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Ministerial Direction 119 is the legal instrument that tells Home Affairs decision-makers what order to work through skilled nomination and visa applications in. It took effect on 25 July 2026 and replaced the processing priorities that previously ran under Ministerial Direction 105. The direction does not decide who is eligible for a visa, and it does not decide how many visas are granted. It only decides the order in which applications already in the system are picked up for processing.

This article explains the five-tier order set out in Direction 119, which visa subclasses it covers, how it relates to the other current skilled-visa directions, and what it does not tell you.

What Ministerial Direction 119 actually does

Direction 119 is a ministerial direction made under the Migration Act. It instructs the department on the sequence for working through on-hand nomination and visa applications for a defined group of skilled visas. It is a queue-management instrument, not an eligibility instrument — meeting a visa's criteria (skills assessment, points test, health, character, sponsorship or nomination requirements, and so on) is decided separately, under the law that applies to that visa.

From 25 July 2026, Direction 119 replaced all processing priorities that had been set under Direction 105, and it applies to all on-hand applications, including for the Skills in Demand (subclass 482) visa, which had not previously been included under Direction 105.

The five priority tiers

Prioritisation under Direction 119 is set by two factors together: the occupation nominated, and whether the applicant was in Australia or outside Australia at the time of application. Occupations that support Australia's law enforcement and defence interests are given the highest priority, followed by construction, healthcare and teaching occupations. Applicants who are already in Australia are given higher priority than applicants who are outside Australia. Combining these two factors produces five tiers, processed in this order:

  1. First priority — nomination and visa applications that support Australia's law enforcement or defence interests, where the applicant is in Australia at the time of application.
  2. Second priority — nomination and visa applications that support Australia's law enforcement or defence interests, where the applicant is outside Australia at the time of application.
  3. Third priority — nomination and visa applications relating to construction, healthcare and teaching occupations, where the applicant is in Australia at the time of application.
  4. Fourth priority — all other nomination and visa applications where the applicant is in Australia at the time of application.
  5. Fifth and final priority — all other nomination and visa applications where the applicant is outside Australia at the time of application.

An application's tier is a function of the occupation nominated and the applicant's location at the time of application. It is not a function of the applicant's points test score, nationality, or any personal attribute outside those two factors.

Which visa subclasses are covered

Direction 119 (Schedule A and Schedule B) covers nomination and visa applications for the following subclasses:

How this differs from the other current directions

Direction 119 is not the only processing-priority direction currently in force, and it is easy to conflate it with the others because they all use the same "priority tier" language. Three separate directions currently apply to different visa groups:

None of these three directions covers the student visa priority system. Subclass 500 student visa applications lodged outside Australia are ordered under a separate framework, Ministerial Direction 115, which uses provider-allocation thresholds rather than occupation and location. A student visa applicant should not look to Direction 119 for their processing order, and a skilled visa applicant should not look to Direction 115.

What Direction 119 does not do

How to check the current position before you rely on this article

Because ministerial directions can be amended or replaced, the only reliable way to confirm which direction and which tier currently applies to a given visa subclass is to check the Department of Home Affairs' own processing-priorities page at the time you need the information. The practical steps are:

  1. Go to the Department of Home Affairs skilled visa processing priorities page.
  2. Confirm which ministerial direction is currently in effect and its date of effect — directions are periodically superseded, as Direction 119 superseded Direction 105.
  3. Check that your specific visa subclass is listed in the current direction's schedule, since coverage has changed between directions (Skills in Demand (subclass 482) was added under Direction 119 having not been included under Direction 105).
  4. Identify your occupation category (law enforcement/defence, construction/healthcare/teaching, or other) and your location at the time of application to work out your tier.

Sources and currency

This article reflects the Department of Home Affairs' published skilled visa processing priorities page, with current information as at 7 September 2026. The primary source is:

Ministerial directions are periodically amended or replaced, as Direction 119 replaced Direction 105. Recheck the Home Affairs page before you rely on any statement in this article about which direction, tier or visa subclass currently applies. This article is general information from an official source, not migration advice, and it does not predict when any application will be decided. For advice specific to your circumstances, consult a registered migration agent.