The Australian continent was first settled when ancestors of Indigenous Australians arrived via the islands of Maritime Southeast Asia and New Guinea over 50,000 years ago.
European colonisation began in 1788 with the establishment of a British penal colony in New South Wales. Starting at independence in 1901, Australia maintained the White Australia policy for much of the 20th century, which forbade the entrance in Australia of people of non-European ethnic origins. Following World War II, the policy was gradually relaxed, and was abolished entirely in 1973. Since 1945, more than 7 million people have settled in Australia.
Between 1788 and the mid-20th century, the vast majority of settlers and immigrants came from Britain and Ireland (principally England, Ireland and Scotland), although there was significant immigration from China and Germany during the 19th century. In the decades immediately following World War II, Australia received a large wave of immigration from across Europe, with many more immigrants arriving from Southern and Eastern Europe than in previous decades. Since the end of the White Australia policy in 1973, Australia has pursued an official policy of multiculturalism, and there has been a large and continuing wave of immigration from across the world, with Asia being the largest source of immigrants in the 21st century. In 2019–20, immigration to Australia came to a halt during the COVID-19 pandemic, which in turn saw a shrinkage of the Australian population for the first time since World War I, though in the following period 2021–22 showed a very strong recovery of migrant arrivals.
Net overseas migration has increased from 30,042 in 1992–93Australian Bureau of Statistics, International migration to 178,582 persons in 2015–16, 536,000 in 2022–23 declining to 309,000 in 2024–25 and is projected to be approximately 260,000 in the 2025-26 financial year. The largest components of immigration are the skilled migration and family re-union programs. A 2014 sociological study concluded that: "Australia and Canada are the most receptive to immigration among western nations."Markus, Andrew. "Attitudes to immigration and cultural diversity in Australia. " Journal of Sociology 50.1 (2014): 10-22. In 2023, BCG ranked Australia as the top country destination for individuals seeking to work and live a high-quality life based on global assessments.
Australia is a signatory to the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and has resettled many asylum seekers. In recent years, Australia's policy of mandatory detention of unauthorised arrivals by boat has attracted controversy.
Immigration history of Australia
The first migration of humans to the continent took place around 65,000 years agoA story of rupture and resilience: When did Australia's human history begin? ABC News, 17 November 2017, Retrieved 17 November 2017. via the islands of Maritime Southeast Asia and Papua New Guinea as part of the early history of human migration out of Africa.
Penal transportation
European migration to Australia began with the British convict settlement of Sydney Cove on 26 January 1788. The First Fleet comprised 11 ships carrying 775 convicts and 645 officials, members of the crew, marines, and their families and children. The settlers consisted of petty criminals, second-rate soldiers and a crew of sailors. There were few with skills needed to start a self-sufficient settlement, such as farmers and builders, and the colony experienced hunger and hardships. Male settlers far outnumbered female settlers. The Second Fleet arrived in 1790 bringing more convicts. The conditions of the transportation was described as horrific and worse than slave transports. Of the 1,026 convicts who embarked, 267 (256 men and 11 women) died during the voyage (26%); a further 486 were sick when they arrived of which 124 died soon after. The fleet was more of a drain on the struggling settlement than of any benefit. Conditions on the Third Fleet, which followed on the heels of the Second Fleet in 1791, were a bit better. The fleet comprised 11 ships. Of the more than 2000 convicts brought onto the ships, 173 male convicts and 9 female convicts died during the voyage. Other transport fleets bringing further convicts as well as freemen to the colony would follow. By the end of the penal transportation in 1868, approximately 165,000 people had entered Australia as convicts.
Bounty Immigration
The colonies promoted migration by a variety of schemes. The Bounty Immigration Scheme (1835-1841) boosted emigration from Britain to New South Wales. The plan was to pay for the passage of young married couples and single women with the long term goal of rapidly building the population of Australia, along the lines of Edward Gibbon Wakefield's proposals in 1829 for systematic colonization. Convicts would not be included. In 1835 governor Richard Bourke convinced NSW government to pay cash bounty to private shipping agents who handled the selection and transportation of the immigrants. Also in 1835 the South Australia Company was established for similar goals, but it worked poorly. The original NSW program was a success; it ended in 1841, but there were other forms of assisted immigration.Graeme Davidson, ed. The Oxford Companion to Australian History (2001) pp. 84, 605, 673
Gold rush and population growth
The Gold Rush era, beginning in 1851, led to an enormous expansion in population, including large numbers of British and Irish settlers, followed by smaller numbers of Germans, other Europeans, and Chinese. This latter group was subject to increasing restrictions and discrimination, making it impossible for many to remain in the country. With the federation of the Australian colonies into a single nation, one of the first acts of the new Commonwealth Government was the Immigration Restriction Act 1901, otherwise known as the White Australia policy, which was a strengthening and unification of disparate colonial policies designed to restrict non-White settlement. Because of opposition from the British government, an explicit racial policy was avoided in the legislation, with the control mechanism being a dictation test in a European language selected by the immigration officer. This was selected to be one the immigrant did not know; the last time an immigrant passed a test was in 1909. Perhaps the most celebrated case was Egon Erwin Kisch, a left-wing Czechoslovak journalist who could speak five languages, who was failed in a test in Scottish Gaelic and deported as illiterate.
