Australia is preparing to detain tourists who overstay their visas, a move the government says is designed to curb rising numbers of unlawful stays by making the consequences impossible to ignore.
A government minister said the tougher approach is part of a broader package aimed at reducing migration levels. Australia’s ruling Labour party, however, has rejected claims that it is tightening visa settings in response to the growing popularity of the far-right One Nation, which has surged this year after campaigning on drastic cuts to migration.
Reforms announced yesterday include stopping family members from accompanying students, introducing ballots for working holidaymakers, and stepping up enforcement against visa overstayers.
Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs Matt Thistlethwaite said tourists who remain after their visas expire would be placed in immigration detention in a bid to bring down the number of overstayers, which has climbed to 77,000.
“Once the word gets around, ‘hey, I overstayed on my tourist visa for a couple of weeks, I got picked up and I spent a couple of weeks in immigration detention, it’s not a nice place, I’m going home’. Once that gets around, then we think that obviously that deterrence will ensure that people abide by the conditions,” he told broadcaster News24.
Matt Thistlethwaite said there would be consequences for overstayers
Those without a legal right to remain in Australia would face a “consequence” and be removed from the country, Thistlethwaite added.
Australia’s immigration detention network has, since 2015, been used to hold people with criminal convictions who are awaiting deportation. That followed a policy shift introducing mandatory cancellation of permanent visas for certain criminal offences.
Immigration Minister Tony Burke, in announcing the new policy, said the government would open 250 beds and add 100 compliance officers so visa overstayers could be accommodated in different facilities.
Tourism leaders warned the rhetoric could backfire. Australian Tourism Industry Council chief executive Erin McLeod said the idea of detaining tourists risked harming Australia’s standing as a travel destination.
“I don’t think it does our reputation as a welcoming destination any good and can become quite damaging – tourism is an important part of the Australian economy,” she said.
The council represents thousands of small tourism businesses.
Advocates for refugees also raised objections. Refugee Council of Australia director of policy Rebecca Eckard said the proposal triggered both safety and legal concerns.
“It is being framed as punitive to change behaviour. The use of punitive detention is not permitted under Australia’s immigration act,” she said.
“There has been a major problem with immigration detention,” she added, pointing to concerns raised by the government ombudsman over insufficient staffing and healthcare access.
