The New South Wales government announced the pilot plan on 10 June, stating that its administration intends to bring back 250 foreign students each week from abroad to Sydney, a number that is expected to grow to 500 students by the end of the year.

This proposal is now awaiting approval from the federal government, and it may take another eight weeks before the first group of international students may return to New South Wales.

The New South Wales government’s finance spokesman said that the program’s launch would be dependent on the federal government’s evaluation. It would take a minimum of six to eight weeks from the time NSW has told us that we may continue and operationalize the plan until the first student batch returns to the state.

When asked whether Indian students will be included in the return plan, the spokesman said that they will be brought back from a variety of important source countries that have not yet been named.

The New South Wales government has also announced that in the first phase of the transfer, the state would prioritize the return of continuing higher education students from the state’s institutions and five major independent education providers. Other industries and suppliers will quickly follow suit.

India will be added to the list if the country’s public health condition improves

Kaplan Business School (KBS) is one of five private education providers that have been selected to participate in the return plan. In its statement, KBS says that “for the time being, passport holders from the following countries will be eligible for the NSW Student Arrivals Plan: China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, and Vietnam.”

Once the public health situation in India improves, the nation will be included in this list. At a later point, it is anticipated that more nations would be included on the list.

According to the New South Wales government, the list of source countries was determined based on a number of factors, including “the number of overseas students enrolled in an institution, the public health situation in that country, and whether or not those nationalities are permitted to transit through Singapore.”

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International students will be welcomed back to New South Wales at the beginning of July, as part of a pilot quarantine plan announced by the state government.

The government introduced the plan on Thursday, which would initially see 250 students quarantined in specially designated student housing every two weeks.

The government said that the number of students will climb to 500 every fortnight by the end of the year and that it would not interfere with the present hotel quarantine procedures. Most importantly, as a consequence of this plan, not a single returning Australian will get a seat on a plane.

This will operate concurrently with the 3,000 returning Australians who enter our hotel quarantine system each week. Prior to the epidemic, around 250,000 overseas students studied in New South Wales, the state’s second biggest export.

Around 50,000 international students were actively attempting to get admission to NSW. The government said that it would give job security for the sector’s 100,000 employees. This is a significant win for the New South Wales economy.

We estimate that the cost to our economy since the pandemic started, especially in relation to international students, has been roughly $5 billion, and that if we do nothing, the cost will rise to $11 billion by the end of next year. This is critical because there is evidence that countries such as Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom are deliberately targeting the sector on which NSW is so dependent.

The NSW government has not disclosed the location of the student quarantine facility, but indicated that discussions with the provider were nearing completion. The pilot program has been accepted by NSW Health and Police. The government also said that the request to the federal government had received “strong support” and will be approved in the coming days.

The student quarantine system, which includes travel expenses, accommodations, and security, would be funded by the university sector, whether students pay for flights is up to individual colleges.

Students from across the world will come to NSW on chartered aircraft in the next six to eight weeks, before transitioning to commercial aircraft.

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International students studying in Australia may be eligible for temporary financial assistance in the state of Victoria. Australian Prime Minister stated on Thursday (June 3) that the government will provide up to 500 Australian dollars to employees harmed by the state’s extended lockdown.

Eligibility Criteria For The Emergency Financial Assistance

International students may be eligible for the Commonwealth payment, according to Federal Minister for Agriculture, Drought, and Emergency Management David Littleproud. The government said that individuals would be able to apply for the payment online or by calling Services Australia from 8 June 2021.

International students are permitted to work up to 40 hours every two weeks while studying and an unlimited number of hours during vacations. During the pandemic, the federal government has given a temporary relaxation of working hours for student visa holders. Students employed in some industries such as aged care, agriculture, tourism and hospitality, may work more than 40 hours per week.

To apply for emergency financial assistance, students must be above the age of 17 and reside or work in a commonwealth-defined hotspot region. Additionally, they must have liquid assets of less than A$10,000.

Payment would be made “week by week.” If a lockdown lasts more than two weeks, you must reapply for another weekly payment for the duration of the lockdown. Once the commonwealth no longer classifies an area as a hotspot, the payment will be stopped by the government. This indicates that if a state or territory government maintains a lockdown after removal of the hotspot criteria, the payment will end.

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