The government also found that if it wanted immigrants, it had to subsidise migration. The great distance from Europe made Australia a more expensive and less attractive destination than Canada and the United States. The number of immigrants needed during different stages of the economic cycle could be controlled by varying the subsidy. Before Federation in 1901, assisted migrants received passage assistance from colonial government funds. The British government paid for the passage of convicts, paupers, the military, and civil servants. Few immigrants received colonial government assistance before 1831. However, young women were receiving assisted passages from state governments to migrate to Australia in the early years of Federation.
PeriodAnnual average assisted immigrants 1831–1860 18,268 1861–1900 10,087 1901–1940 10,662 1941–1980 52,960
With the onset of the Great Depression, the Governor-General proclaimed the cessation of immigration until further notice. The next group to arrive were 5,000 Jewish refugee families from Germany in 1938. Approved groups such as these were assured of entry by being issued a Certificate of Exemption from the Dictation Test.
Post-war immigration to Australia
After World War II, Australia launched a massive immigration program, believing that having narrowly avoided a Japanese invasion, Australia must "populate or perish". Hundreds of thousands of displaced Europeans migrated to Australia and over 1,000,000 British subjects immigrated under the Assisted Passage Migration Scheme, colloquially becoming known as Ten Pound Poms. The scheme initially targeted citizens of all Commonwealth countries; after the war it gradually extended to other countries such as the Netherlands and Italy. The qualifications were straightforward: migrants needed to be in sound health and under the age of 45 years. There were initially no skill restrictions, although under the White Australia Policy, people from mixed-race backgrounds found it very difficult to take advantage of the scheme.
In 1973, multiculturalism largely displaced cultural selectivity in immigration policy.
Net overseas migration reached a record level of 536,000 in 2022–23, up from 170,900 in 2021–22. Overall migration was 739,000 in 2022-23. Net permanent and long-term arrivals in the 12 months to May 2024 were a record 482,450.
PeriodMigration programme 1998–99 68 000 1999–00 70 000 2000–01 76 000 2001–02 85 000 2002–03 108,070 2003–2004 114,360 2004–2005 120,060 2005 142,933 2006 148,200 2007 158,630 2008 171,318 2011 185,000 2012 190,000 2013 190,000 2015-2016 190,000 2016-2017 190,000 2017-2018 190,000 2018-2019 190,000 2023-2024 190,000
Overview
+Foreign-born Australian residents by country of birth#1901195420161. United Kingdom495 504 United Kingdom616 532 United Kingdom1 087 7562. Ireland184 085 Italy119 897 New Zealand518 4623. Germany38 352 Germany65 422 China509 5584. China29 907 Poland56 594 India455 3855. New Zealand 25 788 Netherlands52 035 Philippines232 3916. Sweden-Norway9 863 Ireland47 673 Vietnam219 3517. South Sea Islands9 128 New Zealand43 350 Italy174 0428. India7 637 Greece25 862 South Africa162 4509. United States7 448 Yugoslavia22 856 Malaysia138 36310. Denmark6 281 Malta19 988 Sri Lanka109 850 - Other47 463Other215 589Other2 542 443
Current immigration programs
Migration program
There are a number of different types of Australian immigration, classed under different categories of visa: Skilled Occupation visas - Australian working visas are most commonly granted to highly skilled workers. Candidates are assessed against a points-based system, with points allocated for certain standards of education. These visas are often sponsored by individual States, which recruit workers according to specific needs. Visas may also be granted to applicants sponsored by an Australian business. The most popular form of sponsored working visa was the 457 visa set in place in 1996 which has now been abolished by the Turnbull government and replaced with a similar; 482 Skills in Demand Visa. Student visas - The Australian Government actively encourages foreign students to study in Australia. There are a number of categories of a student visa, most of which require a confirmed offer from an educational institution. Family visas - Visas are often granted on the basis of family ties in Australia. There are a number of different types of Australian family visas, including Contributory Parent visas, Child Visa and Partner visas. Working holiday visa - This visa is a residence permit allowing travelers to undertake employment (and sometimes study) in the country issuing the visa to supplement education. Investor visas - Foreign investors could invest the business or fund in Australia to acquire the Permanent Residential of Australia, after 4 years (including the year which acquire the visa), they need to take the exam and make a declaration in order to be a citizen of Australia.
Employment and family visas can often lead to Australian citizenship; however, this requires the applicant to have lived in Australia for at least four years with at least one year as a permanent resident.
Claims have been made that Australia's migration program is in conflict with anti age-discrimination legislation and there have been calls to remove or amend the age limit of 50 for general skilled migrants.