Overseas migration has helped to push Australia’s population above 26 million as immigration programs return after the hiatus caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Increased migration is making up for a decrease in population growth due to natural births, according to the latest data from the Australia Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

The data shows Australia’s population was 26,124,814 people at 30 September 2022.

The quarterly growth was 128,670 people, or 0.5 per cent, and the annual growth was 418,500 people, or 1.6 per cent.

The ABS says the annual increase through natural births was 114,800 and net overseas migration was 303,700.

In the September 2022 quarter, natural increase was 22,500 people, which was a decreased of 7,600 people of the increase seen in the previous quarter.

In the September 2022 quarter, net overseas migration was 106,200 people, which represented an increase of 42,400 people on the number in the previous quarter.

In the year ending September, 2022, the natural increase was 114,800 people, which represents a decrease of 25,400 people, or 18.1 per cent, on the previous year.

The ABS reported that all states and territories had positive population growth over the year ending 30 September 2022.

Queensland had the highest growth rate of 2.2 per cent and the Northern Territory had the smallest growth rate with 0.4 per cent.

Net interstate migration was the major contributor to population change in Queensland and the Northern Territory but overseas migration was the major contributor to change in Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia, Western Australia, Tasmania and the Australian Capital Territory.

Victoria saw 161,682 new arrivals from overseas and net overseas migration of 96,662.

Data released by the ABS in May last year, showed Australia’s overseas born population shrunk for the first time in decades because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The population statistics from showed that in 2021, 29.1 per cent of Australia’s population were born overseas. This decreased from 29.8 per cent in 2020.

Overseas born people resident in Australia numbered 7.5 million last year and the largest group of overseas-born were from England.

But Indians have been the fastest growing overseas-born group since 2011.

Australia ranks 9th internationally for the total number of migrants among its population but has arguably the highest proportion with 29 per cent.

Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Kuwait have higher proportions of migrants but most are guest workers who are not eligible for citizenship.

The ABS says that usually, more people immigrate to, than emigrate from, Australia each adding to the growth of the national population.

But this did not happen in 2021 because of COVID-19 travel restrictions and the impact on overseas migration in both directions.