189 Invitation Round June 2026: Official Occupation Scores

The Department of Home Affairs has published the official occupation scores for the 4 June 2026 Subclass 189 invitation round.

This was the final 189 round of the 2025-26 migration program year. A total of 10,000 EOIs were invited. The tie-break date was April 2026, which means applicants who submitted or last updated their EOI after April 2026 may have missed out even if they had a competitive points score.

Below is the full official list, grouped by cut-off score.

Official Scores for Every Occupation

65 Points (15 occupations)

70 Points (1 occupation)

75 Points (24 occupations)

80 Points (72 occupations)

85 Points (15 occupations)

90 Points (2 occupations)

95 Points (10 occupations)

100 Points (1 occupation)

Source: Department of Home Affairs, SkillSelect invitation rounds page.

What the Numbers Actually Mean

The cut-off score is not something the Department sets in advance. It is the score at which each occupation pool ran out of places on that specific day.

Every applicant sits in a queue for their occupation. The Department works from the top of the queue downward, inviting the highest scoring applicants first, until the allocated places are used up. Whatever score the last invited applicant had, that becomes the cut-off.

This is why a Carpenter got in at 65 points while a Telecommunications Engineer needed 95. It has nothing to do with how skilled or qualified those applicants are. It comes down to how many people are competing in each pool.

Building trades have significant labour shortages in Australia and relatively few EOIs in the queue. The pool empties quickly at low scores. ICT and technical roles have far more applicants competing for the same places. The queue only clears when you reach the top performers.

The tie-break date of April 2026 also matters. If two applicants have the same score in the same occupation, the one who submitted or last updated their EOI earlier gets priority. Anyone who updated their EOI after April 2026 may have lost their queue position even with a strong points score.

Occupations That Were Not Invited

Not every occupation on the skilled occupation list received an invitation in this round. Notable omissions include ICT Specialists and Early Childhood Teachers, neither of which appear in the official data.

This does not mean those occupations will never be invited. It means the allocated places for those occupations were either not available in this round or the queue did not clear. They may be invited in the first round of the 2026-27 program year.

If your occupation was not invited, do not withdraw your EOI.

If You Were Invited

You have 60 days from the date on your invitation letter to lodge a complete Subclass 189 application. Missing that deadline means the invitation lapses. There is no extension.

Before you lodge, check the following:

• Every detail in your visa application matches what you claimed in your EOI exactly
• Your skills assessment is current and valid
• Your English test results are still within the validity period
• You have police clearances for every country you have lived in for 12 months or more in the past 10 years
• If you claimed partner points, your partner evidence is complete

A single discrepancy between your EOI and your visa application can create significant problems at the assessment stage. If you want a registered migration agent to review your application before you lodge, book a free consultation.

If You Were Not Invited

Your EOI carries forward automatically into the 2026-27 program year. Your Date of Effect is preserved. Do not withdraw your EOI and resubmit. Doing so resets your Date of Effect to today and moves you to the back of the queue.

The 2026-27 program year opens 1 July 2026. The first 189 round typically runs in July or August.

Use the time before the next round to look at your options:

Check your points. Look at every category: age, English, employment, qualifications, partner skills, Professional Year. Improving your English score alone can add up to 20 points and is often the highest-impact change available.

Consider the Subclass 190. State nomination adds 5 points to your score and opens a separate pathway. South Australia and the ACT run active nomination programs and in some cases invite occupations that are highly competitive in the federal 189 pool.

Consider the Subclass 491. Regional provisional nomination adds 15 points. After three years in regional Australia, you can apply for the Subclass 191 permanent visa. If your occupation is in demand regionally, this can be a faster path to permanent residency than waiting for a competitive 189 cut-off.

Not sure which pathway suits your situation? Use our free points calculator or book a free profile assessment.

The Mistakes That Cost Applicants Time and Money

These are the errors we see most often after invitation rounds.

Withdrawing the EOI after not being invited. This is the most damaging thing you can do. It resets your Date of Effect and puts you at the back of the queue. Never withdraw unless you have a specific reason to do so.

Comparing scores across occupations. A Carpenter being invited at 65 points tells you nothing about what a Software Engineer needs. The pools are completely separate.

Treating the cut-off as a target. Cut-off scores shift between rounds depending on how many people are in each pool. Aiming to just reach this round's cut-off does not account for increased competition in the next round.

Making unnecessary updates to the EOI. Every time you update your EOI, your Date of Effect resets. Only update when something genuinely changes in your circumstances.

Assuming your points claim is correct. An employment period miscalculated by a few days, an expired English test, or missing partner evidence can mean your points claim does not hold up under assessment. Have it verified before the next round.