Most Popular Australian Visas by Application Volume (2026 Data)
Australia processes millions of visa applications every year, but the distribution is wildly uneven. A handful of visa subclasses account for the vast majority of applications, while dozens of niche categories see only a few hundred. The most popular Australian visas by volume tell a clear story about what people want from Australia: tourism, education, work experience, and permanent settlement — roughly in that order.
Understanding which visas are most popular also reveals where the system is under pressure, where processing times are longest, and where policy changes have the biggest impact. When the government doubled the Student visa fee to AUD $2,000, it affected more applications than any other single policy change in recent memory.
Here are Australia's visas ranked by application and grant volume.
1. Visitor Visa (Subclass 600) + eVisitor (651) + ETA (601) — Millions Per Year
Combine all visitor-type visas and you're looking at millions of grants per year. This is by far the largest category in Australia's visa system.
Estimated annual volumes:
- eVisitor (651): 1+ million grants
- ETA (601): hundreds of thousands of grants
- Visitor (600): hundreds of thousands of grants
- Total visitor category: well over 2 million grants per year
The eVisitor alone processes over a million European travellers annually. Add ETA grants for Americans, Canadians, Japanese, and others, plus formal Visitor 600 applications, and the visitor category dwarfs everything else.
This volume is why the eVisitor and ETA systems are heavily automated — manually processing millions of applications would be impossible. The free cost of the eVisitor and the AUD $20 ETA fee are designed to minimise barriers to tourism, which contributes over AUD $60 billion annually to Australia's economy.
Revenue generated: Despite the low individual fees, the sheer volume means the ETA alone generates significant revenue. The Visitor 600 at AUD $200 per application contributes hundreds of millions.
2. Student Visa (Subclass 500) — 350,000+ Grants Per Year
The Student visa is Australia's second-most-popular visa and its most controversial. With over 350,000 grants per year at its peak, international education became Australia's fourth-largest export sector.
Key volume data:
- Peak grants: 350,000+ per year (pre-reform)
- 2025-26 cap: 295,000 new commencements
- Application fee: AUD $2,000
- Revenue generated: approximately AUD $700 million in visa fees alone
- Plus tuition contribution: AUD $40+ billion per year to the economy
The student visa fee doubling from AUD $710 to AUD $1,600 (then to AUD $2,000) was specifically designed to reduce volumes. Combined with the 295,000 student cap and the Genuine Student (GS) test replacing the old GTE test, the government has been actively trying to bring numbers down.
The cap has been controversial. Universities argue it threatens their financial viability. The government argues the previous volume was unsustainable and attracted too many applicants whose primary motivation was work rather than study.
Top source countries for student visas include India, China, Nepal, Colombia, and the Philippines.
3. Working Holiday Visas (Subclass 417 + 462) — 200,000+ Combined
Together, the WHV 417 and Work and Holiday 462 bring over 200,000 young workers to Australia each year.
Volume breakdown:
- Subclass 417: approximately 150,000+ grants per year
- Subclass 462: approximately 50,000+ grants per year
- Second-year extensions: significant additional volume
- Third-year extensions: smaller but growing
- Application fee: AUD $640 each
The WHV 417 is the more popular of the two, available to citizens of 19 countries including the UK, Ireland, Canada, France, Germany, and South Korea. The 462 covers 26 additional countries including the USA, China, and Indonesia.
Working holidaymakers are the backbone of Australia's agricultural and hospitality sectors. The program is estimated to contribute over AUD $3 billion annually through spending, taxes, and labour supply.
Interesting trend: Post-COVID, working holiday numbers initially dropped but have recovered strongly. The extension of age limits to 35 for some nationalities has expanded the eligible pool.
4. Skills in Demand / Employer-Sponsored Visas (Subclass 482 SID) — Growing Fast
The new SID visa, which replaced the TSS 482 in December 2024, is seeing rapid uptake as employers adjust to the new framework.
Volume data:
- Combined employer-sponsored temporary grants: 80,000-100,000+ per year
- Specialist Skills stream: growing fastest due to streamlined processing
- Core Skills stream: steady demand aligned with occupation lists
- Application fee: AUD $3,210
Employer sponsorship has become an increasingly popular pathway as the government emphasises filling skills gaps. The SID visa's three-stream structure (Specialist Skills, Core Skills, Essential Skills) is designed to attract workers at all salary levels.
The Specialist Skills stream, with its 15-business-day processing target for applicants earning above AUD $135,000, has been particularly popular with the tech and resources sectors.
5. Partner Visas (Subclass 820/801 + 309/100) — 40,000-50,000 Per Year
Partner visas consistently account for a large portion of Australia's family migration program, with 40,000-50,000 grants per year across temporary and permanent stages.
Volume data:
- Annual grants: 40,000-50,000 (both stages combined)
- Application fee: AUD $9,365
- Revenue generated: approximately AUD $400-$470 million
- Processing backlog: tens of thousands of applications
- Average wait: 16-24 months for the temporary stage
Partner visas take the lion's share of the family migration program allocation. Within the overall permanent migration cap of 185,000 places, the family stream receives approximately 52,000 places — and Partner visas consume most of them.
This dominance of family stream places by Partner visas is one reason the Parent visa queue is so long — there simply aren't enough remaining places for other family categories.
6. Skilled Independent (189) + Nominated (190) + Regional (491) — Combined Skilled Stream
Australia's points-tested skilled visas collectively account for a significant chunk of the permanent migration program.
