The group, thought to be mostly ethnic Tamils from Sri Lanka and including 50 children, left the Indian port of Pondicherry in June but were intercepted by Australian authorities and held on a Customs ship for weeks.
They were eventually brought to the Australian mainland so they could be interviewed by Indian consular officials with a view to returning them to that country, but Immigration Minister Scott Morrison said they all refused to meet the officials.
"The 157 illegal maritime arrivals... have been transferred to Nauru overnight for offshore processing, following their decision to refuse to meet with Indian consular officials," Morrison said in a statement.
Morrison said the government had provided a "rare opportunity" for many of those onboard the vessel to "go back to where they had been living in safety in India, where they have family and friends, rather than go to Nauru".
"It is very disappointing that after having had access to their legal representatives on July 29, all 1