Education Minister Simon Birmingham has celebrated a record-breaking number of international students flocking to Australia, at the same time as Treasurer Scott Morrison pointed the finger at them for clogging up public transport.

Figures released Wednesday showed a 12 per cent increase in the number of foreign students in Australia compared to the same period last year, exceeding 500,000 in February, driven by a boom in enrolments from Nepal, Colombia, Brazil, India and China.

The international student business was "going from strength to strength", Senator Birmingham said, affirming Australia was "uniquely positioned" to absorb even more growth in the market.

Simon Birmingham says the international student boom is set to continue to record-breaking levels. Credit:Louie Douvis

The new data came as Treasury and the Department of Home Affairs lobbed a grenade into the immigration debate by releasing a paper warning that cuts to the annual migrant intake would significantly lower economic growth.