Skills in Demand 482 processing priorities
We prioritise visa applications for the Skills in Demand (subclass 482) visa under Ministerial Direction 121.
482 Core Skills visa processing time, November 2026
Skills In Demand, Core Skills: 50% decided within 174 days, 90% within 287 days. Department of Home Affairs processing time figures.
50% decided within means half of the applications decided in the latest reporting period took this many days or fewer, counted from lodgement to decision. The 90% figure works the same way. Applications still waiting are not counted.
Stream codes: DE = Direct Entry, TRT = Transition, AGR = Agreement, PT = Points-Tested, CS = Core Skills, ST = State/Territory, HE = Higher Education, ES = Employer Sponsored.
Where it comes from: the Department of Home Affairs global visa processing times tool. We copy the figures and keep the history.
Dates: latest official update 9 Nov 2026, checked by us 14 Nov 2026. Each visa shows its own official date.
Stream codes: DE = Direct Entry, TRT = Transition, AGR = Agreement, PT = Points-Tested, CS = Core Skills, ST = State/Territory, HE = Higher Education, ES = Employer Sponsored.
Where it comes from: the Department of Home Affairs global visa processing times tool. We copy the figures and keep the history.
Dates: latest official update 9 Nov 2026, checked by us 14 Nov 2026. Each visa shows its own official date.
482 174 days Core Skills 90% 287 43 d longer482 179 days Labour Agreement 90% 294 25 d longer482 36 days Nomination 90% 260 28 d shorter482 59 days Specialist Skills 90% 99 22 d longer482 15 days Sponsorship 90% 100 4 d longer186 670 days Employer Nomination DE 90% 727 39 d longer189 90 days Skilled Independent PT 90% 288 29 d longerSee all visasall 74 streams
Home Affairs is processing 482 visa applications lodged in January 2026
482 Core Skills processing time: 50% decided within 174 days, 90% within 287 days.
Official figures dated · Checked by us · Official source · 482 visa page
Stream codes: DE = Direct Entry, TRT = Transition, AGR = Agreement, PT = Points-Tested, CS = Core Skills, ST = State/Territory, HE = Higher Education, ES = Employer Sponsored.
Where it comes from: the Department of Home Affairs global visa processing times tool. We copy the figures and keep the history.
Dates: latest official update 9 Nov 2026, checked by us 14 Nov 2026. Each visa shows its own official date.
Count from the day the visa application was lodged, not the nomination or invitation. Processing group: under Ministerial Direction 121 the Department states a lodgement month for each group: priority sectors (construction, healthcare, teaching, agriculture, aquaculture, fishing, resources, law enforcement and defence), the Specialist Skills stream, and groups based on where the main applicant was when they lodged.
50% decided within174days43 days longer than on 29 Sep 2026Lodgement to decision, among applications already decided. Not the time left on yours.
90% decided within287days1 days longer than on 29 Sep 2026Nine in ten decided applications took this long or less.
Now processing, lodged inJan 202610 months before todayOfficial statement, lodged in Australia. First recorded 14 Nov 2026, no change since.
Pressure index, 48271/ 100Elevated, full readings from 14 Nov 2026How the official figures moved. 50 is a flat month.
25%7272 days
50%1746 months
75%2328 months
90%2879 months
Days from lodgement to decision, among applications already decided. 25% means a quarter of them took this many days or fewer. Black marker: your day count.
Priority sectorsJun 26
Specialist SkillsJul 26
In AustraliaHome Affairs is hereJan 26
Outside, aloneOct 25
Outside, othersOct 25
Dec 2024today
Filled bar: lodgement months the Department says it has reached. Vertical line: your lodgement month.
Day 440482 Core Skills, since 31 August 2025 (example date, enter yours above)
50%: 174 d90%: 287 d
- If the latest figures held, 50% of applications lodged on that date would be decided by 21 Feb 2026 and 90% by 14 Jun 2026 (both dates are already past). This is arithmetic on the official percentiles, not a predicted decision date.
- For applications lodged in Australia, the Department says it is processing applications lodged in January 2026. Your lodgement month is at or before that month.
What this can't tell you
- When your own application will be decided. Nobody outside the Department can see individual cases.
- Whether anything is wrong with an application that has passed a percentile.
- How occupation, nationality or requests for more documents change the wait. The official figures are not split that way.
