If you are planning a 407 visa in 2026, the biggest change is about where you are standing when you apply. From 12 November 2026, a Training visa (subclass 407) application made while you are in Australia is invalid. You must be outside Australia when you lodge and outside Australia when the visa is granted. These 407 visa changes 2026 sit on top of a March 2026 rule that already requires your sponsor and nomination to be approved before you can apply at all.

This guide explains exactly what changed, who is caught by it, what happens to applications already lodged, and how applicants from India, Malaysia and onshore in Australia should plan from here. Information is current as at 10 November 2026 and checked against the Department of Home Affairs notice and the amending regulations on the Federal Register of Legislation.

Key facts: 407 visa changes at a glance

• Start date: 12 November 2026, for applications made on or after that date.
• Location at lodgement: you must be outside Australia when you apply.
• Location at grant: you must be outside Australia (and not in immigration clearance) when the visa is granted.
• Onshore applications: invalid, even if ImmiAccount lets you submit. An invalid-application decision cannot be merits reviewed.
• Bridging visa: none. An offshore application does not give you a bridging visa.
• Sponsor and nomination first: since 11 March 2026, your sponsor must be an approved temporary activities sponsor and your nomination must be approved before you apply (Commonwealth agency sponsors do not need a nomination).
• Already lodged? A valid application made before 12 November 2026 is not affected by the new rules, including the March 2026 changes.
• Exemptions: the Minister can specify classes of people who may still apply and be granted in Australia. As at 10 November 2026, no such class had been published in the material we reviewed.
• Stay: the 407 can be granted for up to two years.

What the Training visa (subclass 407) is for

The 407 is a temporary visa for structured, workplace-based training in Australia. The explanatory statement to the 2026 amendments describes it as a visa for people undertaking "workplace-based training to improve skills for their current occupation, area of tertiary study or field of expertise, or a professional development training program". It is sponsored: an Australian organisation must be approved as a temporary activities sponsor and, in most cases, must have a nomination approved for the specific training before you can lodge.

It is not designed as a stepping stone to permanent residence, and the government has now said so directly. Attachment A to the explanatory statement states that the 407 "is generally not suitable as an onshore pathway for temporary visa holders to remain in Australia". That sentence explains almost everything about the November change.

What changed on 12 November 2026

The change is made by the Migration Amendment (Training Visas—Application Requirements) Regulations 2026 (F2026L01449), registered on 30 October 2026. It amends two parts of the Migration Regulations 1994:

1. Schedule 1, item 1238 (the validity rules for a Training visa application): the applicant must be outside Australia at the time of application, unless they belong to a class specified by the Minister.
2. Schedule 2, clause 407.411 (the time-of-grant rules): the applicant must be outside Australia, and not in immigration clearance, when the visa is granted, unless they were in a specified class when they applied.

The Home Affairs notice on the 407 changes puts it plainly: "Applicants must be outside Australia when they apply for a Training visa and when we grant it." It also warns that your application will be invalid if you apply while in Australia "even if ImmiAccount allows you to submit an application". Do not treat a successful online submission as proof that the application is valid.

Why the government made the change

According to the explanatory statement, the amendments "support a more sustainable migration system by curbing a pathway for lodging and being granted successive temporary visa applications in Australia". In practice, some people were using the 407 to stay onshore after a student or graduate visa ended, holding a bridging visa while the 407 was processed. Requiring offshore lodgement and offshore grant removes that bridging visa and breaks the chain of back-to-back onshore applications.

Separately, Home Affairs has been conducting a review of the Training (subclass 407) visa program, which it says also considers the risk of exploitation of migrant workers. More changes to the program are possible, so check the official page before you lodge.

The earlier change: sponsorship and nomination must be approved first (11 March 2026)

The November rule builds on reforms that started on 11 March 2026. Before then, many sponsors lodged the sponsorship, nomination and visa application at the same time. That is no longer allowed. Under the current rules, before you apply you must wait for:

• your sponsor to be approved as a temporary activities sponsor; and
• your nomination to be approved, unless your sponsor is a Commonwealth agency.

Together, the two changes create a strict sequence. Sponsor approval, then nomination approval, then an offshore visa application, then an offshore grant. A gap in any step pushes your start date back.

How the 407 process works now: step by step

1. Confirm the training fits the visa. The training must be genuine workplace-based or professional development training linked to your occupation, tertiary study or field of expertise. Ordinary employment described as "training" is a common reason for refusal.
2. Sponsor applies for temporary activities sponsor approval. If your organisation is not already approved, this comes first.
3. Sponsor lodges the nomination for your training. This sets out the training program. Your sponsor should prepare a detailed, realistic training plan with supervision, outcomes and hours.
4. Wait for the nomination to be approved. You cannot lodge a valid 407 application until this happens (except for Commonwealth agency sponsors).
5. Leave Australia, if you are here, before lodging. For applications made on or after 12 November 2026, you must be physically outside Australia when you click submit.
6. Lodge the 407 application in ImmiAccount. Attach identity, training, English, health and character documents as requested.
7. Respond to requests for biometrics, health examinations or more information. Keep your contact details current.
8. Be outside Australia at the time of grant. You may travel to Australia on another valid visa during processing, but you must be offshore on the day the 407 is granted.
9. Travel and start training once the visa is granted, and follow the conditions on your grant letter.

Timeline of the 2026 Training visa reforms

Date	What happened	Effect on applicants
11 March 2026	Sponsorship requirements reform commenced	Sponsor approval and nomination approval must come before the 407 application. No concurrent lodgement.
30 October 2026	F2026L01449 registered; Home Affairs notice published	Advance notice of the location rules.
12 November 2026	Application Requirements Regulations commence	Applicants must be outside Australia at lodgement and at grant. Onshore applications are invalid. No bridging visa.
Future (not yet specified)	Minister may specify exempt classes	Specified classes could apply and be granted onshore. None published as at 10 November 2026.

