‘It’s very unfair’: Australia’s visa crackdown is disrupting international students and hitting university finances

Many international students have been forced to withdraw or defer their application to study at a university in Australia due to visa processing delays. Photograph: Ullstein Bild/Getty Images

It took Rajesh more than 12 months to receive his visa to study in Australia.

But Rajesh – not his real name – considers himself lucky. Two of his friends who also come from India have recently had their PhD offers expire after waiting for visas for more than 10 months.

“It’s frustrating … especially considering PhD students are crucially important,” says Rajesh, who comes from the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, considered a red flag by universities trying to weed out non-genuine applicants. “They are fully funded and highly skilled individuals who contribute significantly to our academic community.”

As part of a bid to halve net migration by 2025, the Australian government is cracking down on non-genuine students who use student visas as a backdoor for work and permanent residency. The federal government has announced a series of reforms, including tougher visa conditions, stronger English-language tests and rules for education agents who bring overseas students to Australia.

The latest home affairs data shows the proportion of offshore student visa applications being refused has reached a record high, with as many as one in five students having their visas rejected in the year to March. Visas granted to Indian students fell by 48% between December 2022 and December 2023, with Nepalese visas granted falling 53% and Pakistani visas falling 55% over the same period.

The department cites an increase in incomplete applications and fraudulent documentation, contributing to both higher visa refusal rates and longer processing times. The tougher visa conditions have prompted institutions to change their policies, with some even imposing blanket bans on Indian students.

The home affairs minister, Clare O’Neil, says the federal government recognises “change is hard” but migration is “too high” and must be brought back to “sustainable levels”.

“We are working with the sector to help providers adapt, but we must restore integrity to the system to protect the sector’s international reputation,” she says.

But some say the approach is having a financial impact on institutions and disrupting the plans of genuine students who may be turned off studying in Australia altogether.

What’s going on?

The founder and president of the Pakistani Students Association of Australia, Zeeshan Malik, says many offshore students are experiencing visa refusals, while others are scared to travel back home lest their visas be cancelled on return to Australia.

While there have not been any reported cases of students having their visas cancelled on return, Malik says students feel they are being discriminated against based upon their country of origin.

“It’s very unfair,” he says. “Lots of students are struggling with mental health and other issues because of these confusing policies.”

A University of Sydney spokesperson says a “significant number” of students have been forced to defer or withdraw their applications due to visa processing delays, while others have been suspended to fulfil additional requirements.

“This has been very disruptive to highly capable young people from around the world who had paid their visa application fee and chosen to come to Australia for their studies,” the spokesperson says.

“We have moved our last date to apply for semester 2 to try to limit any such impact for future students.”

The University of Melbourne has also “faced challenges” this semester, with a number of students yet to receive their visas for the 2024 intake. A spokesperson says it has provided an extension to allow enrolled international students to start later.

Central Queensland University has gone even further, writing to education agents confirming it will no longer offer English language programs to students from India or Nepal, or enrolments to applicants over 25 or married, except for research placements.

“With many universities witnessing an increase in student visa refusals, it has been necessary for CQUniversity to proactively reconsider admissions requirements on a regular basis,” a spokesperson says.

“We have a moral obligation to ensure that prospective students have the best opportunity to successfully obtain a student visa.

“Such an outcome is not good for the student, the university, or the reputation of Australia as a global study destination.”

Why universities are imposing blanket bans

Phil Honeywood, the chief executive of the International Education Association of Australia (IEAA), says stigmatising entire nations is a “blunt instrument” that ignores the benefits of diversity.

“We’re supposed to be a welcoming, safe nation,” he says. “It’s a shame sometimes blunt policy instruments go against other government policies.”

Honeywood says universities are imposing restrictive measures on international students in the hope it will improve their risk ratings, which are used by the federal government to reduce student numbers.

The system assesses universities based upon how likely they are to recruit non-genuine students who arrive in Australia primarily to work, not study. Visas are given a risk rating between 1 and 3, and only low-risk universities on level 1 have visa applications processed quickly.

Earlier this month, the list was updated, with nine universities downgraded to a level 2 and two downgraded to a level 3.

According to Honeywood, less than 10% of international student visas are waiting to be approved at low-risk universities while universities at level 2 and 3 are facing extensive delays.

During a webinar hosted by the IEAA at the beginning of the university year, the vice-chancellor of Charles Sturt University, Mike Ferguson, said 40% of international students enrolled in his university – which is a level 2 – were still waiting on visa decisions in the first week of the semester.

“Speaking to my colleagues at other universities, I know many others are in similar situations,” he says.

“You’re looking at refusal rates for offshore students in most markets in the region of 50%.”

Level 3 institution Federation University has faced significant budget pressure since the migration crackdown. It recently announced plans to cut 200 ongoing positions – the equivalent of just over one in 10 staff members.

A spokesperson for the university said the announcement came in response to a 49% decline in international student numbers between 2019 and 2023, which had been exacerbated by “unexpected but necessary changes to international student visa arrangements”.

Similarly, the University of Tasmania – also at level 3 – announced last month it would sell two of its Hobart hotels intended to house international students in anticipation of declining numbers.

Private institutions have also been hit hard. According to English Australia, the national peak body for more than 100 English language colleges for international students, visa grants plummeted by 68% in December 2023 compared with the previous year.

What the future holds

The share of international students is likely to decrease further with an anticipated hike in student visa fees in the May budget, making Australia “well and truly” the most expensive country to apply for a non-refundable visa, according to Honeywood.

Honeywood says international students are facing a “blame game” as the only migration market to Australia that can feasibly be reduced.

The former immigration department deputy secretary Abul Rizvi agrees. He says while higher visa fees are likely, it will be “poor long-term policy”.

“It will mostly deter high-performing students who have options of going elsewhere,” he says. “Policy must be designed to encourage and reward providers to compete for the best students not just those who can apparently afford to pay.”

Rizvi says the cautious approach being taken by providers, coupled with the ramping up of refusal rates for offshore student applications, led to a big fall in student visa applications in February and a fall in net student arrivals in March.

“That trend will likely continue over the next few months,” he says. “But while the flow of students is slowing, the stock is still rising and is now well over a record 700,000,” he says, referring to the number of international students in Australia.

“The industry is built on continuous growth. Under the risk rating system, lower tier providers are particularly vulnerable. They are the ones complaining the most.”

To Rajesh, the decline in quality lies squarely with universities and the government.

“Students are not responsible for that,” he says. “Blaming everything on students and their respective countries is not solving the problem.”