Australian Visa Changes from 1 July 2026: Fees, TSMIT, Working Holiday Age Rules & More

Every 1 July, Australia's migration settings reset for the new financial year — and 2026 brought one of the broader rounds of change in recent memory. Fees rose across almost every visa category, the salary floor for sponsored workers moved up, Working Holiday rules shifted, and review and court fees climbed too. None of it is dramatic on its own, but together it changes the maths for anyone applying, sponsoring or appealing from 1 July 2026 onward.

1. Visa application fees have gone up

Most Australian visa application charges increased from 1 July 2026. The general rise is around 25%, applied across the bulk of visa subclasses. A smaller set of categories was held to the annual Consumer Price Index movement — roughly 2.6% — rather than the full increase.

The lower, CPI-only increase generally applies to:

• Humanitarian and Protection visas
• Pacific Engagement and Regional Mobility visas
• Eligible Student visa applicants
• Eligible citizens of Pacific Island countries and Timor-Leste applying under relevant Australian programs

A handful of subclasses moved on their own schedule outside these two bands, including the Working Holiday (417), Work and Holiday (462), Bridging Visa B, and certain New Zealand family visa categories. Because the exact figure varies by subclass, always confirm the current charge on the Department of Home Affairs fee schedule before you lodge — don't budget off last year's number.

2. Citizenship application fees also rose

Australian citizenship application fees increased from 1 July 2026 as well, broadly in line with CPI. If citizenship is on your horizon, check the updated fee before you submit — it is a small line item that is easy to overlook when you're focused on eligibility.

3. A higher salary floor for employer-sponsored visas

The Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT) — the minimum guaranteed annual earnings a sponsor must offer — has increased to AUD 79,423 for nominations lodged on or after 1 July 2026. This is the baseline employers must clear before other market-salary rules apply.

The higher TSMIT flows through to:

If you are an employer, check every nomination lodged from 1 July 2026 against the new figure before submission — a nomination priced against the old threshold risks refusal.

4. High-income threshold up for some 186 applicants

Separately, the Fair Work High Income Threshold increased from AUD 183,100 to AUD 190,100 per year. This mainly matters for applicants relying on the high-income age exemption under the Employer Nomination Scheme (Subclass 186) — a pathway that allows older, high-earning nominees to bypass the standard age limit. Anyone planning to use that exemption now needs to clear the new, higher figure.

5. Working Holiday visa: age is assessed at lodgement

For both the Working Holiday visa (Subclass 417) and the Work and Holiday visa (Subclass 462), age eligibility is now locked in at the time of lodgement, rather than reassessed later during processing as before.

If you are close to the maximum age limit, the safest move is to lodge as early as possible — processing delays can no longer work in your favour the way they once did.

6. Maximum age lifted for some Working Holiday applicants

Australia raised the Working Holiday (417) maximum age from 30 to 35 for passport holders from a specific group of countries:

• Cyprus
• Finland
• Germany
• Republic of Korea (South Korea)

This change reflects reciprocal arrangements with those countries. Existing age limits continue to apply for applicants from other eligible countries unless separate bilateral agreements are announced.

7. Review and court fees have increased

Appeal and judicial review costs rose too — worth knowing if a refusal is on the table:

Reduced fees may still be available for eligible applicants at both the Tribunal and the Court, so it's worth checking your circumstances rather than assuming the standard rate applies.

8. ImmiAccount now limits how many times you can import an application

The Department of Home Affairs has introduced a new cap on ImmiAccount: a single visa application can now be imported a maximum of three times. After that, no further imports are permitted unless the Department manually resets the limit.

This matters most for migration agents and organisations managing applications across multiple staff or users. Rather than repeatedly re-importing the same application, use ImmiAccount's Assign or Share functions to give colleagues access. The Department has framed this change as a privacy and anti-fraud measure — but in practice, it also means poor account hygiene can now genuinely lock you out of your own file.

What this means for you

None of these changes are individually alarming, but stacked together they reward applicants and sponsors who plan ahead rather than react at the last minute:

• Check the current visa application charge for your specific subclass before lodging — don't rely on last year's figure.
• If you're an employer, confirm nominated salaries meet the new TSMIT (and the Fair Work High Income Threshold, if using the 186 age exemption) before lodging.
• If you're eligible for the raised Working Holiday age cap, or close to the standard cap, lodge early — age is now locked in at submission.
• Budget for higher review and court fees if an appeal is a realistic possibility.
• Coordinate ImmiAccount access with Assign/Share rather than repeated imports, especially if more than one person manages your file.

Most of these settings apply only to applications lodged on or after 1 July 2026 — so timing can affect both your eligibility and what you end up paying.

Get the current settings checked before you lodge

Migration rules move fast, and every applicant's situation is different. MAP's MARA-registered migration agent (MARN 2619348) can confirm the current fees and thresholds for your exact visa, explain how the 1 July 2026 changes affect your plans, and help you put together a strong application under the new settings.