More than 80,000 temporary visitors remain in Australia despite their visas expiring, The Age reports, posing a significant challenge for migration policy.
Leading population expert Professor Peter McDonald of the University of Melbourne has warned that addressing departures, not arrivals, is the key to managing net migration effectively, the exclusive report by The Age states.
The Age highlights that new data expected tomorrow is likely to show net overseas migration surpassing the government’s forecast of 260,000 for the year to June, continuing a trend of missed targets since post-pandemic border reopenings. McDonald said that high migration numbers are driven by a lack of departures rather than a surge in arrivals.
According to report, the Australian Bureau of Statistics defines a migrant arrival as someone spending 12 of the next 16 months in the country. McDonald cautioned against misinterpreting net migration figures, urging politicians to focus on permanent migration strategies and tackle the backlog of overstayers.
Speaking to The Age, McDonald criticised both sides of politics for lacking a clear strategy on departures, noting that many overstayers are “bogus asylum seekers” from prior government terms.
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton recently backed away from a pledge to cut net migration to 160,000 annually, while business leaders warned The Age that strict caps would harm the economy by limiting skilled workers.
McDonald reiterated to The Age the importance of prioritising permanent migration policies and addressing the overstayer issue to avoid undermining Australia’s visa programs.
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