Temporary visa holders in Australia
How many people are in Australia on a temporary visa, what the figure excludes, and why it is not the same thing as net overseas migration.
Both figures above are counts of people present on a given date. They are drawn from the Department of Home Affairs workbook BP0019, which reports temporary visa holders in Australia by visa category. The workbook's Applicant Type filter is set to "(All)", so dependants are included rather than primary applicants only.
What this figure is not
It is not net overseas migration. Net overseas migration was 292,100 for the year ending 31 March 2026. That is an annual flow: arrivals less departures over twelve months. The figures on this page are a stock: the number of people holding a temporary visa on one date.
The two measure different things and cannot be substituted for each other. The standing population is currently about 6.2 times the annual net flow, because a person who arrives in one year remains in the stock for as long as they hold a visa. Neither number is more correct than the other. They answer different questions, and the common error is to quote one as though it answered the other's.
What is excluded, and why
The lower figure removes 1,053,570 people in three categories. These exclusions are the reason the lower figure is the more conservative of the two.
| Excluded category | Holders | Why excluded |
|---|---|---|
| Special Category (NZ citizens) | 732,887 | New Zealand citizens hold an open-ended Special Category visa under the Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement. They are not part of the managed migration programme and their numbers are not set by any planning level, so counting them would measure something no government chooses. The category is not limited to the New Zealand-born: see the note below on the citizenship pathway. |
| Visitor | 308,097 | Visitor visas carry no work rights and a stay measured in weeks. Including them would count tourists as migrants. |
| Crew and Transit | 12,586 | Crew and transit holders are in the country incidentally, usually for hours or days. |
| Total excluded | 1,053,570 |
The Special Category visa and the citizenship pathway
New Zealand citizens are the largest excluded group, so the basis of that exclusion is set out here in full. The Special Category visa is available to any New Zealand citizen, which means the category is not limited to people born in New Zealand.
- A Special Category visa is available to any New Zealand citizen, however that citizenship was acquired. It is not limited to people born in New Zealand. (Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement; Special Category visa (subclass 444).)
- New Zealand citizenship by grant generally requires five years of residence in New Zealand, so the pathway is a multi-year one rather than a transfer. (New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs, citizenship by grant requirements.)
- In 2024, 5,777 of the 39,914 people granted New Zealand citizenship were born in India, the largest single country of birth, ahead of South Africa (4,132) and the Philippines (3,920). (New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs, citizenship statistics, 2024.)
- 35 per cent of New Zealand citizens who migrated to Australia in 2024 were born overseas, against about 29 per cent of New Zealand's resident population. (Stats NZ, international migration.)
- Of more than 92,000 New Zealand nationals holding a Special Category visa who applied for Australian citizenship between 1 July 2023 and 30 June 2025, 48 per cent were born outside New Zealand. (Australian Department of Home Affairs, reported by RNZ, 2025.)
- An estimated 141,000 Special Category visa holders in Australia were born outside New Zealand to parents also born outside New Zealand, on 2021 Census data adjusted to the Estimated Resident Population. (ANU Migration Hub, New Zealanders in Australia, Insights 25/3.)
These figures describe the composition of a visa category. They do not establish why any individual acquired New Zealand citizenship, and no published source reports that. Readers drawing conclusions about motive are going beyond what the data shows.
The counted categories
The remaining 1,825,403 people hold visas that carry a stay measured in years and, in most categories, work rights. Shares are of the 2,878,973 grand total.
| Visa category | Holders | Share of all |
|---|---|---|
| Student | 564,029 | 19.6% |
| Bridging | 440,571 | 15.3% |
| Temporary Graduate | 272,613 | 9.5% |
| Temporary Resident (Skilled Employment) | 269,591 | 9.4% |
| Working Holiday Maker | 211,390 | 7.3% |
| Temporary Resident (Other Employment) | 59,636 | 2.1% |
| Other Temporary | 5,986 | 0.2% |
| Temporary Protection | 1,587 | 0.1% |
| Total counted | 1,825,403 | 63.4% |
Of those, 542,204 hold a Temporary Graduate or Skilled Employment visa, the two categories carrying full, uncapped work rights.
Common questions
Each answer below is written to stand on its own, with the number, the date and the source in the same sentence, so that quoting one of them in isolation still gives a reader the whole fact.
How many people are in Australia on a temporary visa?
