Government looking into halving migrant intake over next two years
Australia announced that it will be tightening its visa rules for international students and low-skilled workers which can help in halving its migrant intake over the next two years, as reported in an article by Reuters.
“Our strategy will bring migration numbers back to normal,” said Clare O’Neil, the minister for home affairs.
With the Australian government looking into overhauling the migration system it described as ‘broken,’ the new policies will require international students to have higher ratings on English tests as well as undergo further scrutiny on a student’s second visa application prolonging their stay in the country.
Net immigration peaks
The decision for the new policies came after the net immigration was slated to have peaked at 510,000 in 2022-2023. Official data further showed that it is forecasted to fall to nearly a quarter of a million in 2024-2025 as well as 2025-2026, which was roughly in line with the levels seen before the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It's not just about numbers. It's not just about this moment and the experience of migration our country is having at this time. This is about Australia's future,” said O’Neil in the Reuters article.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has stated that the country’s migration numbers needed to drop to a more sustainable level and noted that the system was broken.
According to O’Neil, Australia’s targeted changes were already working in giving downward pressure to the net overseas migration and is set to contributed to a decline in migrant numbers it expects to see.
The home affairs minister stated that the increase in net overseas migration in 2022-2023 was caused by international students.
Boosted migration to fill labour shortages
Last year, the country boosted its annual migration numbers to help businesses recruit more staff to fill in the shortages left by the strict border controls set in place due to the pandemic which kept foreign students and workers out of the country for nearly two years, said Reuters.
However, the sudden influx of foreign workers and students put more pressure on the tight rental market in the country. A survey for the Sydney Morning Herald newspapers showed that 62% of Australian voters said that Australia’s migration intake was too high.
Meanwhile, as Australia has long been relying on immigration to supply its tight labour market, the country’s Labor government aimed to speed up the entry of highly skilled workers as well as their path towards permanent residency, said the news outlet.
A new specialist visa for them will be set up which will help businesses recruit top migrants as tough competition for such individuals continue with other developed economies.
