No notice visa hikes are damaging Australia’s reputation
Sudden hikes to student visa fees announced by the Australian government this week are further undermining confidence in Australia’s fifth largest export sector, international education.
The Australian Business Deans Council’s (ABDC) President, Professor Maryam Omari says that the latest hikes are short-sighted, and part of a concerning lack of policy direction for the sector, worth $55 billion to the economy in 2025.
“International students were already paying substantially higher visa fees to come to Australia than competitor destinations such as Canada and the United Kingdom, so the recent hikes are understandably being seen by international students as unfair and exploitative” ABDC President, Professor Maryam Omari says.
“It’s an increasingly difficult operating environment for our member business schools, having to respond to sudden changes to visa fees and eligibility rules.
“Business schools understand the need to diversify international enrolments from a larger pool of source countries, but substantial and sudden hikes to visa fees frustrate these efforts.
“The fee hikes are part and parcel of a lack of positive regard for the international education sector by policymakers. It is short-sighted, because international education supports research and education across the university sector, making up for shortfalls in federal government funding.
“International students contribute to the labour force and the domestic economy while they are here. There is also the intangible, but highly valuable, effects of cross-cultural exchange on our university campuses that a vibrant international education sector provides.
“Rather than continue to increase fees especially in an ad-hoc way, it is time for the government to realise a sustainable and clear vision for the international education sector that, in the past decades, has enriched Australian businesses and society.”
Further information: contact ABDC Executive Director, Caroline Falshaw, +61 414 488 852, office@abdc.edu.au.