The sprawling shire straddles the Little Desert in Victoria's wheat belt, about halfway between Melbourne and Adelaide. It's home to just 4600 people.
The shire's chief executive, Jim McKay, has appealed to Immigration Minister Chris Evans asking that if a large investment is to be made for a processing centre overseas, it should be built in his shire.
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Mayor Ron Hawkins told the Herald Sun such a centre would help boost the struggling community.
"If our towns are going to survive we need jobs. We have wonderful schools and hospitals and the infrastructure is in place for three or four times the number of people," he said.
"At the moment we just want to find out the facts. We won't be building a centre tomorrow. The area is crying out for this sort of fresh investment as it would bring young people and jobs."
West Wimmera's population has decreased 35 per cent in the past 15 years.
But a spokesman for Senator Evans said the government had no plans to build a centre in West Wimmera.
Opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison also ruled out the plan.
