Migration impact
🇦🇺 Australia
A plain-language summary of who arrives, who leaves, and what the government spends on migration in Australia. Every headline figure is a reported value from an official source — nothing is estimated.
At a glance
Headline figures
591,826
Total incoming
People arrived, all recorded years
381
Total outgoing
People left, all recorded years
+591,445
Net balance
Net inflow
$3.3B
Spent on migrants · 2024
0.19% of GDP
Trend
Incoming vs outgoing, by year
Arrivals compared with departures for each reported year. Use the selector to read the exact figures for a single year.
97,311
Incoming
72
Outgoing
+97,239
Net that year
Public expenditure
What the government spends on migrants
Migration-related public spending (refugee support and development assistance provided) in current US dollars. For donor countries this includes in-donor refugee costs.
$3.3B
Total spending · 2024
Reported migration-related expenditure
0.19%
Share of GDP
About $0.19 of every $100 of national output
For perspective
What $3.3B could otherwise fund
The same amount, spent on other public services, using round benchmark unit costs. These are illustrative comparisons to convey scale — not an actual budget or policy proposal.
6
top-tier hospitals
A large modern referral hospital (~$500M each).
27
general hospitals
A mid-size general hospital (~$120M each).
10
university campuses
A new university campus (~$300M each).
327
kilometres of motorway
One kilometre of modern motorway (~$10M).
655
well-equipped schools
A brand-new fully equipped school (~$5M each).
1,092
public libraries
A community public library (~$3M each).
2,185
kindergartens
A new kindergarten / nursery (~$1.5M each).
13,115
fully equipped ambulances
A new fully equipped ambulance (~$250k each).
21,859
affordable homes
A modest new affordable home (~$150k each).
36,433
doctor-years of salary
One doctor employed for a full year (~$90k).
59,618
nurse-years of salary
One nurse employed for a full year (~$55k).
72,866
teacher-years of salary
One teacher employed for a full year (~$45k).
163,949
university scholarships
A full one-year university scholarship (~$20k).
273,249
hospital beds for a year
Running one hospital bed for a year (~$12k).
1,366,245
annual pension top-ups
An extra $200/month for a pensioner for a year.
5,464,983
laptops for students
One laptop for a school student (~$600 each).