This morning, Prime Minister Morrison stated in an interview with the Sunrise programme:We can expect to see international students and skilled migrants beginning to enter via NSW as early as late November (later November, early December), and for other visitors (visitors), the timeline will depend on how the return of Australians stranded overseas goes first. He also expressed confidence that Victoria would follow a similar reopening path.
The interview initially focused on Victoria reaching 70% double-vaccinated, meaning Victoria will also begin its first step of reopening at 11:59 tonight.
The host then asked:We know that many employers — in restaurants and cafés — are crying out that they cannot find staff. Prime Minister, would you consider opening the border earlier (before next year) for temporary visa holders such as students and working holiday visa holders?
The Prime Minister then said directly,let’s talk specifically about students, and the return of skilled migrants — we’ll start seeing that from NSW from next month, or let’s say from late November through to early December.
The Minister for Immigration also continued to offer encouragement this week: we believe skilled migrants will return very soon, and the government will continue to announce policies to drive that forward.
Here’s the general picture —
Although the interview wasn’t long and didn’t reveal a great deal,this is the first time the Prime Minister has given a relatively clear timeframe for the return of international students and skilled migrants.
If you’ll recall, as recently as last Friday’s press conference — which clarified the announcement that NSW would allow quarantine-free international arrivals from 1 November —the Prime Minister still stated that the border opening for international students and skilled migrants was a federal decision, and a decision would be made when the time was right.
The host’s question did not mention skilled migration — it only mentioned students and working holiday visa holders,and it was the Prime Minister who added skilled migrants in his response.
Looking at this rationally,while these are the Prime Minister’s own words, our view is that this doesn’t quite amount to an official announcement. From last week through to this week, not only have there been no shortage of signals from outside,but internally within the government, the question of reopening to international students and skilled migrants has been placed high on the discussion agenda. The federal government and NSW are likely in talks as well — whether that takes the form of an early-stage pilot programme for international students returning to Australia, or possibly extends to certain temporary visa categories.
Today, a little has been let slip — or perhaps the Prime Minister feels that with progress at this stage, it’s about time to say a fewthings.
In short, a reopening for international students and skilled migrants within a foreseeable timeframe — no longer an indefinite wait — now appears beyond doubt. That it will begin in NSW also seems the natural and logical course. The reopening will certainly be gradual, targeting certain visa categories or priority cases first; a sudden full opening all at once would not be reasonable.
As for who comes first and what the rules will look like, there’s no need to speculate — we should know soon enough.
On a related note,ACTwhen this week’s further reopening was announced, the Premier stated thatfrom 1 November, mandatory hotel quarantine would be waived for all international travellers who have received two doses of a recognised vaccine.
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1. Following New Zealand’s policy, grant a one-off amnesty to temporary residents who have been struggling and waiting long periods for migration outcomes
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ABC News will also soon have a detailed report!
We continue to call on everyone to do their part
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There is another piece of news today for temporary visa holders:The Greens formally tabled in the Senate on Wednesday afternoon a bill proposing the automatic extension of temporary visas for those stranded overseas.
This bill proposesautomatic compensation for the time taken up by the border closure, ortime lost from being stranded overseas as a result of the border closure.
The Greens have previously stated thatprocessing extension or exemption applications for individual visas on a case-by-case basis is simply far too slow, and that relief should be granted uniformly to all stranded temporary visa holders — this includes the Subclass 485/489/491 visas that many people are concerned about, targeting those whose visas were already granted.
This bill still needs to pass the Senate,and at this stage it remains only a proposal, and passing it would definitely require the support of the Labor Party and a number of independent senators.
When responding to this proposed bill previously, a spokesperson for the Minister for Immigration said:“The government continues to address the range of migration challenges arising during the pandemic in a methodical manner.” This includes consideration of the impact on temporary visa holders and offshore visa holders.”
While safety continues to be the overriding priority, the federal government is clearly picking up the pace towards reopening the border, with NSW’s full cooperation. Sooner or later, the good news everyone has been waiting for will come.
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