Covid-19’s profound impact on Immigration and International Education
Since the start of the pandemic, Australia has implemented strict measures to help fight the spread of Covid infections – even banning its own people from leaving or entering the country in 2021.
Australia has so far reported more than 2.7 million cases of coronavirus and more than 4,240 Covid-related deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University data. Nearly 80% of the population is fully vaccinated.
Despite most of the country opening up, the state of Western Australia (WA) still has tight measures. It is currently closed to non-residents, including those from other Australian states, unless they have permission to enter.
There had been plans to open WA’s borders to interstate and international tourists this month, but that move was postponed indefinitely due to the Omicron variant.
Following closure of the international border in March 2020, the number of non‐Australian citizens entering Australia dropped from more than one million in December 2019 to 7000 in April 2020. While critical for limiting the entry of the covid into Australia at the start of the pandemic, the social and economic costs of the international border closure have had profound impacts in many areas, including tourism, retail trade, and tertiary education. Source MJ Hanley Oct 2021.
