As of 2023, Australia's net overseas migration was 152.2 thousand people. In 2020 and 2021, net migration in Australia reduced drastically due to travel restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Net migration increased to over 400 thousand people once restrictions were eased in 2022.

In 2019, ** percent of respondents to a survey of Australian opinions on immigration indicated that they believed that the number of immigrants coming to Australia each year was too high. The proportion of respondents who thought Australia's immigration intake was too high has declined from over ** percent in 2018.

Please Note: As announced by the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection on 25 June 2017, the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) retired the paper-based Outgoing Passenger Cards (OPC) from 1 July 2017. The information previously gathered via paper-based outgoing passenger cards is now be collated from existing government data and will continue to be provided to users. Further information can be accessed here: http://www.minister.border.gov.au/peterdutton/Pages/removal-of-the-outgoing-passenger-card-jun17.aspx.

Due to the retirement of the OPC, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) undertook a review of the OAD data based on a new methodology. Further information on this revised methodology is available at: http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Previousproducts/3401.0Appendix2Jul%202017?opendocument&tabname=Notes&prodno=3401.0&issue=Jul%202017&num=&view=

A sampling methodology has been applied to this dataset. This method means that data will not replicate, exactly, data released by the ABS, but the differences should be negligible.

Due to ‘Return to Source’ limitations, data supplied to ABS from non-DIPB sources are also excluded.

Overseas Arrivals and Departures (OAD) data refers to the arrival and departure of Australian residents or overseas visitors, through Australian airports and sea ports, which have been recorded on incoming or outgoing passenger cards. OAD data describes the number of movements of travellers rather than the number of travellers. That is, multiple movements of individual persons during a given reference period are all counted. OAD data will differ from data derived from other sources, such as Migration Program Outcomes, Settlement Database or Visa Grant information. Travellers granted a visa in one year may not arrive until the following year, or may not travel to Australia at all. Some visas permit multiple entries to Australia, so travellers may enter Australia more than once on a visa. Settler Arrivals includes New Zealand citizens and other non-program settlers not included on the Settlement Database. The Settlement Database includes onshore processed grants not included in Settler Arrivals.

These de-identified statistics are periodically checked for privacy and other compliance requirements. The statistics were temporarily removed in March 2024 in response to a question about privacy within the emerging technological environment. Following a thorough review and risk assessment, the Department of Home Affairs has republished the dataset.

Population Change: Net Interstate Migration: Western Australia data was reported at 1,469.000 Person in Sep 2024. This records a decrease from the previous number of 2,411.000 Person for Jun 2024. Population Change: Net Interstate Migration: Western Australia data is updated quarterly, averaging 580.000 Person from Jun 1981 (Median) to Sep 2024, with 174 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 5,181.000 Person in Dec 2021 and a record low of -3,669.000 Person in Dec 2016. Population Change: Net Interstate Migration: Western Australia data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Australian Bureau of Statistics. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Australia – Table AU.G003: Population Change.

In the 2023 financial year, it was estimated that approximately 19.23 thousand more United Kingdom nationals migrated to Australia than emigrated. This marked a significant increase in net overseas migration from the UK to Australia compared to the previous financial year.

This dataset contains data on single, female, assisted immigrants arriving in New South Wales, Australia between 1848 and 1887 compiled from shipping lists held by the NSW State Archives. It contains information on 3,768 single (unmarried), female, assisted (sponsored or subsidised) immigrants and any children travelling with them arriving in Sydney, NSW between the opening of the Female Immigration Depot in 1848 and its closure in 1887. This sample was selected by using a random number generator to choose one ship arriving in Sydney for each year of the period. Data for each woman or child was transcribed by hand from digitized copies of 'NRS 5316 Persons on bounty ships (Agent's Immigrant Lists), 1838-96' made available online by NSW State Archives. For information about data collection, cleaning, and the variables used see the Data Schema.

