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Australia has expanded its legislation concerning migration policies, which were referred to as “abusive” by Human Rights Watch. This is because the widened laws pose serious threats to the full enjoyment of the right to basic procedural fairness in the context of asylum seekers from Pacific island states, such as nationals of Nauru.
Photo source: Tonmoy Iftekhar, via Unsplash, June 6th, 2025.
12-02-2026 | Dominik Miklósi | Asia Researcher, Global Human Rights Defence.
The Government of Australia has broadened “abusive” migration policies under which non-nationals are deported to Nauru according to legislation that curtails procedural safeguards for asylum seekers. Irrespective of promises made concerning adherence to international refugee law standards in the course of the 2025 elections, Australia is intensifying the offshore processing of refugee claimants to Nauru.
Offshore processing is a mode of border control that has been employed by Australia for more than two decades. It entails asylum seekers, for example, from Nauru, being captured on surrounding waters and forcibly sent back to their respective countries to process their claims there. The adverse effects of the practice on the physical and mental well-being of those subjected to transfer have been widely documented. This includes suicides or deaths connected to inadequate healthcare stemming directly from offshore processing.
The method of offshore transfer has been extensively condemned and criticised, especially due to concerns about the well-being and protection of refugees, excessively lengthy processes, and the immense financial burden of outsourcing. Based on a briefing from July 2025, approximately 13,000,000,000 Australian dollars were allocated to offshore processing since 2012. Additionally, between August 2012 and August 2024, a total of 4296 asylum seekers were transferred to a regional processing country.
The Human Rights Watch (HRW) in its February 4th, 2026, publication stated that Australia’s practices of deporting migrants and refugees to Nauru and the expanded laws in this aspect reflect a complete disregard of the basic right to due process. According to Annabel Hennesy, researcher on Australia at HRW, “The Australian government’s Nauru deportation deal escalates rights violations against refugees and migrants”. Moreover, the researcher emphasised that “Australia undermines its global reputation as a rights-respecting democracy by outsourcing its obligations to refugees and migrants to third countries”.
The situation faced by many refugees arriving from Nauru at the shores of Australia sparks serious human rights concerns. The measures implemented by the Government of Australia have profoundly destructive effects on asylum seekers, therefore significantly undercutting the compliance of the country with international standards.
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