At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australia will expand efforts to deal with visa overstayers, but Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke says the changes will not lead to US-style immigration raids. The government plans to establish a 100-person Border Force team to locate and manage people who remain in Australia without valid visas. Around 77,000 visa overstayers are currently estimated to be in Australia. The government will

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. The Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) and the Law Council of Australia have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen cooperation between the two countries’ legal professions. The agreement was signed in Seoul, South Korea, on the sidelines of the 39th LAWASIA Conference. BASL President Rajeev Amarasuriya and Law Council of Austra

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Eastern Australia is facing a growing bushfire risk as a strengthening El Nino pattern combines with an unusually dry winter. Weather forecasters are warning that the coming weeks could bring challenging conditions, particularly across parts of Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria. Rainfall was well below average across many areas during winter. El Nino has weakened the trade winds that

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Two of Australia’s major banks have increased fixed mortgage rates just days before the Reserve Bank’s next interest-rate decision. ANZ and NAB raised their fixed home loan rates by 0.20 percentage points on Thursday, taking their lowest advertised fixed rate to 6.49 per cent. The moves follow ING, which lifted fixed rates for both owner-occupier and investor loans by the same amount a day

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. ශ්‍රී ලංකා රේගුව වාර්ෂික ආදායම් එකතු කිරීමේ කාර්යසාධනයේ සුවිශේෂී සන්ධිස්ථානයක් සනිටුහන් කරමින්, රුපියල් ට්‍රිලියන 2 ක ආදායම් සීමාව ඉක්මවා තිබේ. මෙම රුපියල් ට්‍රිලියන 2 සීමාව ඊයේ දිනයේදී ඉක්මවා ගිය බව රේගුව නිවේදනය කළ අතර, එය දෙපාර්තමේන්තුවේ ආදායම් කාර්යසාධනයේ ප්‍රධාන සන්ධිස්ථානයක් ලෙස හඳුන්වා දී තිබේ. නවතම ආදායම් සංඛ්‍යාලේඛනය මගින් රජයේ ආදායම් එකත

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australia is set to tighten several migration rules, including changes affecting backpackers, international students and people who remain in the country after their visas expire. Under changes to the Working Holiday Maker Program, applicants seeking second- and third-year visas will face a ballot system. They will also be required to complete work in regional areas. The government will als

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australia’s new home market is showing signs of a sharp slowdown, with sales falling 10 per cent in August and almost 20 per cent over the past three months. Housing Industry Association (HIA) data shows new home sales have declined for four consecutive months. Sales were also lower than a year earlier, highlighting growing pressure on the construction sector. HIA chief economist Tim Reardo

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. ශ්‍රී ලංකා සංචාරක සංවර්ධන අධිකාරිය (SLTDA) විසින් නිකුත් කළ නවතම සංඛ්‍යාලේඛන අනුව, මේ වසරේ මේ දක්වා ශ්‍රී ලංකාවට සංචාරකයින් මිලියන 1.6කට අධික පිරිසක් පැමිණ තිබේ. වාර්තාවට අනුව, ජනවාරි 1 වැනිදා සිට සැප්තැම්බර් 14 වැනිදා දක්වා කාලය තුළ සංචාරකයින් 1,609,759 දෙනෙකු ශ්‍රී ලංකාවට පැමිණ ඇත. මේ අතර, සැප්තැම්බර් මාසයේ පළමු දින 14 තුළ පමණක් සංචාරක පැමිණීම්

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australia could face significant economic risks if the global rules governing trade continue to weaken, the World Trade Organization (WTO) has warned. In its latest annual report, the WTO said the international trading system is at a critical point as countries increasingly move away from the framework that has supported global trade for decades. WTO chief economist Robert Staiger said Aust

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australia’s largest bank has warned that global oil prices could surge to US$150 a barrel if disruptions to Middle Eastern supplies worsen. Commonwealth Bank economists said Brent crude could reach that level in the coming weeks as concerns grow over potential shortages. The warning follows Saudi Arabia’s decision to keep a major oil pipeline closed for several weeks after attacks by Houthi

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. A new research partnership is bringing together Australia’s expertise, Sri Lankan knowledge and international support to strengthen food and water security in Sri Lanka. Researchers from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) are working with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), the Sri Lankan Government and local partners to develop p

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Millions of people across Victoria, NSW, the ACT and Tasmania are set for a sudden return to wintry conditions from Tuesday. A cold front will replace the recent spring warmth with much lower temperatures, strong winds and snow in elevated areas. Tasmania and Victoria will feel the change first. Hobart is forecast to reach only 13°C, while Melbourne is expected to peak at around 14°C. The B

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Competition among Australia’s major banks is intensifying as lenders cut home loan rates to attract customers, despite growing expectations that the Reserve Bank could raise interest rates again. Commonwealth Bank reduced rates across several mortgage products in late June. ANZ and Westpac followed, while Macquarie Bank also cut rates in July. Mortgage broker Julian Choo said dozens of lend

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. Australia is supporting Sri Lanka’s efforts to develop sustainable agriculture through its partnership with local innovators under the Australian Government-funded Market Development Facility (MDF). A recent visit by Australian High Commissioner Matthew Duckworth and a delegation to Sassrika Lanka’s Bio Super Phosphate (BSP) manufacturing facility

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. One Nation’s proposal to cut Australia’s migrant population by more than 750,000 over three years has triggered strong opposition from business and industry groups. The plan, announced by Pauline Hanson, would target temporary visa holders and people who overstay their visas. The number of temporary visa holders has increased from 1.6 million in 2021 to 2.9 million in 2026. Under the propos

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. The Albanese Government is moving to prevent residential aged care providers from charging older Australians unreasonable fees for services they previously received for free. Under changes to the Aged Care Rules 2025, providers will no longer be allowed to impose a Higher Everyday Living Fee (HELF) for services that were already included in a resident’s care arrangements before the aged car

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. Sri Lanka’s tourism industry is showing strong signs of recovery despite the impact of Cyclone Ditwah in November 2025. The country welcomed a record 2.36 million tourists in 2025, including around 114,000 Australian visitors. Australian arrivals grew by about 20%, crossing the 100,000 mark for the first time. Sri Lanka is now targeting 150,000 Au

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australian mortgage holders could face further financial pressure, with Citi forecasting two more interest rate increases before the end of 2026. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has kept the cash rate at 4.35% after three rate hikes earlier this year. Citi senior economist Faraz Syed expects the cash rate to rise to 4.85%, up from its previous forecast of 4.6%. The bank has also pushed

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka, your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans in Australia and beyond. The Government has introduced a multi-purpose loan scheme for Sri Lankan migrant workers, allowing them to use their overseas earnings for housing, education, business and other financial needs. The scheme, implemented through the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE), is available to Sri Lankans working overseas who can provide proof of

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Sri Lankan community informed with timely updates. SriLankan Airlines has appointed Vipul Misra as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO). According to airline spokesman Deepal Perera, Misra previously served as the airline’s Head of Engineering. Misra officially takes over as CEO with effect from today, assuming responsibility for the national carrier’s operations and leadership. Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for new