In 2019, ** percent of respondents aged 45 to 59 who completed a survey on immigration in Australia indicated that they believed that the number of immigrants coming to Australia each year was too high. Overall the younger age groups were more likely to respond that Australia's migrant intake level was about right.

In financial year 2023, it is estimated that almost 93 thousand more Indians migrated to Australia than emigrated, This marked the highest net overseas migration from India within the measured period.

In the Southern Hemisphere, humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) migrate along the extended continental coastlines of Australia, South America, and South Africa. This study reports on photo-identification capture–recapture data from a long-term survey conducted in Hervey Bay, Queensland, where a substantial proportion of the population stop over early in the southern migration. Photo-identification data were collected over 10 weeks per year from 1997 to 2009. The migration through Hervey Bay is dominated and led by females with high fidelity to the site. Mature females, yearlings, and immature whales use the Bay during August, while mature lactating females with calves dominate during September and October. Complex social behaviours occur throughout the season and differ between the early and late cohorts. We argue that the composition of the two cohorts and their distinctively different behaviours indicate that Hervey Bay is not simply a resting site but an area of aggregation that serves important social and biological benefits. A multistate open robust design model was fitted to capture–recapture data to estimate the annual number of whales visiting the Bay, the permanent emigration rate, proportions of the visiting population that do not enter the Bay each year, the number present during each week, and their residency times. The number of annual visitors to the Bay increased approximately linearly from 857 in 1997 to 2175 at the end of sampling in 2009 with two-thirds migrating through during the first half of each season. The population rate of growth may have been slowing by 2009, but there was considerable uncertainty in the trajectory and little basis for projection into the future. While it is desirable to know the current status of the Hervey Bay population and what has occurred since 2009, the cost and effort required make further manual collection and matching of images unlikely. The development of AI algorithmic matching software may enable further research in future.

Each entry records the name, age, marital status, calling, native place, religion, and education of the immigrant. Also recorded are the names of relations in the colony; names and addresses of parents; and any complaints respecting treatment aboard ship.

The majority of ships travelled from a British port to Sydney. However, there were numerous arrivals from Hamburg in the 1850s, when considerable numbers of immigrants from Germany were recruited to come to New South Wales (which included Moreton Bay until 1859). In addition, the William Prowse (1853) and the Palmyra (1854) arrived from Madras carrying Eurasians; and the Annie H. Smith, N. Boynton, Sierra Nevada, Star of the West and the Ivanhoe arrived from New York in 1877-78.

Also called the Board's Immigrant Lists, arrangement is alphabetical by the name of ship within each year. The series generally provides more information about immigrants than the Agent's Immigrant Lists (NRS 5316), which it complements, but it is incomplete.

Printed indexes to these records were published. This series is indexed in Guide to the State Archives of New South Wales No.29: Immigration: Index to Assisted Immigrants Arriving Sydney and Newcastle 1844-59 (1987, in 3 volumes); Guide to the State Archives of New South Wales No.28: Immigration: Index to Assisted Immigrants Arriving Sydney, 1844-59 (1985 with Supplement, 1985); Guide to the State Archives of New South Wales No.27: Immigration: Index to Assisted Immigrants Arriving Moreton Bay, 1848-59 (1985) (hardcopies available in Western Sydney reading room). Their content is included in the online Assisted Immigrants Index 1839-1896.

See NRS-5317 Persons on bounty ships ('Board's Immigrant Lists), 1848-1891 for an item list.

(4/4904-5036). 133 boxes.

Note:
This description is extracted from Concise Guide to the State Archives of New South Wales, 3rd Edition 2000.

