International students may be rewarded with easier access to Australian PR

On December 15, 2021, Australia's borders finally welcomed fully-vaccinated international students whose study abroad plans had been postponed for far too long. 

The year 2022 looks even brighter, as Ben Watt, a Visa Envoy migration lawyer, predicts Australia will focus on providing Australian PR pathways for international students who have remained loyal to Australia despite two years of uncertainty.

The Migration Programme was created by the Australian Government's Department of Home Affairs to achieve various economic and social goals. It will have a total planning level of 160,000 places in 2021-22.

“To me, [the Department of Home Affairs] seems to want to fill that 160,000 with quite a few people who are here on those temporary visas. They’re trying to draw those permanent migrants from people who are in Australia,” Watt said, as reported by SBS News. ‍

“That’s the big change; they are loosening up and offering a lot of different pathways, and a lot of extensions, for people who are already here to achieve their migration dream.”

“The government has already introduced a number of visa changes throughout the pandemic and will continue to review visa settings to support Australia’s economic recovery,” a spokesperson for the Department of Home Affairs said.‍

Currently, 79,600 places will be reserved for experts in the Skill stream. They will play essential roles in improving the country's economy's productivity and skill shortages in the labour market, including regional Australia. The Family stream, which allows Australians to reunite with overseas family members vying for citizenship, will receive 77,300 places.

Meanwhile, 100 Special Eligibility places will be available to cover visas for those in exceptional circumstances. There will be 3,000 places for children; however, this stream is demand-driven and does not have a cap.

For international students who never dropped out of their Australian dream university, transferred to another country, or gave up, the road has always been smooth. In Australia, long before structural changes, their journeys could always extend beyond academia.

Many students transferred from their study visa to the Temporary Graduate (subclass 485) access after completing a programme at an Australian institution. 

After graduating, they will live, study, and work in Australia temporarily under this visa. They can even bring immediate family members with them.