Australia To Cap International Student Enrolments At 270,000 In 2025

The Australian government has announced plans to cap new international student enrolments at 270,000 starting in 2025. This cap will include 145,000 enrolments at publicly-funded universities, 95,000 in the vocational education and training (VET) sector, and 30,000 at other higher education institutions.

Minister for Education Jason Clare highlighted that universities would be allowed a 15% increase in enrolments compared to 2019, while the number for VET providers would be reduced by 20%. The enrolment limit is set to bring international student numbers down by 7,000 compared to 2019, and 53,000 below the 2023 figures.

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Each university and training institution will have an individual cap, taking into account recent enrolment trends and the proportion of international students in their overall student body. Clare emphasized that the new system aims to distribute enrolments more evenly across the sector, ensuring that benefits extend beyond a select few institutions.

This move comes as part of the Labor Party’s broader efforts to cut net migration to 260,000 by 2024-25, down from the 528,000 recorded in 2022-23. In July, the government increased the international student visa application fee to 1,600 Australian dollars, a significant rise from the previous 710 AUD.

Luke Sheehy, CEO of Universities Australia, expressed concern that the enrolment cap could result in significant financial losses for universities and risk 14,000 jobs. He noted that international students contributed 47.8 billion AUD to the economy in 2023, making education the country’s fourth-largest export sector, following iron ore, coal, and natural gas.