Australia caps foreign student numbers and hikes visa fees to address migration pressure

Australia recently declared that starting with the upcoming academic year, only a certain number of foreign students would be permitted to study in the country. Beginning Jan 1, 2025, the "National Planning Level" (NPL) will cap the number of new overseas student commencements (NOSC) at 2,70,000.

The plan, which is currently awaiting parliamentary approval, intends to control record migration patterns that have had a significant impact on infrastructure and housing expenses.

The cap on foreign enrollment will be divided across Australia's several educational sectors.

In 2025, public institutions will be allowed to accept approximately 1,45,000 additional international students, which will be the same as in 2023. Roughly 95,000 additional students will be admitted into the vocational education and training (VET) sector.

To encourage diversification, institutions that depend primarily on foreign students would be given less funding, and the number of admissions to other universities and non-university providers will be limited to 30,000.

Compared to the 5,61,000 international students who began their studies in 2023, this represents the lowest intake of international students in the previous five years.

The cap has faced strong opposition by a number of Australian universities and education institutions.

The May release of the Draft International Education and Skills Strategic Framework raised concerns about the potential detrimental impact of the new cap on the labor market and the potential closure of up to 300 independent colleges.

Universities have also expressed disapproval of the implementation of provider limits on an individual basis, arguing that a general cap would be a more fair strategy.

The government insists that the cap is intended to support the education sector's sustainable growth in spite of these criticisms.

The official notice reads, "From 1 January 2025, the Australian Government is setting the total number of new overseas student commencements at higher education and vocational education and training institutions in Australia each year under the National Planning Level. This number will be reviewed and agreed upon by the government annually."

Effective from July 1, the Australian government has raised the visa processing fees from AUD 710 to AUD 1,600 in addition to the new enrollment cap. The cost to potential overseas students will be further impacted by this, as it is the largest increase in visa fees over the last five years.

Particularly notable effects of the cap have been seen at some of Australia's best universities. Four of the 15 impacted universities—the Australian National University, University of Melbourne, University of New South Wales, and University of Sydney—are members of the elite Group of Eight (Go8).

The percentage of overseas students enrolled in these universities will drop significantly from around 40% in 2023.

For instance, in comparison to their intake levels in 2023, both the University of Melbourne and the University of Sydney will see a 7% decrease. Reductions of 14.5% and 14% will be made to the University of New South Wales and the Australian National University, respectively.

Even larger budget cuts are being faced by other universities, such as Federation University, as the university will only be able to accept roughly 1,100 foreign students in 2025 as compared to 2,300 in 2023—a decrease of more than 50%.