More than one-quarter of Palestinians on temporary visas in Australia have applied for permanent asylum in a fresh test of Labor’s response to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Home Affairs records suggest it is the first time people documented as being from Palestine have claimed asylum in Australia since at least 2009, although some may have been recorded as stateless.
Refugee advocates say the increase reflects the desperate situation many Palestinians find themselves in, as Israeli forces launched a fresh advance on Gaza’s southern city of Rafah, forcing tens of thousands more people to leave.
‘‘People who fled the war in Gaza and have arrived on a temporary visa have no working rights or Medicare,’’ said Palestine Australia Relief and Action executive director Rasha Abbas, whose charity helps Palestinians settle in Australia.
‘‘They’re in a new country with no certainty about the future. They are afraid and traumatised,’’ she said.
Refugee legal services say people fleeing Gaza are among the 231 onshore claims for asylum lodged by Palestinians in January, February and March, while others may have been lodged by people already in Australia on other temporary visas, including for study. As of the end of March, 845 people were recorded as being from the Palestinian Authority in Australia.
Australia has issued more than 2000 visitor visas to Palestinians since Israel’s invasion of Gaza began, prompting Coalition questions over security screening. Israel’s offensive, which Gaza’s health ministry estimates has killed more than 35,000 Palestinians, began after Hamas attacked southern Israel on October 7, killing 1200 people and taking another 250 hostage.
Under the Australian government’s arrangement, Palestinians on visitor visas are permitted to spend up to a year in the country visiting family or friends, but are not allowed to work or access Medicare. They can be processed for a bridging visa after 12 months if they believe returning is unsafe.
Coalition immigration spokesman Dan Tehan accused Labor of misleading Australians over the length of time Gazans were staying in Australia.
‘‘The government promised these people were coming on a temporary basis,’’ he said. ‘‘Now we learn that temporary will mean years because the government is responsible for a process that takes years to complete and they only deport a fraction of failed asylum seekers.’’
Greens immigration spokesman David Shoebridge said it was ‘‘a mark of the unprecedented destruction and violence the Israeli military is carrying out in Gaza that we are now seeing people apply for permanent protection in Australia’’.
A Home Affairs spokesperson said the government was ‘‘committed to supporting people from the occupied Palestinian territories who have arrived in Australia on temporary visas and wish to extend their stay’’.
‘‘There are a wide range of visa options that provide avenues for people to extend their stay, including across Australia’s family, skilled, humanitarian and temporary programs,’’ the spokesperson said.
The department spokesperson said Palestinians on temporary visas could apply for a 12-month bridging visa to access Medicare and work rights.
A doctor who is applying for protection in Australia after arriving from Gaza with her family in February said she wanted the opportunity to stay and contribute to Australian society.
‘‘I lost my home and my work, and my children must be in school,’’ said the doctor, whom The Sunday Age has chosen not to name.
‘‘My son, he doesn’t speak English, he told me: ‘Mum, I’d like to stay here in Australia because I feel safe’.’’
Australia Palestine Advocacy Network president Nasser Mashni said the government had a responsibility to keep those applying for protection safe.
The Albanese government broke with some of its closest security partners a week ago to vote in favour of a United Nations resolution that declared ‘‘the State of Palestine is qualified for membership in the United Nations’’ under its charter rules.