BUSINESS INSIDER
Australia is capping new international students next year, in an effort to curb record migration.
The country plans to limit international student enrollments to 270,000 in 2025, Australian education minister announced on Tuesday. In 2023, there were just over 400,000 new international students.
“There’s about 10% more international students in our universities today than before the pandemic, and about 50% more in our private vocational and training providers,” education minister Jason Clare said in a press briefing on Tuesday. “These reforms are designed to make it better and fairer, and set it up on a more sustainable footing going forward.”
The government will assign each university or vocational institute an individual limit.
Australia has about 718,000 total international students, primarily from China, India, and Nepal, according to 2024 education department figures.
Curbs on migration were first announced in December, when Australia said it would tighten visa scrutiny for graduates and require students to secure higher scores on their English proficiency tests.
The restrictions come after a period of concessions to encourage foreign workers and students who left during the pandemic to return to Australia. That created an influx of foreigners, which worsened the pressure on the country’s tight rental market.
Clare added that the restrictions will also limit the amount of “shonks” — people and businesses exploiting the demand for international education in Australia. Authorities have previously said that some providers participate in unethical practices or scams, such as recruiting students who are not proficient enough in English to do well, luring students with the promises of jobs, or promising tuition fee discounts to those who recruit other students.
Canada announced similar limitations earlier this year, in an effort to bring down the costs of buying and renting homes.