In the Southern Hemisphere, humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) migrate along the extended continental coastlines of Australia, South America, and South Africa. This study reports on photo-identification capture–recapture data from a long-term survey conducted in Hervey Bay, Queensland, where a substantial proportion of the population stop over early in the southern migration. Photo-identification data were collected over 10 weeks per year from 1997 to 2009. The migration through Hervey Bay is dominated and led by females with high fidelity to the site. Mature females, yearlings, and immature whales use the Bay during August, while mature lactating females with calves dominate during September and October. Complex social behaviours occur throughout the season and differ between the early and late cohorts. We argue that the composition of the two cohorts and their distinctively different behaviours indicate that Hervey Bay is not simply a resting site but an area of aggregation that serves important social and biological benefits. A multistate open robust design model was fitted to capture–recapture data to estimate the annual number of whales visiting the Bay, the permanent emigration rate, proportions of the visiting population that do not enter the Bay each year, the number present during each week, and their residency times. The number of annual visitors to the Bay increased approximately linearly from 857 in 1997 to 2175 at the end of sampling in 2009 with two-thirds migrating through during the first half of each season. The population rate of growth may have been slowing by 2009, but there was considerable uncertainty in the trajectory and little basis for projection into the future. While it is desirable to know the current status of the Hervey Bay population and what has occurred since 2009, the cost and effort required make further manual collection and matching of images unlikely. The development of AI algorithmic matching software may enable further research in future.

The net overseas migration from South Africa to Australia in financial year 2022 was over 4.5 thousand people. Several thousand people have migrated from South Africa to Australia each year since 2005. In financial year 2009, it is estimated that almost 13 thousand South Africans migrated to Australia.

These population projections were prepared by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) for Geoscience Australia. The projections are not official ABS data and are owned by Geoscience Australia. These projections are for Statistical Areas Level 2 (SA2s) and Local Government Areas (LGAs), and are projected out from a base population as at 30 June 2022, by age and sex. Projections are for 30 June 2023 to 2032, with results disaggregated by age and sex.

Method The cohort-component method was used for these projections. In this method, the base population is projected forward annually by calculating the effect of births, deaths and migration (the components) within each age-sex cohort according to the specified fertility, mortality and overseas and internal migration assumptions. The projected usual resident population by single year of age and sex was produced in four successive stages – national, state/territory, capital city/rest of state, and finally SA2s. Assumptions were made for each level and the resulting projected components and population are constrained to the geographic level above for each year.
These projections were derived from a combination of assumptions published in Population Projections, Australia, 2022 (base) to 2071 on 23 November 2023, and historical patterns observed within each state/territory.

Projections – capital city/rest of state regions The base population is 30 June 2022 Estimated Resident Population (ERP) as published in National, state and territory population, June 2022. For fertility, the total fertility rate (at the national level) is based on the medium assumption used in Population Projections, Australia, 2022 (base) to 2071, of 1.6 babies per woman being phased in from 2022 levels over five years to 2027, before remaining steady for the remainder of the projection span. Observed state/territory, and greater capital city level fertility differentials were applied to the national data so that established trends in the state and capital city/rest of state relativities were preserved. Mortality rates are based on the medium assumption used in Population Projections, Australia, 2022 (base) to 2071, and assume that mortality rates will continue to decline across Australia with state/territory differentials persisting. State/territory and capital city/rest of state differentials were used to ensure projected deaths are consistent with the historical trend. Annual net overseas migration (NOM) is based on the medium assumption used in Population Projections, Australia, 2022 (base) to 2071, with an assumed gain (at the national level) of 400,000 in 2022-23, increasing to 315,000 in 2023-24, then declining to 225,000 in 2026-27, after which NOM is assumed to remain constant. State and capital city/rest of state shares are based on a weighted average of NOM data from 2010 to 2019 at the state and territory level to account for the impact of COVID-19. For internal migration, net gains and losses from states and territories and capital city/rest of state regions are based on the medium assumption used in Population Projections, Australia, 2022 (base) to 2071, and assume that net interstate migration will trend towards long-term historic average flows.

