Aust pacing up Syrian refugee resettlement

The federal government predicts a sharp increase soon in the number of Syrian refugees resettling in Australia.

More than 180 refugees have been resettled so far while 1600 with visas are due to arrive imminently.

"There is a lumpiness to the arrivals because it's not a smooth or staged process but there will be a very swift increase in the numbers from here," Social Services Minister Christian Porter told ABC radio on Wednesday.

The government has been facing pressure for the slow pace of arrivals, with some criticising why it wasn't moving quickly enough on its pledge to resettle 12,000 refugees.

Mr Porter admits the process has been slower than anticipated but the frustrations were worth bearing because of thorough security checks.

"That's very, very wise and it's not going to change."