Australia ramps up skilled migrant numbers, Home Affairs Minister Clare O'Neil announces

Australia's skilled migration cap is getting an immediate boost as various industries continue to battle worker shortages.

Home Affairs Minister Clare O'Neil announced today that the 2022-23 cap would lift from 160,000 places to 195,000.

"Based on projections, this could mean thousands more nurses settling in the country this year, thousands more engineers," O'Neil said on Twitter.

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"This will mean 34,000 places in the regions for this year, 9000 more than had been previously be announced."

O'Neil said it was a "turning point" in Australia's history, comparing it to the "populate or perish" immigration boom following WWII.

The government also committed to providing an additional $36.1 million for visa processing, to support a surge capacity of 500 staff over the next nine months.

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"COVID has given us an opportunity for immigration reform that we will never get back," O'Neil said.

"We switched off the tap, and one of the most important things we learned was how much we depend on migrants."

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O'Neil signalled her priorities for immigration reform, which she said would draw the best and brightest back to Australia.

"We need a migration program that caters to small business and big business alike and that serves the specific needs of our regions; a system that respects people and prevents exploitation," she said.