Skilled Migration Accessibility Index 2026

Key findings

• 2 tracked routes score as more accessible planning profiles, combining lower applicant cost, lower salary or funds exposure, sponsor flexibility and stronger clock transparency.
• 20 routes have a route-specific salary or income threshold mapped into the score, while 28 routes connect to the processing-time reliability index.
• The median tracked route has about $2,146 in mandatory non-refundable cost after approximate USD normalisation.
• Every row links back to the source datasets for cost-to-complete, processing reliability, salary thresholds and visa route metadata.

Methodology

A source-linked 2026 index scoring tracked skilled and skilled-adjacent migration routes by planning accessibility: sunk cost, proof-of-funds exposure, salary floor, processing-clock transparency, sponsor requirement, settlement path and source freshness.

Full index

Scores are sorted from lower-friction planning profiles to higher-friction profiles. Approximate USD values are for cross-currency ordering only; local-currency source pages remain authoritative.

Limits

• This is a planning-accessibility index, not a route recommendation and not a prediction of individual outcome, eligibility, or deadline.
• The index covers tracked Visa Atlas cost-to-complete models, not every immigration route in each destination.
• A high score means lower planning friction in the tracked dimensions; applicants still need to meet the route rules and source documents.