Australia announced to tighten visa norms
for international students and low-skilled workers that could halve its migrant
intake over the next two years as the government looks to overhaul what it said
was a “broken” migration system.
Under the new policies, students from
foreign countries would require securing higher ratings on English tests and
there would be more scrutiny on a student’s second visa application that would
prolong their stay.
“Our strategy will bring migration
numbers back to normal,” stated Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil.
“But 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,” he added.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese over the
weekend said Australia’s migration numbers needed to be wound back to a
“sustainable level,” adding that “the system is broken.”
O’Neil said the government’s targeted improvements
were already putting downward pressure on net overseas migration and will
further contribute to an expected drop in migrant numbers.
The move comes after net immigration was
expected to have peaked at a record 510,000 in 2022-23. Official data stated it
was forecast to fall to about a quarter of a million in 2024-25 and 2025-26,
roughly in line with pre-Covid levels.
O’Neil said the rise in net overseas
migration in 2022-23 was mostly driven by international students.
Shares of IDP Education, which provides
placement and education services to international students, were down more than
3 per cent in afternoon trade.
Australia enhanced its yearly migration
numbers last year to help businesses recruit staff to fill shortages after the
Covid pandemic brought strict border controls, and kept foreign students and
workers out for nearly two years.
But the sudden influx of foreign workers
and students has exacerbated pressure on an already tight rental market, with
homelessness on the rise in the country.
A survey done for the Sydney Morning
Herald newspaper on Monday said 62 per cent of Australian voters said the
country’s migration intake was too high.
Long reliant on immigration to supply
what is now one of the tightest labour markets in the world, Australia’s Labor Government
has pushed to speed up the entry of highly skilled workers and smooth their
path to permanent residency.
A new specialist visa for highly skilled
workers will be set up with the processing time set at one week, helping
businesses recruit top migrants amid tough competition with other developed
economies.
Agency
