Australia Cracks Down on Visa Hopping, Working Holiday Visas to Be Stricter

International students and backpackers in Australia will face stricter rules under a new crackdown on visa hopping. Confirmed by Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke on Thursday. The changes aim to curb immigration and bring net overseas migration to 225,000 people by 2028.

The government will no longer automatically allow international students to bring their families with them. And those who want to extend their stay must choose a higher qualification. Working holiday visas for those aged 18 to 30 years old will also be stricter.

With a ballot system introduced for second and third-year extensions.

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For international student and graduate visas, Burke said: "We will no longer be adding to the stock of students automatically being able to bring family members over." There would be exemptions for foreign students already in Australia as well as applicants from the Pacific and South East Asian countries.

Students who want to go "up the scale" will be allowed, Burke shared, for example, if a student finishes a bachelor's degree and then wants to complete a masters. Those who qualify for a second year will have to go into a ballot with a cap of 45,000. Down from the 57,000 who qualified last year.

For the third year, the ballot will be limited to 5,000, down from 31,000 who qualified last year. British working holidaymakers will not be affected by these changes due to the UK's free trade agreement with Australia.

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New figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Thursday showed Australia's population grew 1.4% in the 12 months to March 2026 to 27.9m. The proposed changes to family visas for international students is a good example of this, according to Settlement Services International.

The government introduced a policy to prioritise applications for family visas lodged onshore - where the applicant is in the country already - over those submitted overseas. Skilled migrants already in Australia who applied for permanent visas were also prioritised over those applying from overseas.

Violet Roumeliotis, from Settlement Services International which helps new arrivals to Australia, says the migration debate was increasingly driven by "short-term politics rather than what is best for the country".