Cite this page: Visa Processing Time, "482 visa processing time (Core Skills)", Department of Home Affairs figures dated 9 November 2026, retrieved 14 November 2026, https://visaprocessingtime.com.au/visa/482/core-skills/
482 Processing Pressure Index: 71 out of 100, elevated, November 2026
71out of 100Elevated
- Slower share
- 4 of 5 streams
- Drift
- +32.8% median
- Queue lag
- 9.0 months
All visas 53 Moderate
In plain words: 4 of 5 streams of the 482 visa got slower at the latest official update, the typical change was +32.8% and the lodgement months being processed trail today by 9 months on average. A reading above 50 means the published figures moved towards longer waits; below 50, towards shorter ones.
Calculated from official processing time figures only. It describes how published figures moved, not a prediction, and it is not advice. How the index is built.
Show the formula and today's working
PPI = 100 × (0.35 × slower share + 0.30 × drift + 0.35 × queue lag)
- Slower share: streams whose 50% figure rose since the previous official update, divided by all streams with a figure.
- Drift: median percentage change in the 50% figure, clipped to plus or minus 25% and mapped to 0 to 1.
- Queue lag: average number of months between today and the lodgement month the Department says it is processing, divided by 24 and capped at 1.
Every input is a figure the Department of Home Affairs publishes. Bands: 0 to 39 Low, 40 to 59 Moderate, 60 to 79 Elevated, 80 to 100 High. The index describes how the published figures moved. It says nothing about any single application and it is not advice.
| Component | Score 0 to 1 | Weight | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Slower share4 of 5 streams have a higher 50% figure than at the previous official update. | 0.80 | 0.35 | 28.0 |
| DriftMedian change in the 50% figure is +32.8%. Minus 25% scores 0, no change scores 0.50, plus 25% scores 1. | 1.00 | 0.30 | 30.0 |
| Queue lagPublished lodgement months are 9.0 months behind today on average. Scale tops out at 24 months. | 0.38 | 0.35 | 13.1 |
| Reading | 71.1 |
482 lodgement months being processed (MD 121)
Priority sectorsJun 20265 months before today
Specialist Skills streamJul 20264 months before today
Lodged in AustraliaJan 202610 months before today
Lodged outside Australia, applying aloneOct 202513 months before today
Lodged outside Australia, all othersOct 202513 months before today
Stated on the official 482 page, last changed . Archived daily from .
482 processing time since 29 Sep 2026, 50% mark
| Stream | Was | Now | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core Skills | 131 | 174 | 43 days longer |
| Labour Agreement | 154 | 179 | 25 days longer |
| Nomination | 64 | 36 | 28 days shorter |
| Specialist Skills | 37 | 59 | 22 days longer |
| Sponsorship | 11 | 15 | 4 days longer |
Days. "Was" is each stream's figure before its latest change.
482 processing time then and now, 50% mark
| Stream | First | 1 yr ago | Now | vs 1 yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Core Skills | 132 | none | 174 | |
| Labour Agreement | 160 | 71 | 179 | 108 days longer |
| Nomination | 31 | 47 | 36 | 11 days shorter |
| Specialist Skills | 11 | none | 59 | |
| Sponsorship | 39 | 47 | 15 | 32 days shorter |
Days. First figure on record for Core Skills: 27 Feb 2026. Longer means applicants waited longer than a year ago.
Which lodgement months is Home Affairs processing for the 482 visa? January 2026 in Australia, October 2025 at the back
The Department prioritises 482 applications under Ministerial Direction 121 (MD 121), a direction from the Minister on processing order. It works through them in 5 groups and states, for each group, the month of lodgement it is processing (official wording: lodged in that month). This statement sits alongside the 482 processing time percentiles and is published separately.
| Visa | Priority sectors | In Australia | Outside, alone | Outside, others |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 186 visaMD 122 | Nov 202512 mo behind | Mar 202520 mo behind | Nov 202424 mo behind | Jul 202428 mo behind |
| 189 visaMD 122 | Oct 20261 mo behind | Jun 20265 mo behind | Dec 202511 mo behind | Dec 202511 mo behind |
| 190 visaMD 122 | Oct 20261 mo behind | Apr 20267 mo behind | Feb 202521 mo behind | Feb 202521 mo behind |
| 191 visaMD 122 | not listed | Mar 20268 mo behind | Mar 20268 mo behind | Jan 202610 mo behind |
| 482 visaMD 121 | Jun 20265 mo behind | Jan 202610 mo behind | Oct 202513 mo behind | Oct 202513 mo behind |
| 491 visaMD 122 | Jun 202517 mo behind | Mar 202520 mo behind | Feb 202521 mo behind | Feb 202521 mo behind |
| 494 visaMD 122 | Dec 202511 mo behind | Sep 202514 mo behind | Sep 202514 mo behind | Oct 202513 mo behind |
482 lodgement month being processed, by group
Recording started 14 Nov 2026. One month on record so far. Dashed boxes are months with no reading yet; each new official statement adds a step.
