Hanson's 130,000 migration cap only applies to permanent visas — a cut of 55,000, not 570,000
One Nation's own website still advertises the policy as a cut of 570,000, and Hanson says backpackers, short-term workers and tourists are all exempt.
Pauline Hanson has confirmed One Nation's signature immigration policy is about one tenth the size the party has been advertising.
The One Nation leader told News24 on Thursday the party's cap of 130,000 applies only to permanent migration — not to net overseas migration, the figure she has spent years blaming for housing costs, congestion and inflation.
The permanent program for 2026-27 is 185,000 places. Capping it at 130,000 cuts 55,000.
One Nation's website still carries a different number. In a media release still live on the site, Senator Hanson said: "One Nation will drastically reduce overall immigration numbers, capping visas at no more than 130,000 per year – a cut of 570,000 from current levels under Labor."
She also confirmed the visas the cap does not cover will keep flowing.
"That will be permanent migration in to the country. We'd still allow for backpackers, for workers coming in to Australia, those one will be here for the short period of time. You've also got your tourists on top of that, that's a different visa," Senator Hanson said.
Those are the visas that move the number she campaigns on. Net overseas migration was 301,000 in 2025 on Bureau of Statistics figures, and two in three migrant arrivals came on temporary visas.
The permanent program is a weak lever in any case. Of the 185,000 places for 2026-27, 129,590 are set aside for people already living in Australia and moving off temporary visas. Only 55,110 are for applicants offshore.
Senator Hanson also indicated the cap might not last.
"I'm not saying 130,000 permanently, you know, on the books. Let's review it every year," she said.
The clarification came as Labor dealt with the fallout of a leaked overhaul that Immigration Minister Tony Burke shelved rather than deliver. His scrapped National Press Club speech was to have stopped partners and children of Australian citizens applying for family visas onshore and put limits on working holiday visas. The Australian Chamber of Commerce said that would deter skilled migrants and undermine the system.
Asked what her own cuts would do to business, Senator Hanson was blunt.
"I don't care what people think," she said.
"Whether it is going to affect their businesses, they're not going to sell that many products, or you know, the universities because they're not going to have that number of foreign students coming in here. I don't care. My concern is for those Australians that can't get a roof over their head, and a decent standard of living and way of life."
She said she wanted the skilled migration list rebuilt around doctors, nurses and engineers.
The 570,000 is still on the website.