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Skilled Independent visa (189) - Points tested stream
Check estimated processing times for the Australian Skilled Independent visa (Subclass 189) - Points tested stream stream. Based on data from 4.5 million visa decisions obtained from the Department of Home Affairs via FOI.
Your estimated processing time
7 months
Typical processing timeSeptember 2026
25% decided within6 months
75% decided within8 months
90% decided within9 months
Skilled Independent visa processing times by nationality
How long the Skilled Independent visa takes can vary depending on your passport, based on real decided applications: choose a nationality below for the full breakdown.| Nationality | Outside Australia | In Australia |
|---|---|---|
| People's Republic of China | 5 months | 3 months |
| Islamic Republic of Iran | 5 months | 3 months |
| Malaysia | 6 months | 3 months |
| Sri Lanka | 5 months | 3 months |
| Hong Kong | 6 months | 5 months |
| India | 8 months | 5 months |
| Ireland | 5 months | 6 months |
| South Korea | 6 months | 5 months |
| Pakistan | 7 months | 5 months |
| Singapore | 7 months | 5 months |
| South Africa | 7 months | 5 months |
| United Kingdom | 7 months | 5 months |
| Bangladesh | – | 5 months |
| Brazil | – | 5 months |
| Canada | – | 5 months |
| Indonesia | – | 5 months |
| Nepal | – | 5 months |
| Vietnam | – | 5 months |
| Philippines | 7 months | 6 months |
About Skilled Independent visa processing times
About this data
The times shown above are monthly averages for the Skilled Independent visa, aggregated across all applicants. Your actual processing time may differ significantly based on your citizenship and where you apply from.Where this data comes from
This data is derived from approximately 4.5 million visa grants obtained from the Department of Home Affairs via Freedom of Information request (Reference: DA25/10/00449), covering July 2024 to September 2025. View the released document.Methodology
Processing times shown are monthly averages for this visa subclass and stream, aggregated across all countries and application locations.Times are presented as percentiles (25th, 50th, 75th, 90th) showing what proportion of applicants received decisions within each timeframe.Data is updated monthly when new information becomes available from the Department of Home Affairs.