Australia told to jettison ‘genuine temporary entrant’ test

Australia should ensure that would-be international students are coming for genuine educational reasons rather than worrying about their plans after they finish their degrees, the representative body for universities has told Canberra.

In a submission to the federal government’s migration review, Universities Australia (UA) says the system should be simplified and streamlined by “stripping away unnecessary visa classes, regulation and barriers”.

The migration regime is “overly complex, prone to appeal and reliant on ministerial and administrative discretion”, the submission says. “It is not fit-for-purpose. We [should] reset our system and base it on the policy presumption that Australia benefits from migration.”

Among eight recommendations, UA says that the government should replace the “genuine temporary entrant” (GTE) test – which requires written proof that potential students intend to go home after completing their studies – with “a streamlined statement of purpose which articulates why the student is capable of undertaking the course”.

“While temporary visa holders should not have an automatic right to permanent residence, they should have the right to hold that ambition,” the submission argues. “Potential students should not be penalised for articulating such ambitions in their visa applications.”

The GTE appears at odds with Australia’s openly expressed desire for overseas graduates to stay on and bolster its workforce. Critics say the test is illogical and blame it for a rash of unexplained rejections of visa applications.

They also blame the test for foreign graduates’ relatively low take-up of employment and migration opportunities. UA said just 28 per cent of international students in Australia exercised their post-study work rights, while only 16 per cent settled permanently.

Modelling by the Grattan Institute thinktank suggests that the latter figure could be an overstatement. Grattan’s submission to the migration review says that since 2012, fewer than 10 per cent of commencing international students have gone on to obtain permanent residency.

UA chief executive Catriona Jackson said the low migration rate was not surprising. “Our system has more barriers than gateways including extended wait times, a lack of visibility around application status and little certainty in general for prospective students and staff,” she said.

“Meanwhile, our global competitors are increasing the number of international graduates in their migration mix in recognition of the significant contribution they make. Australia is falling behind.”

The UA submissions calls for immigration authorities to develop a “reporting protocol” to keep visa applicants – along with educational institutions and employers – informed of their applications’ progress. And rather than forcing international students who graduate successfully to apply for the right to stay on and work, temporary employment visas should be granted as a matter of course.

Wait times for temporary graduate visas can exceed 10 months, the submission says. “Many students give up and…go home or to another country. Given the number of checks students go through to get [and] maintain a student visa, the temporary graduate visa should be applied automatically…upon completion of their course.”

The submission also recommends relaxed entry requirements and clearer migration options for “highly talented” foreign academics. “The prospect of a relatively straightforward transition to permanent resident status can be a deciding factor in attracting highly sought-after knowledge workers,” the submission says.

“Many international candidates for senior roles within universities are unwilling to accept offers of employment in Australia unless they know they can obtain permanent residency before leaving their countries of origin.”

john.ross@timeshighereducation.com