SENATOR THE HON PENNY WONG
LEADER OF THE GOVERNMENT IN THE SENATE
MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS
THE HON PAT CONROY MP
MINISTER FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND THE PACIFIC
MINISTER FOR DEFENCE INDUSTRY
THE HON ANDREW GILES MP
MINISTER FOR IMMIGRATION, CITIZENSHIP AND MULTICULTURAL AFFAIRS
Pacific Island and Timor-Leste nationals will be able to register for Australia’s new Pacific Engagement Visa (PEV) program from 3 June 2024, providing new opportunities for Pacific and Timorese nationals to live, work and study in Australia.
The program will enable up to 3,000 citizens of Pacific Island countries and Timor-Leste to migrate to Australia as permanent residents each year.
This will grow Australia’s diaspora, deepen cultural connections, boost business, and educational ties between Australia and participating countries and support economic development in the Pacific.
Countries participating in the first year of the program include Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, with discussions ongoing with other partners in the region.
The PEV program will use an online ballot to select participants, who can then apply for the visa, providing an equitable, streamlined and transparent system.
Applicants must secure a formal ongoing job offer in Australia and meet health and character requirements, before being granted a visa.
The PEV responds directly to Pacific requests for greater regional mobility, delivering education, skills and economic and development dividends for the region, and linking us more closely together.
Pacific and Timorese nationals participating in the program will have access to a range of supports, including migrant settlement services, English language programs, public schools and healthcare, and financial supports to encourage participation in study and training.
For further information visit Pacific Engagement Visa program.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator the Hon Penny Wong:
“The Albanese Government is delivering on our commitment to deepen our connections with the Pacific and Timor-Leste with the commencement of the Pacific Engagement Visa.
“Australia has listened to the calls of Pacific leaders and responded, as we play our part for a peaceful, stable and prosperous Pacific.”
Quotes attributable to Minister for International Development and the Pacific, the Hon Pat Conroy MP:
“The Pacific Engagement Visa demonstrates the high value Australia places on its relationship with the Pacific and Timor-Leste.”
“The program will grow Pacific and Timor-Leste diasporas in Australia, strengthening linkages between our people and encouraging greater cultural, business, economic and educational exchange with Pacific countries.”
“The program has transformative potential, making Australia’s world-class education and training system more accessible for new residents under the Pacific Engagement Visa.”
“Through these impacts, and by boosting remittance flows to Pacific countries, the program will also support economic development and welfare in the Pacific.”
Quotes attributable to Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, the Hon Andrew Giles MP:
"The Pacific Engagement Visa program is an opportunity to address the under-representation of Pacific island and Timorese nationals in Australia’s permanent migration program, with less than 1 per cent of permanent migrants currently coming from the region.”
“The program is in keeping with the Government’s Migration Strategy which identifies deepening Australia’s people-to-people links with the Indo-Pacific as one of eight key actions to reform the migration system.”
Media Contact:
Foreign Minister's Office: +61 2 6277 7500
Authorised by Senator the Hon Penny Wong, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Australia.
