By Will Nicholas and Andrew Brown in Canberra

Annual migration levels have fallen slightly in Australia but still remain above budget forecasts.

Figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Thursday revealed net overseas migration in 2025 came in at 301,000 people.

The figures were down a fraction from the 306,000 in 2024, while the federal budget released on May forecast migration will fall to 295,000 in the year to June.

The timing of the data follows a debate surrounding migration levels, with the coalition criticising the government for underestimating the numbers and One Nation calling for a more dramatic cut to the rate.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the migration rate had fallen by almost 50 per cent from peaks experienced after the COVID pandemic.

“Migration was surging when we came to office and it has now moderated substantially,” he said in a statement.

“The facts clearly show that net overseas migration is coming down under Labor and Treasury is forecasting it to go even lower in the coming years.”

The figures showed it was the 14th quarter in a row where the net migration levels were above 300,000 people.

The net overseas migration level were highest in NSW at almost 91,000 people, followed by Victoria with 85,000, Queensland with more than 54,000 and WA with just over 40,000.

The fall in overseas migration came as the total population increased by 1.5 per cent in 2025, rising by 412,500 people.

It comes as the number of Australians who agreed it was good for society to be made up of different cultures fell from 85 to 75 per cent, according to separate data from the statistics bureau in May.

Anthea Hancocks, chief executive of the Scanlon Foundation Research Institute, which researches social cohesion, said the drop was concerning, but diversity still enjoyed strong societal backing.

“It does sound like a lot”, she told AAP in reference to the bureau’s findings.

“(Social cohesion) has actually taken a bit of a hit recently … and it’s still very high.

“We are very much a strong middle in Australia, so you’ve still got 75 per cent.”

Pointing fingers at migrants for economic hardship and radicalism also distracted from badly needed discussion about how to improve the system, she said.

“When it comes to immigration, it really deserves a very non-partisan approach”, Ms Hancocks said.

“There are things that we should be actually working on, and the changes around that should be happening continuously … it’s an incredibly important part of Australia’s prosperity.”

Debate on immigration comes as One Nation has been surging in opinion polls to be leading on primary votes.

Pauline Hanson’s party favours a visa cap of 130,000, well below the government’s forecasts.

She used a speech at the National Press Club on Wednesday to urge for Australia to be a monoculture.

The coalition has proposed tying migration policy to home completions, which could cut migrant intake by at least 70 per cent, according to opposition leader Angus Taylor.