Explainer
Are permanent migration outcomes all new arrivals to Australia?
Explains why many Australian permanent visa outcomes are granted to people already in Australia, while others are granted offshore and later become arrival pressure.
No. Permanent migration outcomes are not all new arrivals. In 2024-25, Home Affairs recorded 101,022 permanent Migration Program outcomes for people who were in Australia at the time of application and 83,979 for people outside Australia.
Location at application is not a full visa history.
The onshore/offshore split tells us whether the person was in Australia or outside Australia at the time of application. It does not show every visa they ever held, but it is still useful for housing and settlement analysis.
An onshore applicant is often already housed, spending money, studying or working, and partly integrated into Australian systems. An offshore applicant is more likely to create a new arrival and settlement event when they move.
PR can be the end of a visa pathway.
Many migrants move through several visa stages before PR: student, temporary graduate, employer sponsored, provisional, partner, or other pathways. Others apply offshore, wait overseas, and arrive as permanent residents.
For offshore permanent visas, grant letters can include a specified first-entry date. TAMM treats practical relocation delays as relevant for timing, while keeping the broad model focused on annual flows.
Related questions
Does onshore mean the migrant is new to Australia?
Usually no. Onshore means they were in Australia at the time of application, so the person may already be part of local housing, work, or study systems.
Does offshore PR count in NOM immediately?
Not because of the visa grant alone. The person affects NOM when they arrive and meet the ABS residence rule.
Sources
- Home Affairs 2024-25 Migration Program Report Skill-stream outcome of 132,148 places, occupation-unit tables for Skill-stream primary applicants, and the 2024-25 onshore/offshore location split at time of application.
- ABS Pathways to permanency Shows how many permanent migrants first arrived on temporary visas, including student-to-skilled and skilled-to-skilled pathways, and the average time from temporary entry to permanent residence.
- Home Affairs travel facilitation letter request Confirms that permanent and provisional visa grant letters can include a specified first-entry arrival date.
- Home Affairs Pacific Engagement visa first-entry guidance Example offshore permanent resident visa guidance stating that first entry is generally 12 months from the date of visa grant.
The full evidence trail is on the Sources page.