Trans-Tasman travellers can look forward to a “seamless experience” when flying between Australia and New Zealand, with the potential for complimentary smart gates on the table.
Both prime ministers met in Wellington on July 26 for the annual Australia-New Zealand leaders’ meeting celebrating a relationship described as “unlike any other.”
New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said a working group aiming to simplify travel across the ditch has been given until June 30, 2024, to report on additional steps to achieve this.
“Two-way travel links our people and drives economic opportunities. And that’s why we want to make this a much more seamless experience for the benefit of both of us,” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said.
“We'll report back in time for the next leaders’ meeting, which will hold in July of next year.”
While both governments have committed to reducing barriers to travel, removing them altogether is off the table as Mr. Albanese ruled out a trans-Tasman passport.
“We haven’t looked at a trans-Tasman passport. What we are looking at is making a seamless experience of going through from country to country,” he said.
“So that might look at, for example, how smart gates could operate and be complimentary.”
But Mr. Hipkins noted that despite the benefits a simplified border would bring to tourism and business, there were important issues that would need to be worked through.
“But it’s not straightforward. Our border is a big part of what keeps us safe. It’s where we manage major biosecurity, people, health and security risks,” he said.
“This process will bring the experts together to talk about whether there are ways in which we reduce barriers at the border, while not compromising our security.”
Tourism Sector Eager For Change
The tourism, aviation, and business sectors welcomed the announcement, with the Tourism and Transport Forum (TTF) calling it the “first step” to quicker and easier travel.TTF CEO Margy Osmond said Australia’s border processing system as a whole needed an overhaul, and that the trans-Tasman border was the “logical” area to start.
“We should use the Trans-Tasman border as a test case, so we can trial more efficient, entry and screening technologies to process incoming passengers. These tools are already being used successfully in other countries to simplify air travel, slash travel times and boost security,” she said.
“New Zealand is currently our largest source market for international visitors. If successful on the Tasman, these reforms could form the basis of similar changes to revolutionise travel from other trusted, high-volume markets.”
Ms. Osmond noted that Australia was one of the first countries to introduce smart gates and e-passports—self-serve checkpoints that use biometric data allowing the traveller to clear border customs quickly.
“But passengers who arrive in Australia are still being asked to fill out paper arrival cards with a biro [pen]. This should be a thing of the past in our digital age,” Ms. Osmond said.
She also called for both governments to introduce a trans-Tasman visitor visa, which she believed should have been introduced ahead of the current FIFA Women’s World Cup that is currently co-hosted by both nations.
Closest Neighbours
In addition to the border announcement, both prime ministers also reiterated the commitment to maintaining the international rules-based order and an open and stable Indo-Pacific region.The leaders discussed the AUKUS pact, with New Zealand maintaining its position of no nuclear on its land and shores.
“I think there’s no question that we have a different position around nuclear, nuclear propulsion is also covered by New Zealand’s nuclear-free arrangements,” Mr. Hipkins said.
“But in terms of military, we were open to conversations with the AUKUS partners around what New Zealand’s involvement in some of those things might look like.
“It’s early days yet. So there’s no formal kind of proposals on the table. But we ultimately are open to continuing that conversation.”
New Zealand has previously indicated its interest to cooperate in the non-nuclear aspects of the AUKUS pact, including technology sharing and interoperability.
Both leaders said they were committed to advancing agreements with Pacific nations to limit the Chinese Communist Party’s influence in the region as much as possible.
“We’re also making it clear that Australia and New Zealand are reliable partners,” Mr. Albanese said.
“When Australia provides aid and support to our neighbours there aren’t strings attached. We do that because we are part of the Pacific family and that’s important. So we'll continue to work constructively.”
Mr. Hipkins also thanked Mr. Albanese again for establishing a direct pathway to Australian citizenship for New Zealanders in April.
Mr. Albanese revealed over 10,000 New Zealanders have already applied for Australian citizenship and the number is expected to “increase significantly” in the coming months.
“I think it was around about $4,000 to apply for a visa and then going through all the bureaucracy the way ... it was as if we had made it more difficult than it needed to be. And making it easier is the right thing to do,” he said about New Zealanders before the pathway was announced.
