Home Affairs has not published the results of the 15 October subclass 189 round. What clients are sharing is an infographic of minimum points by occupation, compiled from applicants reporting their own invitations. It shows trades invited at 65 again.
If it holds up, a client in one of the trades below can be invited on 65 points. Last time, five of the same trades needed 80.
What is official and what is not
- Official. The invitation rounds page says the next subclass 189 round “will be held on 15 October 2026”. Its results table still shows the round of 4 June 2026: 10,000 invitations, tie break date 24 April 2026.
- Not official. The 15 October figures. They are self-reported, some occupations show several different minimums, and the infographic says itself that results were not available when it was made.
Treat the reported numbers as a prompt to look at your files, not as a basis for advice. The official table will replace them.
Reported against the 4 June round
The left column is Home Affairs’ published minimum from 4 June. The right column is the lowest score applicants reported for 15 October. Where applicants reported more than one score, the full range is in brackets.
Three things stand out, with the reporting caveat attached to all of them.
- Five trades are reported 15 points lower. Airconditioning and Refrigeration Mechanic, Cabinetmaker, Electronic Equipment Trades Worker, Sheetmetal Trades Worker and Automotive Electrician were at 80 on 4 June.
- The trades already at 65 stay at 65. The six listed were at 65 on 4 June.
- Some professions are reported higher, not lower. Social Worker and Secondary School Teacher move from 75 to 80, and Accountant appears at 100 where it was not in the 4 June table. The infographic shows Accountant at 100 only.
The comparison has a limit. We do not know how many invitations the 15 October round issued, and a bigger round reaches lower scores. A drop from 80 to 65 may say more about round size than about demand for the trade.
NSW has updated its 190 list, and it does not match the 189 trades one for one
NSW has published its subclass 190 Skills List for 2026-27. It has 78 ANZSCO unit groups. Migration consultants report that the program opened on 15 October and that the first invitation round is expected in the week of 19 October. We could not find that date on the NSW pages we read, so treat it as reported. NSW’s own page says only that rounds have no announced dates.
The NSW Skills List page says the update covers the subclass 190 only. A further update for the subclass 491 will come “when more information becomes available”.
Most of the trades in the table above sit in unit groups on the NSW list: Carpenters and Joiners, Bricklayers and Stonemasons, Plasterers, Wall and Floor Tilers, Plumbers, Painters, Cabinet and Furniture Makers, Airconditioning and Refrigeration Mechanics, Automotive Electricians, Sheetmetal Workers and Structural Steel and Welding Trades Workers. Two do not appear. Panelbeaters are not on the list, and neither are Accountants, who are reported at 100 on the 189.
The NSW Government page for the subclass 190 sets the rules, and it is blunt about them.
- You cannot apply. You submit an EOI in SkillSelect and are invited, at the NSW Government’s sole discretion.
- There are no announced dates. Rounds happen through the financial year.
- Ranking is by several factors. The page lists age, English, education, points score and years of skilled work, with the highest ranked EOIs in each ANZSCO unit group invited. When you submit or amend the EOI does not affect your chances.
- Residency is checked. Onshore: working in NSW in the nominated occupation for at least 20 hours a week, or living in NSW continuously for six months. Offshore: living offshore continuously for six months.
- You have 14 days. The invitation window is not extended. Every claim in the EOI needs a valid document.
- It says to look elsewhere. The page describes NSW nomination as exceptionally competitive and tells applicants not to wait for an invitation.
Being on the list means an occupation is eligible to be considered. It does not mean a client will be invited. Home Affairs shows what the states did before this opening. From 1 July to 31 August 2026, subclass 190 nominations were:
NSW’s 11 is a count of nominations made before the new program opened, so it says little about how many it will make from here. It is also a count of nominations, not invitations or registrations. Victoria’s zero fits its page saying the 2026-27 program has not yet opened, which we covered in our Victorian Points Test post.
If you have clients on 65 to 80
- Sort the caseload by occupation first. The trades above are where the reported scores moved. Everyone else is waiting on the official table.
- Do not tell a client to expect an invitation. The scores are reported, and a round of unknown size cannot be generalised.
- Check the date of effect. Equal scores are separated by when the EOI reached that score, so a client who has sat at 65 for a year ranks above one who reached 65 last month.
- Update every EOI claim that has changed. An invitation depends on points that can be proved. The free points calculator re-scores a client against the current table.
- Check the NSW list, but do not treat NSW as the fallback. Being on the list makes an occupation eligible to be considered. NSW says nomination is exceptionally competitive and that applicants should not wait for an invitation. Accountants and Panelbeaters are not on it at all.
- Read the official table when it is out. Compare it with the figures above and correct anything you have already said to a client.
If you are an agent
The useful number is how many clients sit within 15 points of a reported minimum in their occupation. That is a filter on occupation and points, not a manual review. If your caseload is a spreadsheet per client, it is an afternoon. If points, occupation and EOI date are fields on one client record, it is a sort. That is the argument for keeping the caseload in one workspace.
This is general information, not migration or legal advice. The 15 October 2026 figures are applicant-reported and unconfirmed. The comparison with the 4 June round, and the reading of what it might mean, are the author’s. Statements about NSW nomination are the author’s reading of the NSW Government page. Always confirm against the primary source before relying on it.
Sources:
- Department of Home Affairs: SkillSelect invitation rounds (read 16 October 2026; the page still showed the 4 June round, last updated 14 October 2026)
- NSW Government: Skilled Nominated visa (subclass 190)
- NSW Government: NSW skills lists
The opening date of 15 October and the expected first round in the week of 19 October come from migration consultants’ summaries, not from the NSW pages above.