SYDNEY, Australia: Australia will stop most foreign students from bringing their partners and children with them while they study and will tighten working holiday visa rules, a senior minister said on September 17, as debate over high migration levels grows.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said the changes were not politically motivated by the hard-right One Nation party, which has been gaining support in recent polls. The party said this week that it would cut temporary migration by 750,000 over three years to give Australians "breathing space."

Burke rejected suggestions that the government was responding to One Nation, whose policies have been compared with those of U.S. President Donald Trump.

"It's simply demonstrably wrong to suspect that somehow this is a recent bit of work done to deal with a political climate - it's not," Burke told reporters.

The reforms are expected to reduce annual net migration to about 225,000 by 2028. That would bring it back to broadly pre-pandemic levels, from about 300,000 currently. Recent polls have consistently shown the cost of living and immigration among voters' main concerns.

Burke said the government would also increase enforcement against people who stay after their visas expire. It will hire 100 additional compliance officers and consider using a quarantine facility in Melbourne, built during the pandemic, to house immigration detainees.

He said people coming to Australia temporarily should apply for temporary visas, while those seeking to stay permanently should apply for permanent visas. People without valid visas would be expected to leave Australia.

Under the new measures, a ballot system will be introduced for backpackers who want to extend their working holiday visas.

All visitor visas will also include a "no further stay" condition. This will prevent visa holders from remaining in Australia while applying for another type of visa, such as a partner visa.

International students will only be allowed to renew their student visas if they move to a higher level of qualification.

Some students from Pacific Island nations and Southeast Asia can still bring their partners and children. However, secondary applicants will not be allowed to bring family members on most student visas.

Partners and spouses of international students can currently work in Australia, although the number of hours they can work depends on the student's course.

International education contributed A$53.6 billion (US$38 billion) to Australia's economy in the year to June 2025, making it the country's fourth-largest export. Despite its economic importance, foreign students have been a major focus of the center-left Labor government's efforts to reduce migration.

Student visa application fees have increased by nearly 300 percent over the past four years to A$2,500. The government has also tightened English-language requirements and minimum savings requirements for people applying for graduate visas.

Luke Sheehy, chief executive of Universities Australia, criticized the proposed changes to international education.

"It is chipping away at the confidence in what has been a great national asset for this country – international education," he said in a radio interview with public broadcaster ABC.

Migration rose sharply after Australia reopened its borders in February 2022 following almost two years of COVID-19 restrictions. The increase was driven mainly by international students, backpackers and temporary workers.

However, migration numbers have fallen over the past two years. Net overseas migration was 306,000 in the year to June 30, 2025. International students accounted for more than half of that figure, down from a peak of 518,000 in 2023.