20 May 2008

Australian visa more important than ever before

People travelling to Australia will need a visa more than ever before, as the government tightens security controls at the borders. Senator Chris Evans, the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, said border measures at international airports and sea ports will be stepped up to ensure all people are Australian visa holders.

The new moves will mean legitimate people engaging in Australian immigration will be processed through visa control more easily, but increase the importance of having an Australian visa. Immigration officials will not be able to access passenger information before the flight has landed, leading to streamlined access into the country.

Senator Evans stated: "This allows the department to bring together a range of different systems that previously have been separate systems, that look at their visas, look at their other papers, look at their travel history, look at whether they've used aliases in the past." The changes come after the government recently announced changes to the Australian immigration system, which included increasing the number of visa places by 30,000.

Australia needs skilled workers: Anyone applying for an Australian visa should begin by completing the Australian Visa Bureau's online Australian visa application to see if they meet the Australian visa requirements.