The Coalition's announcement has revealed little detail but suggests the Government is getting serious about addressing overcrowding in Australia's capital cities, particularly on the east coast.
The Federal Government continues to flirt with major population policy changes.
Now, it has indicated skilled migrants could be forced to stay in regional Australia for up to five years before being allowed to move.
It is not saying how many migrants would be affected, nor for how long, but the Government is slowly revealing its policy ahead of the election.
Cities and Population Minister Alan Tudge says the challenge is immense.
"In absolute terms, our growth has never been higher. Our nation is adding a city the size of Canberra every year and the size of Adelaide every 3.5 years."
The Coalition says the booming capital-city populations on the east coast are mostly because of migrants arriving from overseas.
It says it wants to spread out incoming migrants.
Under the Coalition’s newly announced plan, skilled migrants would be directed away from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra and Perth and forced to live in regional Australia for up to five years.
The Government classifies everything outside of those cities as regional Australia, including Adelaide and Darwin.
"We've got smaller states and some of our regions who are crying out for more workers. Settling even a slightly larger number of new migrants to the smaller states and to the regions can take significant pressure off our big cities."
Prime Minister Scott Morrison is backing the idea.
"This is about actually trying to support, on the ground, the economic and population policies of local communities. It is about working hand in glove* with those communities and following their lead and backing them on the programs that they have", he said.
But, when he was in opposition in 2010, Mr Morrison told the ABC's Lateline program a similar proposal was fanciful.
"So to hold out some false hope that this problem's going to be solved because a population minister is going to fantastically move people around like has never been done before in our history is, I think, unfair to the Australian people to suggest that that is a realistic option".
Opposition employment spokesman Brendan O'Connor says the new Coalition proposal lacks detail and could worsen unemployment in regional Australia.
He has criticised Mr Morrison over it.
"He's the thought-bubble boy of Australian parliament. So the idea that you would direct people coming through the immigration processes to regions where there's already high unemployment could compound a problem, not make it better", O'Connor said.
Government statistics show, of the 180,000 migrants entering Australia last year, nearly 12,000 filled skilled regional places, about 6 per cent of the total intake.
Settlement Council of Australia chief executive Nick Tebbey says the Government's idea is a precarious one.
"I think that's a real risk. And if we focus only on the restrictions and the conditions in that regard, I think that has the potential to send the wrong messaging, that migrants maybe are a burden or aren't welcome in the cities", Tebbey said.
