Australia more than doubles fees on international student visas

July 1 (UPI) -- Australia on Monday doubled fees for student visas amid efforts to slow down immigration, drawing ire from international student representatives.

The Australian federal government increased the fee for a visa student application to roughly $1,064 up from the previous total of about $472.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's government said the increase would go to fund various initiatives, including financial support for apprenticeships and efforts to reduce the debt for graduates.

The visa increase is also seen as part of Australia's efforts to slow down migration, which reached a peak post-COVID-19 number of 528,000 in the 2022-23 academic year.

Phil Honeywood, head of the International Education Association of Australia said the increases will particularly harm Indo-Pacific students who had come to traditionally rely on Australia and the country of choice for overseas education.

"We are really in danger of losing a $48 billion a year industry," Honeywood told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. about the loss of students.

The fee opponents said Australia will simply lose students to the United States and other competitors because of the change rather than them staying and paying the increase.

"Far from restoring integrity in the international education sector, this measure will be a deterrent to international students," said Vicki Thompson, CEO of the Group of Eight, an education organization that is comprised of the country's leading research institutions, according to The Guardian.

"The recent crackdown on visa approvals has already sent a strong signal that we are not open for business. Yet again, our international students are being used as cash cows to prop up the economy, the national research effort and now to fund other government initiatives."