Growing number of Asian migrants coming to Australia: report

Immigration from Asian countries has been highlighted in a new federal government report on population.

Migration industry is alarmed by reports of wide scale defrauding of the Australian Department of Immigration's skilled visa program.

The "People of Australia" report is based on data from the 2011 Census collected by the Department of Immigration, and includes information on education, employment and income of migrants by birthplace, religion and language.

According to the report, there are over 250 overseas birthplaces represented in Australia.

People living in Australia born overseas make up 24.6 per cent of the population, up from 22.2 per cent in 2006.

It says the main non-English languages spoken here are Mandarin, Arabic, Italian, Cantonese, Greek and Vietnamese.

The report also draws attention to the growing number of migrants from India, China, and the Philippines.

Immigration Minister Scott Morrison says the report will assist governments and other agencies to respond to the challenges of providing services in a diverse cultural environment, including in the identification of sectors most in need of English language services.