Archive · 17 Sep 2026
Australia Moves to Bar Student Families in Migration Overhaul
Australia is considering new rules for people from other countries who come there to study.
Students may no longer be allowed to bring their partners or children.
Under current rules, partners can sometimes work, and children under 18 can come with them.
The government also wants to make it harder for temporary migrants to change visas or stay longer.
It hopes to reduce net overseas migration to 225,000 people each year by 2028.
Migration rose after Australia reopened its borders following COVID-19 restrictions.
International students were the largest group of migrant arrivals in 2024-25 and made up more than half of net migration that year.
Supporters of stricter rules say migration has increased pressure on housing and infrastructure.
One Nation wants much larger cuts, while the proposed restrictions could make Australia less attractive to students with families.
Australia reportedly plans to stop international students from bringing partners and children while studying.
The government also plans tighter rules for temporary migrants switching visas or extending their stay.
Net overseas migration is targeted to fall to 225,000 annually by 2028 from about 300,000 currently.
Migration reached 429,000 in 2024 and 306,000 in the year ending June 30, 2025, after a reported 2023 peak of 518,000 or 538,000.
One Nation has proposed cutting temporary migration by 750,000 over three years and eventually limiting net migration to 130,000 annually.
- Who
- The Australian government, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke, international students and their families, temporary migrants, and the One Nation party.
- What
- Australia is reportedly preparing to bar international students from bringing partners and children and to tighten temporary visa-switching rules.
- When
- The measures were reported on September 17, 2026, ahead of Tony Burke’s expected speech; the migration target applies to 2028.
- Where
- Australia, with the measures expected to be outlined at the National Press Club.
- Why
- The government says the broader changes are intended to reduce temporary migration and respond to concerns about housing, infrastructure, and visa hopping.
Government and Migration Critics
Education and Family-Migration Concerns
Bringing family members
Government and Migration Critics
The government is reportedly considering a ban on student dependents to reduce the number of secondary migrants attached to temporary visas.
Education and Family-Migration Concerns
The proposed restriction could make Australia less family-friendly, particularly for postgraduate students and others studying for several years.
Scale of migration reduction
Government and Migration Critics
The government is targeting net overseas migration of 225,000 by 2028, while One Nation is calling for cuts of 750,000 temporary migrants over three years and a longer-term limit of 130,000.
Education and Family-Migration Concerns
The articles say the international education industry is an important contributor to Australia’s economy and that the overall international student intake may remain largely unchanged.
Housing and infrastructure
Government and Migration Critics
Critics of high migration link population growth and temporary migration to greater pressure on housing and infrastructure.
Education and Family-Migration Concerns
The articles do not provide a specific competing assessment of those impacts, but describe concerns that tighter family rules could affect Australia’s appeal to international students.
- Proposed student rule
- International students would reportedly lose the ability to bring partners and children while studying.
- Current rules
- Students can bring dependent children under 18, while spouses and partners may accompany them and work subject to conditions.
- Migration target
- The government wants net overseas migration to reach 225,000 a year by 2028.
- Current level
- Net overseas migration was reported at about 300,000 currently and about 301,000 in the year to December 2025.
- Recent migration figures
- Net overseas migration was 429,000 in 2024 and 306,000 in the year ending June 30, 2025.
- Student contribution
- International students accounted for more than half of net overseas migration in the year ending June 30, 2025; temporary students recorded 157,000 arrivals in 2024-25.
- One Nation proposal
- One Nation proposed cutting temporary migration by 750,000 over three years and eventually limiting net overseas migration to 130,000 annually.
