The Australian Government has begun implementing stricter visa regulations for Nigerian students and international students intending to relocate to the country, as migration numbers reach unprecedented levels.
According to Reuters, the new regulations, effective as of Saturday, involve heightened English language criteria for student and graduate visas. Additionally, the government will be empowered to suspend educational institutions from enrolling international students if they consistently violate regulations.
“The actions this weekend will continue to drive migration levels down while delivering on our commitments in the migration strategy to fix the broken system we inherited,” Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil said in a statement.
It was learned further that a new “genuine student test” will be introduced to further crack down on international students who look to come to Australia primarily to work, while the imposition of “no further stay” conditions will be used on more visitor visas.
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The initiatives follow a slew of measures taken last year to end the prior government’s COVID-era concessions, including unfettered working hours for international students.
At the time, the administration stated that standards for students would be tightened, potentially reducing migrant intake by half over the next two years.
Australia increased its yearly migration numbers in 2022 to assist businesses in filling personnel shortages caused by the COVID-19 epidemic, which imposed severe border restriction and barred foreign students and workers from entering the country for almost two years.
However, the quick surge of international workers and students has put further pressure on an already tight rental market.
According to data issued by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Thursday, “net immigration increased by 60% to a record 548,800 in the fiscal year ending September 30, 2023, surpassing the 518,000 persons in the fiscal year ending June 30.”
Overall, Australia’s population increased by 2.5%, the fastest rate on record, to 26.8 million people in the year to September.
