Agriculture Restored to Skilled Visa Priority List

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke has announced agriculture will be elevated back to a priority sector under the skilled visa processing system, after a recent slowdown left migrant applications facing lengthy delays and farmers across the country struggling to fill their workforce needs.

The move follows sustained pressure from agricultural groups, with the sector now calling for the backlog of applications already in the system to be cleared.

Australian Dairy Farmers President Ben Bennett says farmers who have already been waiting months for visas need clarity on when their applications will be reprioritised and how quickly the backlog will be cleared.

He says farmers have already invested in recruitment and visa sponsorship arrangements and need workers to arrive when they are required.

The change comes as growers prepare for the upcoming harvest, with Grain Producers Australia Chair Matthew Madden saying many grain growers rely on Working Holiday Makers to meet staffing needs at critical times.

Grain Producers SA says the issue is particularly important in South Australia, where the workforce required for a potentially record grain harvest cannot be left to chance.

Chief Executive Brad Perry says producers and contractors are making recruitment decisions now, with harvest only months away.

He says a visa processing timeframe of up to three months could leave workers arriving after harvest has already begun, while workers also need time to complete inductions and become familiar with machinery and farm operations.

However, concerns remain over separate changes to the Working Holiday Maker program, which will introduce ballots for people applying for second and third-year visas.

The second-year ballot will be capped at 45,000 places, compared with around 57,000 people who qualified last year.

The third-year ballot will be limited to 5,000 places, down from around 31,000 people in that group last year.

GrainGrowers CEO Shona Gawel says Working Holiday Makers have historically made up around 31 per cent of the grains workforce, with demand particularly high between September and January during harvest.

The concerns extend to the vegetable sector, with AUSVEG reporting half of growers experienced workforce and skills shortages in its most recent industry sentiment survey.

The organisation says 65 per cent expect those shortages to continue and is seeking more detail on how the new Working Holiday Maker ballots will operate, including how places will be allocated throughout the year.

AUSVEG says some seasonal jobs remain heavily dependent on migrant workers, despite continued investment in technology and mechanisation.