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Whites-only until 1973
The Policy Begins
The policy initially gave overwhelming preference to migrants from Britain. Across the early 20th century, the flow of immigrants stayed a trickle, while millions of immigrants were arriving in the United States every couple of years.
World War I Losses
Population even shrank during World War I, when nearly one in five of Australia's men were shipped off to fight in Europe. Around 2.5% of Australia's entire male population never made it back home.
The Policy Ends
After the war, the rules were gradually relaxed to include all Europeans, but the exclusion of non-whites stayed largely in force for several more decades. Race ceased to be a factor in immigration policy in 1973, and Australia has since kept an official policy of multiculturalism. Today most new immigrants come from Asia, especially China and India, and as of 2022 nearly one in three people on the continent was born outside of it.
How did the White Australia policy actually work?
The Immigration Restriction Act of 1901 was among the first laws passed by the new federal Parliament. It required certain applicants to pass a dictation test in a European language chosen by the immigration officer, which meant an officer could ensure that non-white applicants failed. The test stayed in force until the Migration Act of 1958 replaced it with an entry permit system.
Why did Australia adopt the policy at federation?
Colonial governments and the labor movement had feared competition from cheap labor, pointing to Chinese diggers on the goldfields and Pacific Islander workers on Queensland sugar plantations. The six colonies federated on 1 January 1901, and the new Parliament acted on those fears in its first year. It also passed the Pacific Island Labourers Act of 1901, which led to most Pacific Islander workers being deported from Queensland in the following years.
How did multiculturalism become official policy?
Gough Whitlam's government removed the remaining race-based criteria from immigration in 1973. After the Vietnam War, Malcolm Fraser's government accepted tens of thousands of Indochinese refugees, and the numbers of Asian-born residents rose. Multicultural policy took shape through the late 1970s. The Racial Discrimination Act was passed in 1975.
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