Sustainable Population Australia
Media release: 11th June 2026
- Sustainable Population Australia (SPA) is calling on the Federal Government to substantially expand and promote assisted voluntary return for people living in Australia after their visas have expired.
- The Department of Home Affairs estimated that 77,700 unlawful non-citizens were living in Australia as of 30 June 2025, excluding people already in held or community detention.
- Only 467 people departed through the government’s Return and Reintegration Assistance Program during 2024–25.
- SPA argues that the disparity raises serious questions about whether Australia is doing enough to help people resolve their immigration status before they become homeless, vulnerable to exploitation or entrenched in an unlawful existence.
/Public Release.
