Australia wants to send out foreigners with temporary visas because of the economic consequences of the coronavirus crisis and the expected unemployment. Only those of the two million or more foreigners who could finance their own living in the next six months are likely to remain, managing immigration minister Alan Tudge said in a statement today.
According to the information, there are currently a good two million foreigners with different types of visas in Australia, including students, skilled workers and tourists. They are „extremely valuable for the Australian economy and lifestyle,“ continued Tudge. Nonetheless: „Holders of temporary visas who cannot get through the next six months under these circumstances are urged to return home.“
200,000 tourists also have to leave
The more than 200,000 tourists would also have to leave for their home countries as quickly as possible, especially those without financial support from families. Around 118,000 backpackers are currently on the fifth continent.
According to the information, a third of them are Germans who have a working holiday visa type, which allows work to be carried out to a limited extent, but does not include any protection against unemployment, for example. These tourists could extend their visas if they worked in certain areas such as healthcare, elderly care, childcare, agriculture, or the food industry, Tudge said. The permitted working hours are also relaxed.
The approximately 565,000 international students called on the Australian government to seek private funding to help them get through the economic crisis financially. Such study visits are an important economic factor for Australia.
