Australia Mentions Registration Fee for Foreigners to Participate in Permanent Residence Visa Ballot
- Australia announced a registration fee for its Pacific Engagement Visa ballot, which offers permanent residence to nationals from 12 Pacific countries and Timor-Leste
- The ballot uses an electronic random selection process, with up to 3,000 visas available annually, including partners and dependent children
- Applicants who are not selected in one ballot round must register the following year again if they wish to remain in the running
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Australia has set a registration fee for individuals wishing to enter the Pacific Engagement Visa ballot, a programme that grants permanent residence to eligible nationals from Pacific island countries and Timor-Leste.
The Pacific Engagement Visa, formally designated as subclass 192, is designed to strengthen ties between Australia and the broader Pacific region. It is available to citizens of 12 countries: the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Palau, Papua New Guinea, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.
Source: Getty Images
How Australia Pacific Engagement Visa ballot works
Prospective applicants register online through the Department of Home Affairs' ImmiAccount platform during designated ballot open periods. The selection process is entirely electronic and random, meaning every registered participant has an equal chance of being drawn.
Those selected through the ballot are then invited to formally apply for the visa, at which point they must demonstrate that they satisfy all relevant eligibility requirements before a visa can be granted. Registrants who are not drawn in a given year must submit a fresh registration for the next ballot, provided they still meet the criteria at that time. The registration fee is pegged at $25 (approximately N33,600).
The programme also extends access to workers already in Australia under the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility scheme, allowing them to register for the ballot alongside applicants from their home countries.
Visa aims to deepen Pacific-Australia connections
Each year, up to 3,000 visas are made available through the ballot. That figure covers not just the principal applicants but also their partners and dependent children, meaning a single successful ballot entry can secure permanent residence for an entire family unit.
The broader goal of the programme, according to Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, is to grow the Pacific and Timor-Leste diaspora within Australia while maintaining ongoing connections to home countries.
The initiative is also intended to foster deeper community ties and encourage greater exchange in the areas of culture, business, and education.
Legit.ng has also published residency years for foreigners who want to become Qatari citizens.
Citizenship: Australia mentions residency years for foreigners
Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that Australia's Department of Home Affairs outlined the residence requirement foreigners must meet before applying for citizenship.
Applicants must have lived in Australia on a valid visa for a number of years before the date they apply for citizenship.
The rules also specify how much time applicants are allowed to have spent outside Australia during that period.
Source: Legit.ng
