Where Australia’s permanent migrants come from

[Cerberus1]

NEW figures have revealed where Australia’s two million permanent migrants have come from since 2000.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics has released new data that identifies India, England and China as some of the top birth countries of the country’s migrants.

There were about 2.2 million permanent migrants in Australia in 2016, who arrived between January 1, 2000, and August 9, 2016, according to the 2016 Australian Census and Migrants Integrated Dataset.

The report links data gathered from the 2016 Census and from the Department of Social Services.

It found 58 per cent (1.2 million people) had been granted a skilled visa, 32 per cent (683,603) entered via the family stream and just 10 per cent (214,656 people) were on humanitarian visas.

The data also revealed where the migrants were coming from.

For those coming to Australia on the skilled visa, the top country of birth was India (19 per cent), followed by England and China.

When it comes to family migrants, the top country of birth was China (14 per cent), then England and India.

The figures also revealed that about 54 per cent of permanent migrants aged 15 years and older, were buying or owned their own home.

Migrants in the family stream were the most likely to own their home outright (14 per cent), followed by skilled migrants (8 per cent).

The data comes as migration numbers in Australia hit a 10-year low.

Liberal senator Dean Smith this week called for a review into Australia’s population policy as the nation approached 25 million residents.

But Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said Australia’s immigration and population growth was constantly under review.

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said last week that the annual intake of permanent migrants fell by 20,000 last year to 162,000, with both skilled and family visas down.

Immigration remains a talking point in Australia, amid concern about jobs and overcrowding in major cities.

[s713]

Our head office is in Melbourne and I would say 75% of new starters are from India, so that bears out.