Projections – Statistical Areas Level 2 The base population for each SA2 is the estimated resident population in each area by single year of age and sex, at 30 June 2022, as published in Regional population by age and sex, 2022 on 28 September 2023. The SA2-level fertility and mortality assumptions were derived by combining the medium scenario state/territory assumptions from Population Projections, Australia, 2022 (base) to 2071, with recent fertility and mortality trends in each SA2 based on annual births (by sex) and deaths (by age and sex) published in Regional Population, 2021-22 and Regional Population by Age and Sex, 2022. Assumed overseas and internal migration for each SA2 is based on SA2-specific annual overseas and internal arrivals and departures estimates published in Regional Population, 2021-22 and Regional Population by Age and Sex, 2022. The internal migration data was strengthened with SA2-specific data from the 2021 Census, based on the usual residence one year before Census night question. Assumptions were applied by SA2, age and sex. Assumptions were adjusted for some SA2s, to provide more plausible future population levels, and age and sex distribution changes, including areas where populations may not age over time, for example due to significant resident student and defence force populations. Most assumption adjustments were made via the internal migration component. For some SA2s with zero or a very small population base, but where significant population growth is expected, replacement migration age/sex profiles were applied. All SA2-level components and projected projections are constrained to the medium series of capital city/rest of state data in Population Projections, Australia, 2022 (base) to 2071.

Projections – Local Government Areas The base population for each LGA is the estimated resident population in each area by single year of age and sex, at 30 June 2022, as published in Regional population by age and sex, 2022 on 28 September 2023. Projections for 30 June 2023 to 2032 were created by converting from the SA2-level population projections to LGAs by age and sex. This was done using an age-specific population correspondence, where the data for each year of the projection span were converted based on 2021 population shares across SA2s. The LGA and SA2 projections are congruous in aggregation as well as in isolation. Unlike the projections prepared at SA2 level, no LGA-specific projection assumptions were used.

Nature of projections and considerations for usage The nature of the projection method and inherent fluctuations in population dynamics mean that care should be taken when using and interpreting the projection results. The projections are not forecasts, but rather illustrate future changes which would occur if the stated assumptions were to apply over the projection period. These projections do not attempt to allow for non-demographic factors such as major government policy decisions, economic factors, catastrophes, wars and pandemics, which may affect future demographic behaviour. To illustrate a range of possible outcomes, alternative projection series for national, state/territory and capital city/rest of state areas, using different combinations of fertility, mortality, overseas and internal migration assumptions, are prepared. Alternative series are published in Population Projections, Australia, 2022 (base) to 2071. Only one series of SA2-level projections was prepared for this product. Population projections can take account of planning and other decisions by governments known at the time the projections were derived, including sub-state projections published by each state and territory government. The ABS generally does not have access to the policies or decisions of commonwealth, state and local governments and businesses that assist in accurately forecasting small area populations. Migration, especially internal migration, accounts for the majority of projected population change for most SA2s. Volatile and unpredictable small area migration trends, especially in the short-term, can have a significant effect on longer-term projection results. Care therefore should be taken with SA2s with small total populations and very small age-sex cells, especially at older ages. While these projections are calculated at the single year of age level, small numbers, and fluctuations across individual ages in the base population and projection assumptions limit the reliability of SA2-level projections at single year of age level. These fluctuations reduce and reliability improves when the projection results are aggregated to broader age groups such as the five-year age bands in this product. For areas with small elderly populations, results aggregated to 65 and over are more reliable than for the individual age groups above 65. With the exception of areas with high planned population growth, SA2s with a base total population of less than 500 have generally been held constant for the projection period in this product as their populations are too small to be reliably projected at all, however their (small) age/sex distributions may change slightly. These SA2s are listed in the appendix. The base (2022) SA2 population estimates and post-2022 projections by age and sex include small artificial cells, including 1s and 2s. These are the result of a confidentialisation process and forced additivity, to control SA2 and capital city/rest of state age/sex totals, being applied to their original values. SA2s and LGAs in this product are based on the Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) boundaries as at the 2021 Census (ASGS Edition 3). For further information, see Australian Statistical Geography Standard (ASGS) Edition 3.

Made possible by the Digital Atlas of Australia The Digital Atlas of Australia is a key Australian Government initiative being led by Geoscience Australia, highlighted in the Data and Digital Government Strategy. It brings together trusted datasets from across government in an interactive, secure, and easy-to-use geospatial platform. The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) is working in partnership with Geoscience Australia to establish a set of web services to make ABS data available in the Digital Atlas of Australia.

