"We will do [receive], we think, at least 3,000 [Afghan refugees] this year," Morrison told the FiveAA radio station in an interview.

In 2015, Australia took in 3,000 Syrian refugees, bringing the total to 12,000 over several years, the prime minister noted, adding that it is likely to be "more" than 3,000 in case of Afghanistan.

"That's why we have to work closely with the IOM [International Organization for Migration] and other international agencies, our partners, the United States, United Kingdom, etcetera, to actually see how those pathways can be created - those proper official pathways - and to enable us to fill those numbers," he said.

A real challenge is to get people out of the war-torn country, according to Morrison. In total, Australia has airlifted over 4,000 people from the Kabul airport since mid-August, when the Taliban took over Afghanistan.