Your Visa Application Is Taking Months (Or Years) – What Can You Do

Your visa has been waiting for months. Here's what you need to know.

Visa delays are painful and stressful. You're in limbo—unable to plan your future, unsure whether to stay or leave, uncertain if something has gone wrong.

The first thing to know: delays are common, and how long is 'too long' depends entirely on the subclass and stream. Home Affairs' own published figures for decisions made in the period to 30 June 2026 show an offshore partner visa (subclass 309) taking a median of 17 months, a Skilled Independent (189, Points-Tested) a median of 7 months, and an Employer Nomination Scheme (186, Direct Entry) visa a median of 10 months — with wide ranges either side of each median (Step 1 has the detail).

But you're not helpless. There are steps you can take to understand the delay, contact Home Affairs, complain about poor service, and escalate if needed.

Let's walk through what to do.

Step 1: Check the official processing time

Home Affairs publishes processing time estimates for each visa subclass and stream, updated roughly monthly. These are ranges built from recently decided applications, not promises about yours.

Where to find processing times:

Visit immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/processing-times and search for your visa subclass — and its stream, because streams within the same subclass can be very different.

Some published figures for the period to 30 June 2026 (Home Affairs global visa processing times, published 4 August 2026; 25th to 90th percentile of decided cases, with the median in brackets):

• Partner (Provisional) visa (subclass 309): 13 to 30 months (median 17 months).
• Partner visa (subclass 100, the permanent stage): 9 to 19 months (median 10 months).
• Partner visa (subclass 820, onshore temporary): 8 to 32 months (median 18 months).
• Partner visa (subclass 801, onshore permanent): 3 to 12 months (median 5 months).
• Skilled Independent (189), Points-Tested stream: 6 to 9 months (median 7 months). The 189's New Zealand stream is a separate, much slower pathway — don't read its time across.
• Skilled Nominated (190): 5 to 17 months (median 12 months).
• Skilled Work Regional (491), State/Territory Nominated stream: 5 to 18 months (median 12 months); the Family Sponsored stream is faster, 2 to 6 months (median 3 months).
• Skills in Demand (482) visa grant: varies hugely by stream — Specialist Skills 4 to 43 days (median 8 days); Core Skills 16 days to 10 months (median 69 days); Labour Agreement 4 to 9 months (median 6 months). The employer's nomination stage is a separate, employer-side process with its own time.
• Employer Nomination Scheme (186), Direct Entry: 6 to 14 months (median 10 months); Transition: 6 to 15 months (median 11 months); Labour Agreement: 30 days to 10 months (median 8 months).
• Student visa (subclass 500): varies by sector — Higher Education Sector 9 days to 7 months (median 15 days); Vocational Education and Training Sector 44 days to 7 months (median 7 months).
• Visitor visa (subclass 600), Tourist stream: 7 to 35 days (median 13 days).

Queue order matters too, for most of the visas above. From 19 September 2026, Ministerial Direction 122 sets the processing priority order for the 186, 187, 189, 190, 191, 491, 494, 887 and 888 visas, and the separate Ministerial Direction 121 does the same for the Skills in Demand (482) visa. Both use the same order: first, applications relating to the Construction, Healthcare, Teaching, Agriculture, Aquaculture, Fishing or Resources sectors, or to law enforcement and defence interests; then applications where the applicant was in Australia when they applied; then offshore applications not combined with another person's application; then everything else. Neither Direction covers the partner visas (309, 100, 820, 801) in the list above.

Key point: These are *published* times, not guaranteed times, and Home Affairs itself says they describe recently decided cases, not the queue of applications still waiting. Some applications fall outside the range.

Check what the published time says for your specific visa type and stream. If you've been waiting longer than the slowest published figure, your application *may* be behind.

But not always. Some applications legitimately take longer due to:

• Additional information requests.
• Background checks.
• Health or character assessments.
• High application volumes.
• Complexity of your case.

Step 2: Check your status on ImmiAccount

Log into ImmiAccount at immi.homeaffairs.gov.au and view your visa application.

What to look for:

• Status field. Does it say "processing," "awaiting information," "further checks," or something else?
• Last update date. When was the application last updated?
• Activity log. This shows what Home Affairs has done (e.g., "request for additional information sent").
• Crucial documents. Has Home Affairs received everything you uploaded?

If status says "awaiting information":

Home Affairs has asked for something. Check the documents tab to see what's been requested. Respond immediately with the information.

Don't ignore information requests. Home Affairs often sets a deadline (e.g., 28 days). If you don't respond, your application can be refused.

If status shows no updates for 6+ months:

Your application may be stuck. This doesn't mean it's refused—it may be waiting for background checks, or it may be in a queue. But it warrants contact.

