Australia’s Opposition Leader pledges to retain current parent visa numbers despite proposing a cut of 45,000 permanent migrants annually. The move responds to growing pressure from migrant families while raising concerns over potential strain on other visa categories.
Peter Dutton, leader of the Coalition, has announced that the annual parent visa intake will remain untouched if his party forms government, despite broader plans to reduce permanent migration from 180,000 to 135,000 places per year.
The commitment follows increasing political scrutiny and emotional appeals from migrant communities with relatives facing decades-long wait times.
This issue has gained traction among voters in key marginal seats, where many families are separated by the current immigration backlog. With more than 150,000 applicants currently waiting for parent visas, the announcement signals the Coalition’s intention to address family reunion pressures without detailing compensatory cuts in other visa streams.
Parent Visa Backlog Fuels Voter Concerns
The parent visa category has long been a contentious part of Australia’s immigration framework, particularly due to its lengthy processing times.
According to figures cited by SBS News, more than 150,000 people are on the waiting list, with standard wait times averaging 31 years. For the contributory parent visa — which costs applicants up to $48,000 — the average wait is still 14 years, despite the financial outlay.
This delay has had direct emotional and cultural impacts on families like the Mayur family in Melbourne, whose application for a parent visa has been pending for five years. “The long wait is having an emotional toll,” said Viji, the mother of applicant Supriya Narayanan.
Her son-in-law, Mayur Deivasigamani, highlighted the cultural disconnect it creates: “Our son can hardly speak Tamil now,” he told SBS, noting the broader cultural cost of prolonged family separation.
Policy Pressure Mounts Over Visa Distribution
While the Labor government nearly doubled the cap for parent visas to 8,500, critics argue this has not alleviated the backlog.
At the same time, the Parkinson Migration Review commissioned by Labor in 2022 described the parent visa system as “cruel and unnecessary,” proposing reforms such as extended temporary visas or even a visa lottery, though these remain under consideration.
Former Immigration Department official Abul Rizvi warned of the economic trade-offs involved. According to him, the lifetime fiscal cost of a parent migrant can reach $400,000, even with mandatory private health insurance.
Rizvi added that maintaining parent visa levels while reducing total migration would force cuts to skilled migration streams, impacting industries such as aged care, agriculture, and construction.