Volume data:
- 189 Skilled Independent: varies by invitation round (typically 16,000-25,000 per year)
- 190 Skilled Nominated: 20,000-30,000 per year
- 491 Skilled Work Regional: 15,000-25,000 per year
- Combined: 50,000-80,000 grants across categories
- Application fee: AUD $4,910 each
The balance between these three categories shifts based on government priorities. Recent years have seen greater emphasis on the 491 regional visa, with states and territories allocated more nomination places to encourage settlement outside major cities.
The 189 remains the most competitive — check the most in-demand occupations to understand current invitation trends.
7. Temporary Graduate Visa (Subclass 485) — 50,000-70,000 Per Year
The 485 is the natural next step for international students and processes a significant volume each year.
Volume data:
- Annual grants: 50,000-70,000
- Application fee: AUD $4,600 (from March 2026)
- Revenue: approximately AUD $230-$320 million
- Most popular for: IT, engineering, accounting, and nursing graduates
The 485 has become a critical pipeline for skilled migration. Many 485 holders use their 2-4 years of post-study work rights to gain Australian experience, improve their English scores, and build employer relationships that lead to sponsorship or points-based migration.
The fee increase to AUD $4,600 hasn't significantly reduced demand because the alternative — leaving Australia immediately after graduation — is unappealing to most students who've invested years and substantial money in their education.
8. Employer Nomination Scheme (Subclass 186) — Steady PR Pathway
The 186 is the permanent visa that employer-sponsored workers transition to from their temporary 482 SID visa.
Volume data:
- Annual grants: 30,000-40,000
- Application fee: AUD $4,910
- Three streams: Temporary Residence Transition, Direct Entry, Labour Agreement
- Most popular pathway: TRT stream (after 2+ years on a 482/SID)
The 186 is one of the most reliable pathways to permanent residency for skilled workers. If you've been sponsored by your employer for 2+ years and meet the requirements, the approval rate is high.
9. Sponsored Parent Visa (Subclass 870) — Growing Niche
The 870 is relatively new and growing in popularity as families seek alternatives to the decades-long parent visa queues.
Volume data:
- Annual grants: growing (exact numbers not always published)
- 3-year visa fee: AUD $5,735
- 5-year visa fee: AUD $12,140
- Maximum total stay: 10 years across two grants
The 870 fills a gap for families who can't afford the AUD $48,640 Contributory Parent visa or can't wait 30+ years for the non-contributory option. It's temporary and offers no work rights, but it keeps families together.
10. Contributory Parent Visa (Subclass 143/864) — High Revenue, Lower Volume
Despite lower application volumes, the Contributory Parent visa generates massive revenue due to its AUD $48,640 total fee.
Volume data:
- Annual grants: approximately 5,000-8,000
- Total fee: AUD $48,640
- Revenue per visa: the highest in the system
- Processing: 5-7 years
The 143 is a study in contrasts: relatively low volume but among the highest revenue-generating visas in the system. Each grant represents a family's decision to invest nearly AUD $50,000 to bring a parent to Australia rather than wait 30+ years in the non-contributory queue.
The Bigger Picture: Where Does the Money Go?
Australian visa fees generate billions in revenue for the government:
| Visa Category | Estimated Annual Revenue |
|---|---|
| Visitor (600/651/601) | AUD $200M+ |
| Student (500) | AUD $700M+ |
| WHV (417/462) | AUD $130M+ |
| Partner (820/801) | AUD $400M+ |
| Skilled (189/190/491) | AUD $300M+ |
| 485 Graduate | AUD $250M+ |
| 482 SID | AUD $250M+ |
| Parent (143/864) | AUD $300M+ |
This revenue funds the Department of Home Affairs, border operations, compliance activities, and various government programs. Immigration fees are a significant revenue source — which is one reason they keep going up.
What These Numbers Mean for Your Application
High-volume visas tend to have:
- More automated processing — faster decisions for clean applications
- More established procedures — well-understood requirements
- More policy attention — changes are more likely when volume is high
- More competition — especially for capped visas like the Student 500
Low-volume visas tend to have:
- Less predictable processing — fewer case officers specialise in them
- Less public information — harder to find guidance
- Longer waits — smaller teams processing fewer applications
- Less policy change — they fly under the radar
For the visa changes that affected the most people in recent years, see our dedicated article.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which visa generates the most revenue for the government?
By total category revenue, the Student visa (500) likely generates the most due to its combination of high volume (295,000+ cap) and significant fee (AUD $2,000). The Partner visa category is also a major revenue source. On a per-visa basis, the Contributory Parent visa (143) at AUD $48,640 generates the most per grant.
Are popular visas easier to get?
Not necessarily. High volume can mean more competition (Student 500 with its 295,000 cap) or it can mean streamlined processing (eVisitor with automated approval). Popularity reflects demand, not difficulty. See our ranking of the easiest visas for difficulty-based analysis.
How do I know which visa is right for me?
Start with your purpose: visiting (eVisitor/ETA/600), studying (500), working holiday (417/462), skilled work (189/190/482), or joining family (Partner/Parent). Then check eligibility for your nationality and circumstances. The complete fee schedule lists all current subclasses and their costs.
Will Australia reduce visa numbers in the future?
The government has already reduced targets in some categories — the student cap of 295,000 and the permanent migration cap of 185,000 are both deliberate controls. Future changes will depend on economic conditions, political priorities, and public sentiment. The trend in recent years has been toward more managed, lower overall numbers.
