Minister says visa overstayer detentions will not involve ICE-style raids
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 also create about 250 detention beds for people who need to be held before removal and examine whether existing government facilities can be converted into additional detention space.
Mr Burke said the aim is to encourage people without lawful status to leave voluntarily where possible, while ensuring detention remains an option when required.
Department of Home Affairs figures show 6,646 people left Australia after becoming unlawful in the 2024–25 financial year. About half returned voluntarily, while the remainder were removed after detention.
The number of visa overstayers has increased from around 64,000 in 2016 to more than 77,000 today.
The government’s plans have drawn different reactions. Migration industry representatives said the proposed enforcement model would be targeted and significantly different from the approach used by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The Greens have criticised the expansion of immigration detention, while the Human Rights Law Centre has raised concerns that stronger enforcement could make undocumented workers who experience workplace exploitation less willing to report abuse.
Former Immigration Department deputy secretary Abul Rizvi said the measures could improve compliance, although he questioned whether the government could remove all 77,000 overstayers. He estimated the changes could potentially lead to an additional 5,000 to 10,000 departures each year.
The government is also targeting other areas of the visa system. Proposed measures include stronger restrictions on “visa hopping”, changes to student visa applications and a No Further Stay provision for visitor visas.
International students seeking to move to another student visa would face tighter requirements, while tourist visa holders would be restricted from using repeated applications to extend their stay.
The government is also considering further legislative changes to address asylum claims it considers to be made primarily to prolong a person’s stay.
Net overseas migration has fallen to 292,000 in the year to March 2026, but remains above the government’s longer-term target of 225,000 by 2028.
Mr Burke said the government already has the tools needed to reach its migration target. He said the new measures are intended to give authorities greater control over who enters, stays and leaves Australia.
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Source : ABC News
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