Papua New Guinean Australians

Papua New Guinean Australians (Tok Pisin: pipol bilong Papua Niugini long Ostrelia) are the citizens and residents of Australia (including the Torres Strait Islands, where 6.5% of all people claimed Papua New Guinean ancestry)[3] who were born in Papua New Guinea (PNG) or have Papua New Guinean ancestry.

Papua New Guinea was administered by Australia until 1975, formally divided into the Territory of Papua and the Territory of New Guinea (a League of Nations mandate). The indigenous peoples of Papua New Guinea were nonetheless subject to the White Australia policy, and only limited numbers were allowed to enter the rest of Australia – notably to work in the Queensland pearling industry.[4]

The number of Papua New Guineans in Australia is considered relatively small, given the countries are neighbours and PNG's status as a former Australian territory. Other Pacific island countries have much larger populations in Australia. At the time of the 2021 Australian census, there were 22,664 people of Papua New Guinean descent in Australia and 29,995 Papua New Guinea-born people residing in the country. The gap between the two figures reflects the fact that many of those born in PNG were the children of Australian expatriates; only 8,752 (less than one-third) of Australian residents born in PNG reported that they were of Papua New Guinean ancestry.[5]