Contact the Australian Bureau of Statistics If you have questions or feedback about this web service, please email geography@abs.gov.au. To subscribe to updates about ABS web services and geospatial products, please complete this form. For information about how the ABS manages any personal information you provide view the ABS privacy policy.

Data and geography references Source data publication: Population Projections, Australia, 2022 (base)

This collection represents anonymised and redacted interview transcripts from interviews with NGO/INGO organisational representatives. Interviews were conducted between 2016 and 2020, across several case studies: Canada (Vancouver, Ottawa), Greece (Athens, Kos), Spain (Almeria, Madrid), Australia (Canberra, Melbourne). Each organisation has a targeted responsibility for refugee settlement, support, or processing in each cases; in some cases, the NGO is internationally focused, and so interviews included discussion of advocacy and a comparison across cases. Interviews focus on practical experience and day-to-day activities, barriers to effective support, successes, and recommendations for change.This project interrogates changing patterns of irregular, or undocumented, migration in maritime space. It asks how the experiences and practices of irregular migrants are impacted by changing policies in border security and asylum, and also how these patterns of migration are themselves driving policy change. The project has a particular focus on how security efforts that attempt to respond to human trafficking and people smuggling (and that often conflate the two) are impacting the vulnerabilities of migrants, particularly asylum seekers, as they cross maritime borders. In pursuing these questions, this research prioritises the experiences and perspectives of migrants themselves by using innovative qualitative methods that enable migrants to tell their own stories, in their own ways. The objectives of this project are to place the migrant experience at the centre of our understanding of irregular maritime migration, to bring local case studies together to reveal global patterns of policy change, and to understand how the maritime space offers opportunities to rethink how we understand the international realm. The project is built around two case studies: the Pacific Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. In both cases, two migration routes will be studied. For the Pacific, the journey that transits through Indonesia to Australia, and that which transits through Thailand to Canada are the focus; in the Mediterranean, the journeys examined are from Morocco to Spain, and from Libya to Italy. To understand these routes, in-depth field research will be undertaken in the four destination states (Australia, Canada, Spain, and Italy) in order to trace the experience of migrants backwards from their destination through their migration journeys. These experiences will be analyzed against patterns of policy change in each state, and of interstate cooperation and governance at regional and global levels to reveal how states have responded to the arrival of boats carrying undocumented migrants, and how these responses have then impacted the mobility of these individuals. The guiding research method is ethnography, which includes participant observation, unstructured interviews, and visual ethnographies. The visual ethnographies represent a new method, and will allow migrants themselves to tell their own stories through video and photography. These pieces will then be made available on the Project Website, and will be screened at a final Public Engagement Event. Ethnographies will also be supported by semi-structured interviews and by policy analysis. Throughout the project, this research will be supported by comprehensive skills development for the researcher, which includes methodology training, the development of academic and practitioner networks, and the development of leadership skills and opportunities in the field. The research in this project will enhance our understanding of irregular migration and processes of political change that impact border security and asylum politics. This will be reflected in several journal articles, and a final book manuscript that will be submitted for review at the end of the project. This research will also have important non-academic impacts. Through activities that include the Website and Public Event noted above, targeted Workshops in each research site, and the regular publication of Briefing Notes and Project Reports, this project will build and enhance cross-community networks. The key audiences for this research include the general public, policy makers, advocacy and support workers, and migrants themselves. Through this research, policy debates will be informed by deeper understandings of irregular migration. Further, the activities and publications of the project will build new opportunities for communication, and for consultation and collaboration in developing more effective and humane responses to the challenges posed by irregular migration across water. Semi-structured interviews with representatives from NGOs and community organisations that work with migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. Sampling took place through snowballing methods and via organisation-network mapping. The collection represents transcripts of interviews where recordings were taken and consent obtained for transcript deposit. Seven transcipts are included, with 3 from Canada, 3 from Australia, and one from Greece.

