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Australia considers visa caps for British backpackers seeking longer stays
Australia is considering tightening visa rules for British backpackers, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese planning to discuss the issue with Andy Burnham. Albanese says many UK visitors are staying in Sydney’s coastal suburbs and taking city hospitality jobs instead of doing regional work, which he says can distort the local jobs market.
A 2023 arrangement lets UK citizens avoid the regional-work requirement that applies to many other backpackers seeking to extend their stay. More than 47,000 British working holiday visas were granted in 2023-24, rising to nearly 80,000 the following year. Proposed ballots would cap second-year places at 45,000 and cut third-year places from 31,000 to 5,000; first-year visas would remain uncapped. Regional businesses, including tourism operators in Cairns, rely on backpackers for temporary work.
In short
- Australia plans talks on tightening British backpacker visa rules.
- Nearly 80,000 UK working holiday visas were granted in 2024-25.
- Proposed third-year places would fall to 5,000.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Caps could ease pressure on city hospitality jobs if large numbers of British visitors stay in urban areas rather than take the regional work linked to longer visas. Limiting extensions may also make places more predictable and help ensure the scheme supports regional employers as intended, while leaving first-year visas uncapped.
The case against
Caps could reduce the supply of temporary workers that regional businesses, including tourism operators, depend on, and make it harder for them to meet seasonal staffing needs. Since the UK arrangement removed a regional-work condition that still applies to many other backpackers, imposing limits on British applicants could also be seen as an abrupt restriction on a reciprocal mobility scheme.
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Originally published by Daily Mail as “Australia plans clampdown on boozy Brit backpackers ‘working’ in Bondi bars with PM holding talks with Burnham on making them toil in the Outback instead”.