Foreign students barred from bringing spouses, children

Visa extensions blocked for students not advancing to higher degree

People walk along a street in Sydney, Australia, on Thursday (local time). [Reuters]
People walk along a street in Sydney, Australia, on Thursday (local time). [Reuters]

Australia plans to ban international students from bringing their children and spouses into the country and will tighten working holiday visa rules, Reuters reported Thursday (local time).

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke was set to announce the visa restrictions at the National Press Club that day, along with a plan to cut annual net migration from the current level of about 300,000 to 225,000 by 2028 — a reduction of 75,000 — according to Australian public broadcaster ABC News.

Under current rules, spouses and partners of international students may work in Australia, though the number of hours permitted varies depending on the student's course of study. Students are also allowed to bring dependent children under the age of 18.

The move comes amid a push by the far-right One Nation party, which has called for giving Australians "breathing room" and announced plans to cut the number of temporary foreign residents by 750,000 over the next three years.

One Nation, which champions an "Australia First" platform, has seen its support surge in recent polling. The party said it would cap net overseas migration at 130,000 in the first three years and review related programs annually.

Asked whether One Nation's political pressure had influenced the government's immigration policy shift, Burke said it was "clearly wrong and untrue" to suspect the measures were hastily assembled in response to the political climate.

The government also plans to crack down on people who remain in Australia after their visas expire.

To that end, it intends to hire 100 additional compliance officers and is considering converting a COVID-19 pandemic-era quarantine facility in Melbourne into an immigration detention center.

"If you want to be in Australia temporarily, apply for a temporary visa. If you want to be here permanently, apply for a permanent visa. If you no longer have a valid visa, you need to leave Australia," Burke said.

Backpackers seeking to extend their working holiday visas will be given the opportunity to do so through a lottery system.

All visitor visas will include a no-extension clause. International students will only be able to renew their student visas if they advance to a higher level of study.

Australia's international education sector generated about A$53.6 billion in annual economic value as of June last year, making it one of the country's four largest export industries.

Despite that, it has become a primary target of the center-left Labor government's immigration reduction drive.

Over the past four years, student visa application fees have risen by nearly 300 percent to A$2,500, and English proficiency requirements and minimum deposit thresholds for visa applications have also been tightened.

Luke Sheehy, chief executive of Universities Australia, told ABC the proposed policy changes were "undermining confidence in international education, which is a great national asset for Australia."


jshan@heraldcorp.com