Read about bridging visas while you wait.

Step 3: Contact Home Affairs

If your application is behind the published time, contact Home Affairs to confirm it's still being processed.

How to contact Home Affairs:

ImmiAccount message:

Log in and send a message via the application. Ask for a status update and reference your application ID. Home Affairs doesn't publish a fixed response time for these status enquiries.

Phone (131 881 within Australia, +61 2 6196 0196 from outside Australia):

Call the Home Affairs Global Service Centre — Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm your local time, closed on national public holidays. Be prepared to wait; Monday is the peak day. Tell them:

• Your visa subclass.
• Your application ID.
• When you applied.
• What status you see on ImmiAccount.

Ask: "Is my application still being processed? When do you expect a decision?"

Written inquiry:

Write to Home Affairs at the address shown on their website. Include:

• Your full name.
• Date of birth.
• Application ID.
• Visa subclass.
• When you applied.
• What you're asking about.

Email (limited):

Home Affairs has different email addresses for different visa types. Check immi.homeaffairs.gov.au for the relevant email. Emails are slower than ImmiAccount messages.

What to expect:

Home Affairs will likely confirm your application is being processed and provide a generic timeframe. They may ask you to wait further. They rarely provide specific details or accelerate processing based on inquiries alone.

Step 4: Check what Home Affairs might be waiting for

Delays often happen because Home Affairs is waiting for something.

Common reasons for delays:

• Police certificates. Home Affairs has requested police checks from your home country. These can take months.
• Health examinations. Home Affairs requested medical tests. You may have missed the deadline or the tests were inconclusive.
• Character checks. Home Affairs is investigating your background. This can take 6–12 months.
• Relationship verification. For partner visas, Home Affairs may be verifying the genuineness of the relationship. They may request additional evidence.
• Employment verification. For skilled or employer-sponsored visas, Home Affairs may be checking your employment history.
• Security checks. Government agencies (ASIO, state police) are checking you. This is done outside Home Affairs' control.
• Application volume. Peak times (certain months each year) cause slower processing.

What you can do:

Email Home Affairs with a list of what you've already provided. Ask whether they need anything else. Reference your previous communications.

Don't assume they have everything. Sometimes documents get lost or misfiled.

Step 5: Manage your visa status while waiting

While your visa is processing, understand your current legal status.

If you hold a bridging visa:

You can stay and work in Australia lawfully until your main visa is decided or your bridging visa expires—whichever comes first.

Critical: Check your bridging visa expiry date. If it expires before your main visa is decided, you need to apply for a new bridging visa or depart Australia.

Understand your bridging visa rights.

If your current visa is expiring:

Your bridging visa should have been granted automatically when you applied for your main visa. If not, contact Home Affairs immediately. Leaving Australia without a visa (overstaying) is unlawful.

If you're on a visitor visa or other temporary visa:

Make sure you've applied for your main visa before your current visa expires. If your current visa expires and you haven't lodged a main visa application, you're in Australia unlawfully.

Step 6: Complain if service is poor

If you believe Home Affairs has provided poor service or unreasonably delayed your application, you can lodge a complaint.

Home Affairs complaint — the Global Feedback Unit:

Home Affairs' own complaints channel is the Global Feedback Unit (GFU), reached through the 'Compliments, complaints and suggestions' online form on homeaffairs.gov.au. Include:

• Your application ID.
• What went wrong (e.g., "No response for 18 months despite published time of 12 months").
• How the delay has affected you.
• What resolution you're seeking (e.g., expedited decision).

Home Affairs doesn't publish a fixed response time for a GFU complaint. Complaints are recorded but don't guarantee faster processing.

Commonwealth Ombudsman:

If Home Affairs' response to your complaint is unsatisfactory, you can escalate to the Commonwealth Ombudsman, which investigates complaints about Australian Government agencies including Home Affairs.

What the Ombudsman can do:

• Investigate whether Home Affairs has acted unreasonably.
• Find that Home Affairs has breached natural justice or procedural fairness.
• Make recommendations for improvement.

What the Ombudsman cannot do:

• Force Home Affairs to approve your visa.
• Overturn migration decisions.
• Guarantee faster processing.

How to contact the Ombudsman:

Visit ombudsman.gov.au. Complaints are free and can be lodged online. The Ombudsman's site sets out its own current investigation timeframes — check there rather than assuming a fixed number, since this varies by case.

Step 7: Ministerial intervention doesn't apply to a simply slow application

It's worth being clear about this, because it's a common misunderstanding: ministerial intervention under sections 351 and 501J of the Migration Act is not a way to escalate a visa that's simply taking a long time to be decided.

