The Albanese government has announced a 35,000-person increase in the migration cap this year, bringing it up to 195,000.
This initiative aims to tackle the current skilled worker shortages across the country by allowing more skilled workers to permanently migrate to Australia.
The announcement comes as politicians, unions, businesses and community leaders gather for the annual Jobs and Skills Summit, with a major topic of discussion being the extreme shortage of workers across Australia.
Labor’s Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil announced the decision on Friday 2 September, promising the move would bring “thousands more” engineers and nurses to Australia, both of which are key industries experiencing shortages.
“We need to think about migration as a driver of productivity and great jobs. The system in place today doesn’t help us do that,” O’Neil stated.
O’Neil also said that international student graduates will be able to stay and “work in Australia for longer”. We will continue to report on this as information becomes available.
The Albanese government also addressed the backlog of visas, promising to take measures to cut down on delays.
Immigration Minister Andrew Giles has stated that the government will spend $36.1m to hire 500 more staff to clear a visa application backlog that now stretches to 900,000.
The 2022-23 Skilled Migration Programs are open in the following states and territories:
We will continue to update this story as information becomes available.
To stay informed on migration news and updates, consult the Department of Home Affairs website.
