105% Rise in Irish Nationals Obtaining Australian Visa, Report Shows

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Australia issued 21,525 visas to Irish nationals, representing 9.6 per cent of all Working Holiday Maker visas between 2022 and 2023, while 11,034 visas were issued by the Australian government in Ireland, representing a 105.2 percent rise from the 10,491 issued previously.
• Nationals of the top three countries (UK, France, and Ireland) represent 38.6 per cent of all Working Holiday Maker visas in this period.
• However, during the 2021-2022 period, a total of 15,161 fewer Working Holiday Maker visas were granted compared to a decade earlier, when 239,592 were granted in total.

According to the Australian Migration Trends Report, a total of 21,525 grants, representing 9.6 per cent of all Working Holiday Maker visas between 2022 and 2023.

In general, nationals of the top three countries represent 38.6 per cent of all Working Holiday Maker visas in this period, with the United Kingdom being the first country of origin, with 38,177 visas (17 per cent), and France with 26,896 (12 per cent). In addition, Ireland represents 9.6 per cent of these visas.

In the 2022–23 period, a significant surge in the issuance of Working Holiday Maker visas was noticed, with some nationalities experiencing increases as follows. A remarkable rise of 18,087 visas, marking a 90 per cent increase from the 20,090 visas, was recorded among nationals from the United Kingdom between 2021 and 2022, followed by France, which received 16,809 visas – 166.6 per cent up from 10,087 recorded in the previous year.

In addition, around 11,034 visas were issued by the Australian weekend in Ireland, representing a 105.2 percent rise from the 10,491 visas. Moreover, visas issued for Taiwan reached 10,386, indicating an impressive 202 per cent increase from the 5,142 visas in 2021–2022.

However, during this period, a total of 15,161 fewer Working Holiday Maker visas were granted compared to a decade earlier, when 239,592 were granted.

Out of this total, Working Holiday visas were down by 51,072 visas(22.3 per cent) on the 229,378 granted in 2013–14 and Work and Holiday visas were up by 35,911 visas (351.6 per cent) on the 10,214 granted in the last decade.

In the fiscal year 2022–23, a total of 51,605 visas were granted to primary applicants, reflecting a substantial increase of 61.0 percent compared to the 32,062 granted in the previous year, 2021–22.

As per primary visas granted, those were predominantly granted to nationals from the top three countries, constituting nearly half (49.1 per cent) of the total.

India was the first country with 12,146 visas, accounting for 23.5 per cent of the total, followed by the Philippines with 7,103 visas(13.8 per cent) while visas issued to the United Kingdom represented 11.8 per cent of the total, reaching 6,106 visas.

The growth in the number of visas granted in 2022–23 was primarily driven by nationals from the Philippines, who experienced a substantial increase of 4,108 visas(137.2 per cent) from the 2,995 visasin the previous year.

India follows second with a total of 3,213 visas(36 per cent) from the 8,933 visas issued two years ago, while the United Kingdom registered an increase of 2,004 visas (48.9 per cent). Sri Lanka showed a notable surge of 1,129 visas, up by 159 per cent from 2021.