Burra was the largest metalliferous mine in Australia between 1845 and 1860, and employed up to 1,000 men and boys. The workforce was predominantly Cornish, Burra being the first significant concentration of Cornish immigrants in Australia. The... Burra was the largest metalliferous mine in Australia between 1845 and 1860, and employed up to 1,000 men and boys. The workforce was predominantly Cornish, Burra being the first significant concentration of Cornish immigrants in Australia. The Cornish brought with them their traditional mining techniques and social customs, and have left a unique cultural heritage. No list of miners employed at Burra exists, but two Copper Ore Day Books have survived. These books record the daily sampling of copper ore on the ore floors, and include the name of the leader of each underground ore mining team (tribute party). These records were kept by surface captains and were used in the calculation of wages. This report contains an index of the miners' names recorded in these Day Books, which cover the periods from July 1860 to November 1861, and October 1863 to December 1865. It also includes a brief review of underground mining methods and employment systems used at Burra. The two Day Books were part of a complete series dating from 1845, but the remainder have apparently been destroyed. The original copies are held by the Burra Community Library; microfiche copies can be viewed at the Library or the Information Services Branch, South Australian Department of Mines and Energy. Includes Directors Report letters to shareholders and some Mine Manager's Reports

Migratory species can travel tens of thousands of kilometers each year, spending different parts of their annual cycle in geographically distinct locations. Understanding the drivers of population change is vital for conserving migratory species, yet the challenge of collecting data over entire geographic ranges has hindered attempts to identify the processes leading to observed population changes. Here, we use remotely sensed environmental data and count data to investigate the factors driving variability in abundance in two subspecies of a long-distance migratory shorebird, the bar-tailed godwit (Limosa lapponica). We compiled a spatially and temporally explicit dataset of three environmental variables to identify the conditions experienced by each subspecies in each stage of their annual cycle (breeding, non-breeding and staging). We used a Bayesian N-mixture model to analyze 18 years of monthly count data from 21 sites across Australia and New Zealand in relation to the remote sensing datasets. We found that the abundance of one subspecies (L. l. menzbieri) in their non-breeding range was related to climate conditions in breeding grounds, and detected sustained population declines between 1995 and 2012 in both subspecies (L. l. menzbieri, -6.7% and L. l. baueri, -2.1% year-1). To investigate the possible causes of the declines, we quantified changes in habitat extent at 22 migratory staging sites in the Yellow Sea, East Asia, over a 25-year period and found -1.7% and -1.2% year-1 loss of habitat at staging sites used by L. l. menzbieri and L. l baueri, respectively. Our results highlight the need to identify environmental and anthropogenic drivers of population change across all stages of migration to allow the formulation of effective conservation strategies across entire migratory ranges.

The statistic shows the total population of Australia from 1980 to 2023, with projections up until 2030. In 2023, Australia had a total population of about 26.95 million people. Population of Australia Australia is among the ten largest countries in the world, in terms of area size, although its total population is low in relation to this. Much of Australia’s interior remains uninhabited, as the majority of Australians live in coastal metropolises and cities. Most of the population is of European descent (predominantly British), although there is a growing share of the population with Asian heritage; only a small percentage belongs to the indigenous Aboriginal population. Australia's year-on-year population growth is fairly high compared to most other economically and demographically advanced nations, due to comparatively high rates of natural increase and immigration. Living standards Standard of living is fairly high in Australia, which can be seen when looking at the Human Development Index, which ranks countries by their level of human development and living standards, such as their unemployment rate, literacy rate, or life expectancy at birth. Life expectancy of Australia’s population is quite high in international comparison, for example, Australia is also among the leading countries when it comes to this key factor. Economically speaking, Australia is also among the leading nations, with a steadily rising employment rate, an increasing gross domestic product (GDP) with a steady growth rate, and a relatively stable share in the global GDP.

