Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs Andrew Giles on Monday issued a statement saying that he has directed the Department of Home Affairs to devote more staff for addressing the current visa backlog.
Highlights:
- Australian government says that it is taking action to process more visas faster
- 745,000 visa applications have been finalised since the beginning of June 2022, including over 645,000 offshore visa applications
- Onshore skilled migrants demand fast visa approvals, saying they are already doing their bit
The department is prioritising processing of key offshore caseloads - temporary skilled, student and visitor - so more people can travel to Australia and contribute to economic growth, and assist with labour shortages, 
Mr Giles said that the department has been tasked to deal with the backlog as quickly as possible and he is assessing all options available.
Immigration Minister Andrew Giles has said that the government is taking action to process more visas faster Source: AAP Image/James Ross
"Already, officers previously focused on travel exemptions have been redirected to visa processing, with nearly 140 new staff in visa processing roles since May 2022. Further, a surge capacity to work overtime, drawn from across the Department and the Australian Border Force has been established," Mr Giles added.
The department has been working through large numbers of older cases, as well as seeing application volumes increase across key programs.
“The number of applications received in June 2022 is 6.5 per cent higher than May 2022 – over the same period, there was a 10.6 per cent increase in applications finalised.” Mr Giles said.
Applicants continue to face delays on their visa applications to come to Australia. Source: Getty Images/virojt Changyencham
According to the statement, 745,000 visa applications have been finalised since the beginning of June 2022, including over 645,000 offshore visa applications, of which 388,000 were visitor visas, 62,000 student visas and 9,550 temporary skilled visas.
“The processing of visas will continue to be a major priority for this government – but reducing the backlog of applications can't happen overnight. People reallocated to dealing with the visa applications on hand need to be trained and skilled before they can go about this important work," the minister said.
“The former government devalued immigration, with the visa application backlog increasing to nearly 1,000,000 on their watch. The Albanese Government is determined to reduce the backlog and restore the importance of the immigration function of our Government,” Mr Giles said.
Onshore skilled applicants are now seeking priority in the visa queue arguing that they are already in the country and contributing to the economy.
Darwin-based Kashish Chabra has been waiting for his visa approval under subclass 887 since 2021.
"Just before I applied, the processing time stood at around eight months and I was expecting that same will happen with my PR application. But unfortunately it has been over 18 months for me and I am still stuck in limbo on both my professional and personal fronts," Mr Chabra told SBS Hindi.
Kashish Chabra currently lives in Darwin and is working with the NT government. Source: Supplied by Kashish Chabra
"Currently, I have a good contract job with the NT government but then my temporary resident status is affecting it as I need PR to keep it going as a permanent role... So its a real struggle for me," Mr Chabra, who is a financial accountant, said.
Adelaide-based chef Prem Singh echoed similar views.
"I had applied for visa under subclass 491 as a chef almost two years ago but no luck so far," Mr Singh said.
"There is a need for skilled people like myself in a place like Adelaide so this wait for visa approval really does not make any sense."
Brisbane-based migration agent Suman Dua says that the government needs to first focus on onshore applicants on bridging visas who are waiting for their PR approvals.
"We understand that the Albanese government wants to prioritise offshore visa grants but we request them to do something for onshore applicants. These delays are causing misery to the visa applicants," she said.
