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Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs Matt Thistlethwaite said that tourists would be put in immigration detention to reduce the level of visa overstayers, which has risen to 77,000.
Australia was named the world's second-safest country to travel to for 2026 after the Netherlands by the U.S.-based insurance firm Berkshire Hathaway Travel Protection.
Under reforms announced on Sept. 17, Australia will introduce ballots for working holiday makers and crack down on overstayers.
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| People walk through the city center in Sydney, Australia, Sept. 4, 2020. Photo by Reuters |
"Once the word gets around, ‘hey, I overstayed on my tourist visa for a couple of weeks, I got picked up and I spent a couple of weeks in immigration detention, it's not a nice place, I’m going home’. Once that gets around, then we think that obviously that deterrence will ensure that people abide by the conditions," he told broadcaster News24.
People who don't have the right to remain in Australia will face a "consequence" and be removed, he added.
Since 2015, Australia's immigration detention centers have swelled with people with criminal convictions awaiting deportation after a policy change that saw mandatory cancellation of permanent visas for certain criminal offenses.
Immigration Minister Tony Burke, announcing the new policy on Sept. 17, said the government would open 250 beds and add 100 compliance officers to house the visa overstayers in different facilities.
Australian Tourism Industry Council chief executive Erin McLeod said talk of detaining tourists was not good for Australia's image.
"I don't think it does our reputation as a welcoming destination any good and can become quite damaging – tourism is an important part of the Australian economy," she told AFP.
The council represents thousands of small tourism businesses.
Tourism Research Australia reported that Australia received approximately 8.8 million short-term international visitor arrivals in 2025.
