Many Temporary Graduate visa-holders struggle to pursue their chosen careers in Australia: only half secure full-time employment; most work in low-skilled jobs; and half earn less than $53,300 a year, compared to just one third of all graduates. A new Grattan Institute survey, conducted for this report, shows employers are reluctant to hire international graduates, especially because of uncertainty regarding their visa pathways once their Temporary Graduate visa expires.

Many international graduates are stuck in visa limbo: less than one third of Temporary Graduate visa-holders now transition to permanent residency when their visa expires, down from two thirds in 2014. One-in-three return to further study here once their visa expires, mostly for vocational courses, to prolong their stay in Australia.

Federal government policy is moving in the wrong direction. Recent decisions to make post-study work rights even more generous could result in the number of Temporary Graduate visa-holders in Australia almost doubling to about 370,000 by 2030, leaving many more graduates in limbo with even worse prospects of ever securing permanent residency.

Key recommendations:

• Australia should offer shorter post-study work visas to international graduates. Visa extensions for graduates with degrees in nominated areas of shortage, and for living in the regions, should be scrapped.
• Australia should reform existing skilled visas to encourage talented graduates to stay, and to encourage employers to hire them.
• Australia should do more to help international graduates thrive here. The government should launch a campaign designed to change employer attitudes about new graduates, and public sector graduate programs should accept international graduates.