Australia considers tighter student visa rules, impacting onshore applications and dependants

Australia is considering tighter student visa rules that could restrict onshore visa applications, limit dependants for some international students and make it harder for students to switch courses, The PIE News reported.

The proposed reforms could also prevent international students from moving from higher education into the vocational education and training (VET) sector. The government is also considering wider measures to curb “visa hopping” and onshore pathways to migration, according to the report.

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Some exemptions for family members could apply to postgraduate research students, government-sponsored students and students from Pacific nations and Timor-Leste.

The changes could be brought forward to September, with the broader immigration package expected to be announced next month.

The proposed restrictions come as the Australian government seeks to reduce net overseas migration. It has forecast that net overseas migration will fall to 225,000 by 2027-28, from a peak of 538,000 in 2022-23 after Australia reopened its borders.

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Group of Eight chief executive Vicki Thomson said there was a “legitimate debate to be had about migration settings, quality and integrity across parts of the international education sector”, but international students should not be viewed as “gaming the system”, The PIE News reported.

“What is not helpful is treating every provider, every student and every institution as though they are the same. They are not,” Thomson told The PIE News.

Thomson said the government should distinguish between volume and value and avoid putting short-term migration goals ahead of Australia’s long-term global outlook.