Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke has announced a sweeping overhaul of Australia's migration system, targeting international students, backpackers, visa overstayers and rogue migration agents in a package of reforms he described as addressing fundamental problems with the country's current immigration settings. Burke outlined the changes in a National Press Club address on Thursday, framing them around three core questions: who arrives, who stays, and who leaves.
Student and Graduate Visa Restrictions
Among the most significant changes are new restrictions on international students and graduates. From now on, international students and those on graduate visas will no longer be permitted to bring family members to Australia, with limited exceptions carved out for PhD students and some students from Pacific and ASEAN nations.
Burke was emphatic that the changes would not apply retrospectively. "We're not going to be breaking up families on shore," he said, confirming the rules affect only future applicants.
A so-called "visa-hopping" crackdown will also be introduced, with a new qualification scale requiring that students can only extend their visas if they are moving to a higher-level course — such as progressing from a bachelor's degree to a master's degree. Lateral or downward moves between courses will no longer provide a pathway to extending a student visa.
Backpacker Caps and a Notable UK Exception
Working holidaymakers face some of the most dramatic changes under the new policy. A ballot system and strict caps will be introduced for backpackers seeking to extend their stay into a second or third year in Australia.
Only 45,000 working holiday-makers will be permitted to stay for a second year — down from the current 57,000 — while just 5,000 will be allowed a third year, reduced from 31,000. Those who wish to remain will need to enter a ballot, introducing a competitive element to what was previously a more open process.
However, there is a notable exception: citizens of the United Kingdom will not be subject to these caps, as a result of protections written into the Australia-UK free trade agreement. UK backpackers are also exempt from regional work requirements that other nationalities must fulfil to qualify for a visa extension.
The number of UK working holidaymakers has surged significantly since the free trade agreement took effect in 2023, climbing from around 17,000 in 2021 to just under 80,000 today. Burke acknowledged that while second and third-year visa processing had been deliberately slowed in recent months, it would now be restored to its previous faster pace — again, with the UK exemption applying.
This trend is part of a broader picture of migration figures remaining elevated, as explored in our analysis of why Australia's migration numbers are staying high.
Crackdown on Overstayers and Dodgy Agents
Approximately 77,000 people currently remain in Australia beyond the expiry of their visas. Under the new framework, overstayers will face tougher sanctions, including detention, in what Burke described as a return to a pre-2015 model. Under that earlier approach, visa overstayers were taken into detention and typically organised their own departures within weeks.
"That didn't just affect them. It had a behavioural impact," Burke said. He stressed, however, that the approach would not mirror the kind of large-scale enforcement operations seen in other countries, in what appeared to be a reference to aggressive immigration crackdowns abroad. The government is actively seeking additional detention facilities, compliance officers and beds to support the new approach.
Powers to sanction unethical migration agents will also be expanded. Agents found to be lodging applications they know have no merit could face deregistration and other penalties under the strengthened framework.
Skills, Points and Priority Visas
The skilled migration points test is set to be revamped, with construction-related qualifications to be treated as equivalent to university degrees under the revised system. Ministerial directions will also be updated to prioritise visa applicants with skills in high-demand sectors including healthcare, construction, education and law enforcement.
Burke opened his address by acknowledging migration's positive contribution to Australia before laying out the case for reform — a package he framed not as a rejection of immigration, but as a correction of settings he said were no longer serving the national interest.