Who is affected by the 407 visa changes

People already in Australia on another visa

This group is hit hardest. If you are on a student visa, a Temporary Graduate (485) visa, a visitor visa or any other temporary visa and you planned to apply for a 407 onshore, that option closed on 12 November 2026 unless your application was validly made before that date. You now have to leave Australia to apply and be offshore again at grant. Because there is no bridging visa, you must also keep your current visa valid, or depart, while the sponsor and nomination steps are completed.

If your current visa is ending soon, plan your departure date and your lawful status first, then work backwards. Overstaying while waiting for a nomination can create problems for future applications.

Applicants from India and Malaysia

For most applicants applying from home, the core process does not change: you were always going to apply from outside Australia. What matters for you:

• Do not fly in early and lodge from Australia. If you travel on a visitor visa to meet your host organisation and then lodge your 407 while in Australia, the application is invalid.
• Plan any visit around the grant. You can visit Australia on a valid visitor visa or ETA (Malaysian passport holders may be eligible for an ETA) while the 407 is processed, but you must be back outside Australia when the 407 is granted. Visitor visas do not permit you to start the training or work.
• Get documents ready early. Police certificates, degree transcripts, employment references and English evidence take time to obtain in India and Malaysia. Since you can only lodge after nomination approval, have them ready so you lodge the day the nomination is approved.
• Allow for health and biometrics steps. These are requested after lodgement and can add weeks depending on appointment availability in your city.

Australian sponsors and host organisations

Hospitals, research institutes, universities, government agencies and companies that bring in trainees need to adjust start dates. A trainee who is already onshore will need to depart to apply, and again needs to be offshore at grant. Build both trips into your onboarding timeline and budget.

Applications lodged before 12 November 2026

Home Affairs states: "If you submitted a valid Training visa application before 12 November 2026, the new rules will not apply to your application. This includes the changes that came into effect on 11 March 2026." If you lodged onshore before the deadline and hold a bridging visa, that arrangement continues under the old rules. Keep your lodgement receipt and make sure the original application was valid when made.

What about exemptions?

The regulations let the Minister make a separate legislative instrument specifying classes of people who can still apply for, and be granted, a 407 in Australia. The explanatory statement gives examples of when this might be used, such as "occupation sectors of genuine skills needs, or in the interest of maintaining family unity". It also notes the specified class must be in place at the time you apply.

As at 10 November 2026, no specifying instrument had been published in the sources we reviewed. Do not rely on an exemption until one is formally made and you have confirmed you fall within its exact wording. If one is released, Home Affairs is likely to update its 407 pages and the instrument will appear on the Federal Register of Legislation.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Trusting ImmiAccount. The system may accept an onshore lodgement. That does not make it valid, and you cannot seek merits review of an invalid application.
• Lodging before the nomination is approved. Since 11 March 2026, this is invalid unless your sponsor is a Commonwealth agency.
• Being in Australia on grant day. If you came in on a visitor visa to see your host, leave before the 407 is decided. Tell the department about travel if asked.
• Letting your current visa expire. With no bridging visa from an offshore 407 application, you must manage your status separately.
• Calling a job a training program. If the "training plan" is really productive work with little structured learning, expect scrutiny. Hours, supervision and outcomes need to be specific.
• Assuming the 407 leads to PR. It is a temporary visa. If permanent residence is your goal, look at skilled or employer sponsored pathways from the start.
• Relying on old blog posts. Many guides written before March or November 2026 describe concurrent lodgement and onshore applications. Both are now outdated.

Alternatives if the 407 no longer suits your plans

If you were looking at the 407 mainly to stay in Australia or to move towards permanent residence, another visa may be a better fit. Options worth assessing with a professional include:

• Skills in Demand (subclass 482) visa if an employer wants to employ you, rather than train you. See our guide to the 482 Skills in Demand visa: streams, salary and PR pathway and how to find a 482 sponsor employer.
• Temporary Graduate (subclass 485) visa if you recently completed eligible study in Australia. Check the 485 visa requirements for 2026.
• Skilled independent or state nominated visas if you have a positive skills assessment and enough points.

The 407 changes are part of a wider tightening of onshore temporary visa pathways this year. For context, read our summary of Australia's new migration rules from September 2026.

Fees and processing times

The 407 visa application charge is set out in the Migration Regulations and published on the Home Affairs visa pricing pages. Charges are usually indexed on 1 July each year, so use the official Visa Pricing Estimator for the current figure on the day you lodge, and remember that sponsorship and nomination carry their own fees paid by the sponsor. Processing times vary with the sponsor's history, the training program and how complete the application is. Check the official Training visa (subclass 407) page for the current global processing time before you set a start date.

How EazyViza can help

EazyViza is backed by Collins Quarters, a migration and commercial law firm with offices in Sydney, Melbourne, Chennai and Kuala Lumpur. Our team works with trainees and sponsors in Australia, India and Malaysia, and we can help you:

• check whether your situation is caught by the 12 November 2026 rules, or protected because you lodged earlier;
• plan departure and grant timing so you stay lawful and the application stays valid;
• review the training plan, nomination and supporting documents before anything is lodged;
• compare the 407 with 482, 485 and skilled visa options if your long-term goal is to stay in Australia.

Start with an initial assessment, try our free eligibility checker, or send us an enquiry.

Disclaimer

This article is general information only and is not legal advice. It reflects the law and Department of Home Affairs guidance as at 10 November 2026. Migration law changes often, and the Minister may specify exempt classes after publication. Get advice on your own circumstances from a registered migration agent or lawyer before you lodge.