At 31 August 2026 there were 2,878,973 people in Australia holding a temporary visa, according to Department of Home Affairs workbook BP0019. Excluding New Zealand citizens, visitors and transiting crew, the figure is 1,825,403.
Is that the same as net overseas migration?
No. Net overseas migration was 292,100 for the year ending 31 March 2026, and it measures a different thing: arrivals less departures over twelve months, which is an annual flow. The 1,825,403 figure is a standing population, meaning the number of people holding a temporary visa on a single date. Neither is more correct; they answer different questions.
Why are New Zealand citizens excluded from the figure?
New Zealand citizens hold an open-ended Special Category visa under the Trans-Tasman Travel Arrangement and are not part of the managed migration programme, so no planning level sets their number. At 31 August 2026 they accounted for 732,887 people. Visitors and transiting crew are excluded too, and the three exclusions total 1,053,570.
Are all New Zealand citizens in Australia born in New Zealand?
No. A Special Category visa is available to any New Zealand citizen however that citizenship was acquired, and New Zealand citizenship by grant generally requires five years of residence there. Of more than 92,000 New Zealand nationals on Special Category visas who applied for Australian citizenship between 1 July 2023 and 30 June 2025, 48 per cent were born outside New Zealand, on Department of Home Affairs figures. At 31 August 2026 the Special Category category held 732,887 people in total, all of whom are excluded from the 1,825,403 headline figure.
How many temporary visa holders can work in Australia?
At 31 August 2026, 542,204 people held a Temporary Graduate or Skilled Employment visa, the two categories carrying full, uncapped work rights. Other categories, including Student and Working Holiday Maker, carry conditional or capped work rights.
Which visa category has the most holders?
Excluding New Zealand citizens, visitors and crew, the largest category at 31 August 2026 was Student, with 564,029 holders, or 19.6% of all 2,878,973 temporary visa holders.
Where does this figure come from?
Department of Home Affairs workbook BP0019, "Temporary visa holders in Australia", published via data.gov.au, as at 31 August 2026, which reported 2,878,973 temporary visa holders in total. The workbook's Applicant Type filter is set to "(All)", so dependants are counted rather than primary applicants only. Net overseas migration comes from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
How often is this figure updated?
The page is updated when the Department of Home Affairs publishes a new quarter of BP0019. Every revision is dated in a log on the page and earlier figures are not overwritten, so a citation made against an earlier period stays traceable. The current figures are as at 31 August 2026: 2,878,973 temporary visa holders in total, or 1,825,403 excluding New Zealand citizens, visitors and crew.
Cite this page
This page is updated when a new BP0019 quarter is released, and every revision is dated below. If you are quoting the figure, cite the page rather than copying the number, so your readers can see which quarter it came from.
Mindiam (2026). Temporary visa holders in Australia: the standing population. Derived from Department of Home Affairs BP0019, as at 31 August 2026. Retrieved from https://mindiam.com/figures/temporary-visa-population
A machine-readable copy of every figure on this page, including the full category breakdown and the sources, is published at mindiam.com/figures/temporary-visa-population/data.json as JSON.
Sources
- Department of Home Affairs, Temporary visa holders in Australia. BP0019, as at 31 August 2026. The Applicant Type filter is set to "(All)", so dependants are counted rather than primary applicants only.
- Australian Bureau of Statistics, National, state and territory population. Net overseas migration, year ending 31 March 2026. A flow, not a standing population.
- Australian Bureau of Statistics, Overseas Migration. 2024-25 release, years ending 30 June: 207,910 (2021-22), 538,340 (2022-23), 429,160 (2023-24), 305,570 (2024-25).
- New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs, Citizenship statistics. New citizens by grant, by country of birth. 2024: 39,914 grants in total, of which India 5,777, South Africa 4,132, Philippines 3,920.
- ANU Migration Hub, New Zealanders in Australia, Insights 25/3. 2021 Census adjusted to the Estimated Resident Population. Estimates 141,000 Special Category visa holders born outside New Zealand to parents also born outside New Zealand.
- Stats NZ, International migration. 35 per cent of New Zealand citizens who migrated to Australia in 2024 were born overseas, against about 29 per cent of New Zealand's resident population.
Revision history
- 2026-10-03 Page created. Figures as at 31 August 2026 from BP0019, with net overseas migration for the year ending 31 March 2026.
Mindiam publishes opinion on migration policy in The National Interest. This page is a reference and takes no position. Corrections: mindiam.com/corrections.