Australia Raises Foreign Student Visa Cap To 295,000

NEW DELHI: Australia will raise its cap on foreign students by 9% to 295,000 in 2026, the government announced Monday, with a renewed focus on applicants from Southeast Asia.

This development comes when the United States has moved in the opposite direction. The Donald Trump administration in US is in for a sweeping overhaul of the foreign student visa programme, marking one of the most significant pullbacks in the country’s global education footprint.

Australia has decided to increase the limit after a year of tightened migration controls and a 2024 cap of 270,000 that helped reduce what officials described as “out of control” student numbers, a Reuters report said.

Australia granted nearly 6,00,000 student visas in the 2023 financial year, reflecting a post-pandemic boom in education migration.

While China and India remain the two largest source countries, Canberra is now strategically pivoting toward Southeast Asia as part of its broader foreign policy to reduce economic dependence on China.

India, which remains a leading source of international students in the country, is likely to benefit from the move.

“This is about making sure international education grows in a way that supports students, universities and the national interest,” said education minister Jason Clare in a statement cited by the Reuters.

The new allocation includes roughly two-thirds of seats for universities and one-third for the vocational training sector.

Larger public universities will also be required to demonstrate access to adequate student housing and increase Southeast Asian enrolments to receive higher individual quotas.

In Australia, the international education sector contributed over A$51 billion ($33 billion) to the Australian economy in 2024, making it the country’s largest services export.