People seeking asylum by boat
Contents
People who seek asylum by boat are treated differently from those who come by plane. People who come by plane usually live in the community on the same visa conditions as those with which they arrived while they are waiting.
However, people who seek asylum by boat are required by law to be detained. They can only live in the community if the government decides to release them. This decision is almost entirely up to the government.
Australia’s mandatory detention policies
Some people are released into what is usually called ‘community detention’, if the Minister makes a ‘residence determination’. This means they live in housing specified by the government, with restrictions on their movement. Our statistics on detention include people in this group.
Statistics on people in detention in Australia
However, for the past few years, most people seeking asylum by boat have been living in the community on a visa called a bridging visa E (BVE). Unlike those in community detention, this group can live in the community freely, but do not receive any housing and very limited support.
This graph shows the changing number of people holding a Bridging Visa E.
This graph shows the number of people seeking asylum in the community by visa status.
As the graph below shows, as at 31 December 2022, 37,593 people who came by boat were given a bridging visa E, of which 10,721 people were still in the community. The rest were either granted a substantive visa, left Australia, detained or deceased.
This graph shows the number of people waiting for a bridging E visa to be re-granted, including those who were transferred from Nauru or PNG to Australia ('transitory persons'). (Note: this question was asked in the latest round of Senate estimates, but this time the Department refused to answer the question on the basis that it would unreasonably divert resources.)
People in the community who are waiting for the grant of further Bridging Visa E do not have rights to work, study or access Medicare, because they do not hold a valid visa. This often happens because of delays in renewing a visa. In some cases, their visas can only be renewed after the Minister personally allows for the grant of a further visa.
This graph shows the number of people on a bridging visa with and without work rights.
The graph below shows the numbers of people on bridging visas E over time.
The Government has also introduced the so-called 'final departure bridging visas'. These visas are for people who have been transferred from offshore processing countries who are released into the community, but do not have any income support, housing or other support. The statistics relevant to this group are updated in our offshore processing statistics.
Offshore processing statistics
Where are they living?
This graph shows where people with a bridging visa E were living in Australia.
This graph shows where people with a bridging visa E have lived over time. The decreasing numbers is mostly due to changes in status, as people on bridging visas E have been granted temporary protection visas or, in some cases, have left Australia.
The more frequently updated fast-tracking statistics also break down the numbers of people living in different states or territories. However, it focuses on a smaller group of people known as the 'Legacy Caseload', so the numbers do not match. These statistics also show where people who have been granted temporary protection live.
The following pages show statistics, by state and territory, of people who came seeking asylum by boat and who are living in our community on a Bridging E Visa (including those waiting for a grant of a new Bridging E visa).
