"International students contribute millions of dollars to [the Australian] community and benefit Aussie society in various areas," the petition said. Each year hundreds of thousands of Chinese students flock to Australia to study, lured by promises of enhanced career prospects — but are they getting what they pay for? The exodus of students to their home countries, or unable to return to Australia, has devastated the Australian economy across the education, accommodation, hospitality and tourism sectors. "In November, the decision was made to move the pilot to early 2021 to ensure the safety of South Australians, the ongoing repatriation of Australians, and the safe arrival of students," the spokesperson said. For latest updates on an emergency-level bushfire in Darradup, north-east of Augusta in WA, search on ABC Emergency or or find your local ABC radio station, Follow our live coverage ahead of the inauguration of Joe Biden as the next US president. The federal government, however, does control the country’s border force and plays a pivotal role with international airport arrivals. He added that New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian had proposed a similar scheme but later backed down when the northern beaches cluster emerged. The petition added, “Lots of students do not have online classes and they have to be exempted to enter Australia to schools as soon as possible.”. New South Wales and Victoria, which together host the largest share of international students, were the worst hit. In the petition, students argued that international students contribute to the Australian economy, adding that “it is unfair that they are left hanging without any specific plans”. But it's empty, 'I plan to sanitise my hands every half an hour': International students en route to Australia, Charting the pandemic: Latest data on the NSW and Victoria outbreaks, Victorians flee NSW ahead of border closure, leaving tourism operators in tears, Sydney may have 'missed the boat' for effective lockdown, expert says, What border restrictions are in place in each state and territory for NSW and Victorian travellers. This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced. Additional reporting by Natasya Salim, Kai Feng and Shamsiya Hussainpoor. Universities Australia told the ABC there were a range of support programs available for current enrolled students. Zhan Huang, a former international student in Melbourne, is among a group people who have launched a petition to the Australian Parliament asking for a travel-ban exemption for international students. "High school students cannot go to school. Open border Australia petition for international students. ", Mr Huang, who now works in IT, said it was "unfair [international] students who are stuck overseas … are paying the same tuition fees, but cannot access on-campus learning assets.". Why is this so significant in the battle to control COVID-19? "I think [returning] 20,000 or 30,000 international students this year is going to be really hard, up to the point of, I don't think we can do that.". SYDNEY (Reuters) - An official petition to Australian lawmakers urging them to exempt international students from border closures has received nearly 3,000 signatures, citing "bad … She's recently completed her entire first year of university from her family's living room in her hometown of Qingdao in China. According to the petition, many university students are struggling with the “bad quality” of online lessons. 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