Australian Immigration Daily News

Traveling to and from Australia remains a burdensome process.  Practitioners as well as visa holders struggle with the process of securing successful travel exemptions to facilitate travel.

What is a travel exemption?              

Australia has strict border measures in place to protect the health of the Australian community. Very limited flights are currently available to and from Australia and you may not be able to travel at this time. Travel restrictions are subject to change. Please check back regularly. See: National Cabinet media statement.

Unless arriving on a quarantine-free flight from New Zealand, all travellers arriving in Australia, including Australian citizens, must quarantine for 14 days at a designated facility, such as a hotel in their port of arrival. See Coronavirus (COVID-19) advice for travellers. You may be required to pay for the costs of your quarantine. To find out more about quarantine requirements, contact the relevant state or territory government health department.

You cannot come to Australia unless you are in an exempt category or you have been granted an individual exemption to the current travel restrictions.

The majority of travel exemption requests to come to Australia are finalised within 7 days, but some complex requests may take longer.

Exemption Categories

• Full Exemption – based on nationality or country of arrival or status (e.g. government official)
• Critical skills – based on providing aid or assisting in a recovery from COVID-19
• Individual Exemption – based on compelling and compassionate grounds

Tips and Hints

• Submit fully documented applications
• Understand what documents are required depending on the category you are applying for
• Know your circumstances, are they sufficiently outlined in the submission
• Plan early, do not leave travel to the last minute
• Evidence is everything, unsubstantiated claims will not be considered

Where to go for help

Securing a successful travel exemption is a cumbersome process requiring extensive submissions, collection of documents and most of importantly full understanding of the circumstances.  If you are a practitioner or a visa applicant requiring assistance, get in touch with a team of travel exemption experts via email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .  Expert migration agents have assisted a number of individuals with successfully securing travel exemptions.  Please put in the subject heading “Assistance with Travel Exemption Required”.

Further information regarding inward travel directive can be found here: https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/covid-19/Documents/inward-travel-restrictions-operation-directive.pdf