What ministerial intervention actually is:

Home Affairs' own guidance states you must have a decision from a review tribunal — the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART), or the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) for a decision made before the ART replaced it on 14 October 2024 — before the Minister can exercise this power. It lets the Minister personally consider replacing a tribunal's decision with a more favourable one, if the Minister thinks it's in the public interest. The Minister is not required to consider any request and is not bound by any timeframe.

Why it doesn't fit a pending, undecided application:

If your visa application hasn't been refused and reviewed by a tribunal, there is no tribunal decision for the Minister to replace — so ministerial intervention isn't available to you yet, however long you've waited. It becomes relevant only after a tribunal has reviewed a refusal or cancellation and confirmed it.

If you do have a tribunal decision and want to request intervention:

Submit the request through the 'Contact the Minister' online form on homeaffairs.gov.au, or write to the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship at the current postal address published on that same page. The request must be in writing, identify everyone it covers, name the tribunal decision and which of the Minister's published referral criteria it relies on, and provide certified copies of supporting documents. The Minister's power is non-delegable and non-compellable — only the Minister personally can use it, and there's no right to have a request considered or a guaranteed outcome.

Common mistakes people make

Mistake 1: Applying for another visa while the first is processing.

Home Affairs will likely cancel your first application if you lodge a second. Don't do this unless you've been advised to by an agent.

Mistake 2: Ignoring information requests.

If Home Affairs asks for more information, respond immediately. Missing deadlines leads to refusal.

Mistake 3: Overstaying your current visa.

If your current visa is expiring, ensure your main visa application is lodged or a bridging visa has been granted. Overstaying is unlawful and can affect future visas.

Mistake 4: Assuming delays mean refusal.

Delays don't indicate approval or refusal. Your application is simply waiting. Don't panic and withdraw it.

Mistake 5: Not keeping your information current.

If you move house, change your phone number, or get married, tell Home Affairs immediately. Using outdated contact details can cause further delays.

Mistake 6: Not documenting your communication.

If you contact Home Affairs, keep records (email confirmations, phone reference numbers, letter dates). These help if you later need to escalate.

What to do right now

1. Check the published processing time. Visit immi.homeaffairs.gov.au for your visa subclass.
2. Log into ImmiAccount. View your current status and check for information requests.
3. Calculate how long you've waited. From date applied to today.
4. Compare: Is your wait longer than the published time? If yes, you may need to contact Home Affairs.
5. Check your bridging visa expiry. Mark your calendar if it's expiring soon.
6. Respond to any information requests immediately. Don't ignore Home Affairs.
7. Contact Home Affairs if you suspect a serious delay. Use ImmiAccount to send a status inquiry.

Your next move

Visa delays are frustrating, but they're normal. Most applications eventually get decided. Some take longer than others.

Understand your published processing time. Keep your information current. Respond immediately to information requests. If delays are genuinely severe, consider a complaint to the Ombudsman or ministerial intervention.

Book a consultation with a MARA-registered migration agent if you're unsure about your status or next steps. They can review your case and advise whether escalation is appropriate.

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How do I check how long my visa should be taking?

Home Affairs publishes processing times for each visa subclass and stream at immi.homeaffairs.gov.au, updated roughly monthly. They're built from the 25th to 90th percentile of recently decided applications, with a median in between — not a promise about any individual case, and they don't describe the queue of applications still waiting.

Does calling or emailing Home Affairs speed up my application?

There's no published guarantee that it does. Home Affairs will generally confirm your application is still being processed and give you a generic timeframe; it rarely accelerates a case just because it was asked about.

What's the difference between a Global Feedback Unit complaint and a Commonwealth Ombudsman complaint?

The Global Feedback Unit (GFU) is Home Affairs' own internal complaints channel. The Commonwealth Ombudsman is a separate, external body you can go to if the GFU's response is unsatisfactory — it can investigate whether Home Affairs acted unreasonably and make recommendations, but it can't force a visa approval, overturn a migration decision, or guarantee faster processing.

Can I ask the Minister to intervene because my application is taking too long?

No. Ministerial intervention under sections 351 and 501J of the Migration Act only applies after a review tribunal has reviewed a refusal or cancellation — the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART), or the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) for a decision made before the ART replaced it on 14 October 2024. It isn't available for an application that's simply pending and hasn't been refused, however long the wait.

Does a long wait mean my visa will be refused?

Not by itself. A delay can reflect background, health or character checks, evidence requests, relationship or employment verification, or high application volumes — none of which indicate the outcome. Check ImmiAccount for your current status and respond to any information request Home Affairs has sent you.