Australia reforms immigration policy: backpackers to face ballot system

Australian Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke has announced a significant overhaul of the nation's immigration policy, aiming to reduce annual net migration from 300,000 to 225,000 by 2028. The reforms specifically target the working holiday visa program, extending the processing wait time to three months and adding a standard no-further-stay clause to prevent visa hopping. Backpackers wishing to extend their stay must now enter a ballot system, which caps second-year extensions at 45,000 and third-year extensions at 5,000 spots. Furthermore, international students will be prohibited from bringing family members, including partners and children, into the country during their studies.

To ensure compliance, the government is intensifying enforcement efforts against those without valid visas. This includes the addition of 100 extra enforcement officers and the opening of a new detention facility in Melbourne. Minister Burke emphasized that these policy changes are independent of the political rhetoric surrounding the One Nation party, which advocates for more drastic reductions in migration figures. These measures represent a broader strategy to exert stricter control over the country's population growth.