Editor's Blog

On the eve of ANZAC Day, the peak tourism bodies of Australia and New Zealand launched a lobby urging the migration ministers on either size of the Tasman to develop a single tourist visa for travel to the two countries.

The move comes after a New Zealand government study found that 43 per cent of the 7578 single trans-Tasman visas granted during the Cricket World Cup last year were to Chinese nationals, although China did not have a team in competition.

The tourism chiefs of both countries say that granting entry to both Australia and New Zealand, could encourage more travellers to make long-haul flights to the region. Now, citizens from the two nations have reciprocal work and travel rights, but international tourists need to obtain separate visas for each country.

In a joint statement on Saturday, the heads of two tourism bodies, TTF Australia and Tourism Industry Association New Zealand (TIA), welcomed a visa that would make it easier for travellers to visit both countries.

"Australia and New Zealand are long-haul destinations - it makes a lot of sense for us to package the two countries together," said TFF Chief Executive Margy Osmond.

"The reality is that if you are coming halfway around the world to Australia or New Zealand you want to make it worth your while," she said.

The two tourism bodies said they had written to Australian immigration minister Peter Dutton asking for the trans-Tasman visa to be made permanent by the end of the year.