Direction 117 and the partner visa queue.

A direction given by the Minister under section 499 of the Migration Act. Its full name is Direction 117—Order for considering and disposing of Family visa applications under sections 47 and 51 of the Migration Act 1958.

It sets the order in which Department of Home Affairs officers consider and decide partner, child, parent and other family visa applications, and officers must follow it.

Direction 117 s 1, 7 · s.499

It was signed on 24 July 2026 and commenced on 25 July 2026, the day after signing. It revoked Direction 102, which had applied since 9 February 2023.

Direction 117 s 2, 3

Sixteen classes of family visa, each named in the Direction. For partners they are:

• Partner (Temporary) and Partner (Residence), subclasses 820 and 801;
• Partner (Provisional) and Partner (Migrant), subclasses 309 and 100;
• Prospective Marriage, subclass 300.

The others are the child, parent, aged parent, contributory parent, contributory aged parent and other family classes, and Extended Eligibility (Temporary).

Direction 117 s 6(2) · Home Affairs, Partner visa FAQs

Yes. It applies to family applications made but not finally decided before it commenced, and to applications made on or after that date.

Direction 117 s 4(4)

No. It does not apply where it is readily apparent that the criteria for the visa would not be met. It does apply to an application the ART or an earlier tribunal has sent back to the Department, but it does not bind the ART itself.

For a refused application and Tribunal review, see refusals and ART review.

Direction 117 s 4(1)–(3)

No. It sets the order applications are reached in; every visa criterion still has to be met. The Department’s factsheet says: If we give your application a higher priority, this does not guarantee your visa will be granted.

Home Affairs, Partner visas: requests for priority processing

Yes. Direction 117 creates two tiers. The higher tier is applications where the primary applicant was in Australia when they applied, for a visa that can be granted in Australia. The lower tier is applications where the primary applicant was outside Australia when they applied, or must be outside Australia when the visa is granted.

The Department applies that to partner visas in these words: Highest priority is given to onshore Partner visa (subclass 820 and 801) applications. Lower priority is given to offshore Prospective Marriage visa (subclass 300) and Partner visa (subclass 309 and 100) applications.

Direction 117 s 8(1)–(2) · Home Affairs, Partner visas: requests for priority processing

Six groups, highest first:

1. applicants for whom the Minister has substituted a decision for a Tribunal decision (ministerial intervention);
2. partners (spouse, de facto partner or prospective spouse) and dependent children of the sponsor;
3. orphan relatives of the sponsor;
4. contributory parent and contributory aged parent visas;
5. carers;
6. parent and aged parent visas, remaining relatives and aged dependent relatives.

Within each group, the Department says applications are generally assessed in the order in which they are received.

Direction 117 s 8(3) · Home Affairs, Partner visas: requests for priority processing

In the same place as the primary applicant. An applicant relying on the secondary criteria takes the primary applicant’s priority, whether or not the two applications were combined.

Direction 117 s 8(4)

Yes. The tiers and groups mean a later application can be reached first, and the Migration Act provides that an earlier application is not unreasonably delayed only because a later one was considered or decided first.

Timing also varies inside a group. The Department’s factsheet says the time taken depends on factors that may include the quality and completeness of the application, an applicant’s responsiveness to requests for information, and the complexity involved in assessing relationship, character, health and security requirements.

s.51(2) · Direction 117 s 8, note · Home Affairs, Partner visas: requests for priority processing

By queue date, under a separate direction. Contributory parent, parent and other family (carer, remaining relative and aged dependent relative) applications are capped and queued, and Direction 103 sets their order. Where the two directions conflict, Direction 103 prevails.

The Department publishes queue release dates for parent visas and for other family visas.

Direction 117 s 5(4) · Home Affairs, family visa processing priorities

Only if the applicant satisfies the officer of two things: the application involves special circumstances of a compassionate nature, and there are compelling reasons to depart from the order. Where both are shown, the officer is to depart from the order for that application.

The Department’s factsheet says that to receive priority your circumstances must be an exception to the circumstances faced by the majority of Partner visa applicants, and that Most requests for priority processing cannot be approved.

Direction 117 s 9 · Home Affairs, Partner visas: requests for priority processing

Its factsheet lists these, and says the list is not exhaustive:

• financial hardship or other personal financial reasons, such as obtaining a bank loan or buying a property;
• intending to start a family, or pregnancy;
• the pain and suffering of separation;
• employment;
• pre-arranged wedding plans;
• a health assessment, police certificate or passport that is due to expire.

Where many applicants share similar circumstances, such as conflict or natural disaster in their region, the Department says it assesses that group in the order the applications were received.

Home Affairs, Partner visas: requests for priority processing

Through the Department’s Partner processing enquiry form, selecting I want to request priority processing and attaching a signed statement of the reasons. The evidence of the circumstances goes into ImmiAccount, and every document required for the visa must already be attached there.

If a request is declined, the Department considers a further one only where there has been a significant change in circumstances and new evidence is provided.

Home Affairs, Partner visas: requests for priority processing

Not until two years have passed since the partner visa application was made. The Department says that before then the applicant is not yet eligible to be assessed for the permanent visa, so it cannot consider a priority request.

The two-year point and its exceptions are on our partner visa guide.

Home Affairs, Partner visas: requests for priority processing · Home Affairs, Partner visa FAQs

No. The Department’s factsheet says not to request priority processing where the relationship has ended or the sponsor has died, and to complete the Notification of Relationship Cessation form in ImmiAccount instead.

What can happen to the application in that situation is covered in our partner visa guide.

Home Affairs, Partner visas: requests for priority processing

Five things, on the face of the two directions:

1. Onshore applications come first. Direction 102 had one order of six groups. Direction 117 keeps the six groups and runs them twice: first for applications made in Australia for a visa that can be granted here, then for applications made outside Australia or for a visa that must be granted outside.
2. Family members expressly share the primary applicant’s place. Direction 117 adds a rule giving secondary applicants the primary applicant’s priority, whether or not their applications were combined.
3. Family visas are a closed list. Direction 102 defined them by the category of primary applicant, including repealed classes. Direction 117 names sixteen classes.
4. A new matter for officers to weigh. Section 7 now directs officers following the order to have due regard to the Government’s policy intentions for the size and composition of the Migration Program and also to Australia’s international legal obligations. Section 7 of Direction 102 contained neither.
5. The Tribunal references are updated. Direction 102 referred to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal; Direction 117 refers to the ART or a predecessor of the ART.

The exception for compassionate and compelling circumstances is word for word the same in both.

Direction 117 s 4, 6(2), 7, 8(2), 8(4), 9 · Direction 102 ss 4, 6(2), 7, 8, 9