Australia said on Monday it would cut annual migrant intake by 50 per cent from a record high of 510,000 within two years by imposing tougher tests on foreign students and turning away low-skilled workers. The move could affect Indian students planning to go to Australia for higher education.
According to a recent report by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the Indian-born group has seen the largest increase in the country’s population since 2012. The new migration strategy will require students to pass a tougher English language test and prove they are genuine students before entering the country, while making it harder for them to stay if they cannot find jobs that help address the nation’s skills shortage, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.
Australia’s net migration will be halved within two years in a dramatic move to cut annual arrivals from a record high of 510,000 by imposing tougher tests on overseas students and turning away low-skilled workers, the report added.
Australia has more than 650,000 overseas students and a growing number are extending their stay by applying for a second course, with 150,000 of the total on their second student visa. The government remains open to more controversial measures, such as a cap on student numbers or higher fees for their visa applications, if the comprehensive new plan fails to reduce net migration to 250,000 by June 2025, the report added.
Student visa changes
Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil will outline the changes on Monday, promising to reduce numbers to more sustainable levels and crack down on the exploitation of migrants without jeopardising the ability to attract workers for vital jobs such as hospitals and aged care.
The government will spend $19 million to expand its Visa Integrity Unit to identify students who fail a “genuine student test” and should be turned away, reflecting concerns that too many are dropping out to work. The new policy also aims to stop “visa hopping”, where an overseas student or other visitor jumps from one migration application to another to extend their stay while doing unskilled work.
The head of the International Education Association of Australia, Phil Honeywood, said the changes were likely to work because the government had ways of “turning the tap down” when it wanted. “One of them is already in play, where student visas from South Asia have fallen rapidly. All it takes is for the Home Office to issue a directive to slow down processing from certain countries and the government will achieve its desired result.”
Many of those on their second visa are choosing a lower level of study than their original course so that they can stay in the country while retaining their work rights, fuelling the government’s doubts about the safeguards in the system. As well as the changes to student visas, the government will create a new “skills in demand” visa with three tiers to encourage more workers with the highest skills and discourage those with low skills.
Skilled foreign workers with a commitment to work in regional Australia will be given the highest priority by the Department of Home Affairs in processing applications.
