Working Holiday - expanding

Minister Morrison speaking at Tourism and Transport Forum leadership summit, Canberra on 19 March 2014 said:

"Australia's Working Holiday Maker visa programme is a large, popular and growing option for young adult overseas travellers to Australia, with more than 258 000 visa grants in 2012-13, a 15.8 per cent increase from 2011/12.

Remarkably, this is larger than all three of Australia's main Working Holiday Maker competitor markets combined – Canada, New Zealand and the UK.

Established in 1975, the programme has evolved from largely Commonwealth based origins to span 28 countries across the globe, covering Europe, Asia, the United States, Canada and, more recently, expansion into Latin American, following the addition of Chile, Argentine and Uruguay to the scheme.

In terms of participation of travellers from partner countries, the programme has tripled in size over the last decade.


My department is currently in the process of negotiating new and more liberalised Working Holiday Maker visa arrangements with thirteen new partner countries. These include Poland, Mexico, Hungary, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Vietnam, San Marino, the Czech Republic, Israel, Latvia, the Slovak Republic and Andorra. These new countries will provide fresh impetus for growth within the programme itself but also facilitate broader opportunities for tourism engagement.

Providing a unique cultural exchange experience to young adults during their formative years can only enrich the lives of participants, both Australian and partner country nationals.

The economic benefits of the programme too are considerable." [of course!]

Creative commons acknowledgment for the photo.

Bogus: PIC 4020

Many visas are subject to "public interest criteria" ("PIC"). PIC 4020 provides a ground to refuse to grant a visa where there is evidence that the visa applicant has given, or caused to be given, a bogus document or information that is false or misleading in a material particular. The scope of PIC 4020 is wider than you think and there is an emerging body of case law on it as well.


It is harsh in its operation (don't get me started) and from 22 March 2014, it's breadth is going to be widened by the Migration Amendment (2014 Measures No 1) Regulation 2014, which is going to add the following to 4020:

1. (2A)  The applicant satisfies the Minister as to the applicant’s identity.

1. (2B)  The Minister is satisfied that during the period:

1. (a) starting 10 years before the application was made; and

1. (b) ending when the Minister makes a decision to grant or refuse the application;

1. neither the applicant, nor any member of the family unit of the applicant, has been refused a visa because of a failure to satisfy the criteria in subclause (2A). 

Creative commons acknowledgement for the photograph

Half of all migrants live in Sydney or Melbourne

This is an ABS media release from 17 March 2014:

Australians born overseas were more likely to live in major urban areas, with half of all migrants living in Sydney or Melbourne according to the latest Australian Social Trends (AST) article released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) today.

With one in four Australians born overseas, the AST article looks at the 2011 Census of Population and Housing to see where people live by country of birth.

ABS Assistant Director of Social and Progress Reporting, Ms Guinevere Hunt, said that in all capital cities except for Hobart and Darwin, more than half the CBD residents were born overseas.

"We found that the suburbs with the highest proportion of people born overseas included Haymarket in Sydney, Clayton in Melbourne, Robertson in Brisbane, Regency Park in Adelaide, and Northbridge in Perth. 

"Suburbs near universities also have high proportions of migrants," said Ms Hunt.

The largest migrant group in Australia are people born in the United Kingdom (UK), followed by people born in New Zealand, China and India. This has changed from 2001 when the largest migrant groups were from UK, New Zealand, Italy and Vietnam.

"In Sydney, two in five residents of Harris Park were born in India, and Hurstville had the highest proportion of people born in China. In Melbourne, one in four people living in Sunshine North was born in Vietnam, and in Perth, two in five residents of Jindalee were born in the UK," said Ms Hunt.

AST articles are freely available online at www.abs.gov.au/socialtrends