Burke Announces Arrival of First NZYQ Deportees Cohort in Nauru: A New Chapter in Immigration Policy

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Nauru has accepted the first cohort of deportees from Australia, including members of the NZYQ group, which had visas cancelled on character grounds.

In August, Australia committed to an upfront payment of $408 million to resettle the non-citizens in Nauru, and is expected to spend $2.5 billion over the 30-year lifetime of the deal.

On Friday, Nauru President David Adeang told his parliament the first person had arrived under the deal struck with the Albanese government eight months ago.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke confirmed the arrival but did not specify how many people were on the first transfer.

“Nauru confirmed last Friday that the first transfer has occurred,” Burke said in a statement on Tuesday.

“When an individual’s visa is revoked, their departure should follow,” stated a government representative.

It is understood Nauru initially suggested the deal to the Albanese government as a solution to the NZYQ cohort saga.

As of 12 May 2025, at least 303 former NZYQ detainees have been released into the Australian community since the ruling, according to the Department of Home Affairs.

Several individuals have faced imprisonment for grave offenses and, upon release, were under curfews and monitoring, leading to the annulment of their visas due to character concerns.

A government source has told SBS News that around 280 members of the NZYQ cohort are to be granted visas in Nauru and will live among the local population of around 12,000 people and would not be going into detention.

Last year, the government bolstered its powers to deport members of the group to third countries under new migration laws.

“Regardless of one’s identity or birthplace, no government should possess the power to forcibly relocate someone to a nation with which they have no ties,” remarked David Shoebridge.

The Greens and refugee advocates have criticised the secrecy of the deportation plan, arguing it goes against Australia’s human rights obligations.

Greens immigration spokesperson David Shoebridge expressed concern that once they arrived in Nauru, members of the group could be deported to their home countries against their will, potentially facing persecution or harm.

David Shoebridge, the Greens’ spokesperson for immigration, has criticized the deportation proposal, expressing worry that these individuals might be deported to their countries of origin after arriving in Nauru. Source: AAP / Mick Tsikas

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“Labor has been responsible for some of the most extreme measures in our immigration system in recent times — from mandatory detention to offshore detention, implementing a Trump-like travel ban, and now this new policy,” Shoebridge added.

“We do not know if the person who has been exiled has left family behind in Australia, whether they need medical care that is unavailable in Nauru, or even if they still had visa appeal options in Australia.

“This secrecy is not an accident. It is a deliberate tool wielded by the Albanese government to ensure that it does not have to grapple with the real, human consequences of its actions.”

She said this was a “new low” in the treatment of refugees and would ultimately leave a legacy “sowing fear and division against migrant and refugee communities”.