| 482 group | Processing, lodged in | Recorded |
|---|---|---|
| Priority sectors | Jun 2026 | |
| Specialist Skills stream | Jul 2026 | |
| Lodged in Australia | Jan 2026 | |
| Lodged outside Australia, applying alone | Oct 2025 | |
| Lodged outside Australia, all others | Oct 2025 |
Is the 482 Core Skills visa processing time getting faster or slower? 43 days slower since 29 September 2026
As of November 2026, the Department of Home Affairs reports that 50% of Skills In Demand (subclass 482) Core Skills applications are decided within 174 days and 90% within 287 days. The 50% processing time was 132 days in February 2026.
90% decided within50% decided within
| Recorded | Core Skills 50% / 90% |
|---|---|
| 174 / 287 | |
| 131 / 286 | |
| 112 / 288 | |
| 69 / 305 | |
| 83 / 294 | |
| 63 / 269 | |
| 69 / 248 | |
| 90 / 230 | |
| 119 / 228 | |
| 132 / 213 |
Core Skills in the chart, the same stream in the table, days. 10 changes recorded since 27 February 2026. Figures before November 2026 come from public archives of the official page.
482 pressure index history: latest reading 71
Slower share and drift only, rebuilt from archived figures
The full index needs the lodgement month statements, which we began archiving on 14 November 2026. The dotted line uses the two components that can be rebuilt back to June 2025; it is not the same scale as the full reading.
What did Home Affairs post about the 482 visa? 2 banners, newest 2 November 2026
Banner notices on the Department's visa pages that mention the 482 visa, newest first.
Skilled visa income thresholds
Skilled visa income thresholds are increasing in line with changes to annual Average Weekly Ordinary Time Earnings.
Source: banners on official Department of Home Affairs visa pages, archived daily since 14 November 2026. 69 banners on file, read 14 November 2026. Titles and first sentences are the Department's own wording. No interpretation added.
What do the 482 processing time figures leave out? 5 things
- They count decided applications only. Cases still waiting are not in the percentiles.
- The figures describe the recent past. They are not a forecast.
- The sponsorship and the nomination are separate applications. Each has its own processing time row on this page.
- The percentiles are not published by occupation, by state, or by whether the applicant was in Australia.
- Only streams the Department lists in its global processing times tool have a figure here.
9 questions about the 482 Core Skills visa processing time, answered from November 2026 figures
How long does a 482 visa take to process in 2026?
In November 2026 the Department of Home Affairs reports a 482 visa processing time of 174 days for 50% of Core Skills applications and 287 days for 90%. Labour Agreement is 179 and 294 days. Nomination is 36 and 260 days. Specialist Skills is 59 and 99 days.
What is the 482 Core Skills processing time right now?
Half of Core Skills applications are decided within 6 months (174 days), a quarter within 72 days and three quarters within 232 days. These are the official processing time figures dated 9 November 2026.
Is the 482 visa processing time getting faster or slower?
The 50% processing time for Core Skills moved from 131 days on 29 September 2026 to 174 days now, 43 days slower. The first figure we have on record is 132 days in February 2026.
Is the 482 processing time counted from the day of lodgement?
Yes. The published processing time runs from the day the visa application was lodged to the day it was decided, and it covers decided applications only.
Which lodgement month is Home Affairs processing for the 482 visa?
The official 482 page lists 5 groups under Ministerial Direction 121: priority sectors, June 2026; the Specialist Skills stream, July 2026; applications lodged in Australia, January 2026; applications lodged outside Australia, applying alone, October 2025; applications lodged outside Australia, all others, October 2025. We read this on 14 November 2026.
Is 482 processing time different for onshore and offshore applicants?
The percentile figures are not split by location. The lodgement month the Department says it is processing is split: January 2026 for applications lodged in Australia, October 2025 for the group furthest back.
How often is the 482 visa processing time updated?
The Department usually refreshes its processing time figures once a month. The latest official date for the 482 visa is 9 November 2026. We check the official page every day and record any change with its date.
Does the 482 processing time tell me when my visa will be decided?
No. A processing time describes applications that were already decided. It is not a prediction for any single application and this site does not give migration advice.
What is the Processing Pressure Index for the 482 visa?
A 0 to 100 reading calculated from official figures only: how many 482 streams got slower, by how much, and how far behind today the lodgement month being processed is. The 482 reading is 71 (elevated); across all visas it is 53. The formula is printed on this page.