicative planning levels only.

Program size and composition

The size and composition of the Migration Program is set each year alongside the Australian Government’s Budget process.

To inform the planning levels and policy settings of the 2022-23 Migration Program, consultation occurred widely with state and territory governments, representatives of academia, industry, unions and community organisations.

When planning the Migration Program, the Australian Government considers the following:

Public submissions
Economic and labour force forecasts
International research
Net overseas migration, and
Economic and fiscal modelling.

The Department also invites public submissions as part of the planning process for future Migration Programs. Submissions to inform the 2023-24 Migration Program have now closed. For more information, see Australia's 2023-24 Migration Program