Humans have been living on the continent of Australia (name derived from "Terra Australis"; Latin for "the southern land") for approximately 65,000 years, however population growth was relatively slow until the nineteenth century. Europeans had made some contact with Australia as early as 1606, however there was no significant attempt at settlement until the late eighteenth century. By 1800, the population of Australia was approximately 350,000 people, and the majority of these were Indigenous Australians. As colonization progressed the number of ethnic Europeans increased while the Australian Aboriginal population was decimated through conflict, smallpox and other diseases, with some communities being exterminated completely, such as Aboriginal Tasmanians. Mass migration from Britain and China After the loss of its American colonies in the 1780s, the British Empire looked to other parts of the globe to expand its sphere of influence. In Australia, the first colonies were established in Sydney, Tasmania and Western Australia. Many of these were penal colonies which became home to approximately 164,000 British and Irish convicts who were transported to Australia between 1788 and 1868. As the decades progressed, expansion into the interior intensified, and the entire country was claimed by Britain in 1826. Inland colonization led to further conflict between European settlers and indigenous Australians, which cost the lives of thousands of natives. Inward expansion also saw the discovery of many natural resources, and most notably led to the gold rushes of the 1850s, which attracted substantial numbers of Chinese migrants to Australia. This mass migration from non-European countries eventually led to some restrictive policies being introduced, culminating with the White Australia Policy of 1901, which cemented ethnic-European dominance in Australian politics and society. These policies were not retracted until the second half of the 1900s. Independent Australia Australia changed its status to a British dominion in 1901, and eventually became independent in 1931. Despite this, Australia has remained a part of the British Commonwealth, and Australian forces (ANZAC) fought with the British and their Allies in both World Wars, and were instrumental in campaigns such as Gallipoli in WWI, and the South West Pacific Theater in WWII. The aftermath of both wars had a significant impact on the Australian population, with approximately 90 thousand deaths in both world wars combined, as well as 15 thousand deaths as a result of the Spanish flu pandemic following WWI, although Australia experienced a significant baby boom following the Second World War. In the past fifty years, Australia has promoted immigration from all over the world, and now has one of the strongest economies and highest living standards in the world, with a population that has grown to over 25 million people in 2020.

Among countries with the highest number of overseas Chinese on each continent, the largest Chinese diaspora community is living in Indonesia, numbering more than ten million people. Most of these people are descendants from migrants born in China, who have moved to Indonesia a long time ago. On the contrary, a large part of overseas Chinese living in Canada and Australia have arrived in these countries only during the last two decades. China as an emigration country Many Chinese people have emigrated from their home country in search of better living conditions and educational chances. The increasing number of Chinese emigrants has benefited from loosened migration policies. On the one hand, the attitude of the Chinese government towards emigration has changed significantly. Overseas Chinese are considered to be strong supporters for the overall strength of Chinese culture and international influence. On the other hand, migration policies in the United States and Canada are changing with time, expanding migration opportunities for non-European immigrants. As a result, China has become one of the world’s largest emigration countries as well as the country with the highest outflows of high net worth individuals. However, the mass emigration is causing a severe loss of homegrown talents and assets. The problem of talent and wealth outflow has raised pressing questions to the Chinese government, and a solution to this issue is yet to be determined. Popular destinations among Chinese emigrants Over the last decades, English speaking developed countries have been popular destinations for Chinese emigrants. In 2022 alone, the number of people from China naturalized as U.S. citizens had amounted to over 27,000 people, while nearly 68,000 had obtained legal permanent resident status as “green card” recipients. Among other popular immigration destinations for Chinese riches are Canada, Australia, Europe, and Singapore.

Since the 1960s, Australia's urbanization rate has consistently been above 80 percent, and in 2024 it has reached its highest ever rate at 86.75 percent. Historically, Australia has been one of the most urbanized countries in the world, due to high rates of immigration since the 20th century, which were generally to coastal, urban areas. However, despite its high urbanization rate, Australia is among the largest countries in the world; therefore its population density is among the lowest in the world.