Travel for business people within the Asia Pacific region has been made easier with the introduction of APEC Business Travel Cards with a 5 year validity.
The APEC Business Travel Card is a short stay, multiple-entry visa to enter participating member economies and provides priority immigration clearance at major airports. The 5 year validity APEC Business Travel card is for available for applications lodged on or after 1 September 2015.
APEC Participating Economies
APEC Business Travel Card reciprocal entry arrangements are available in nearly all APEC economies, including:
- Australia
- Brunei Darussalam
- China
- Chinese Taipei
- Chile
- Hong Kong (SAR China)
- Indonesia
- Japan
- Korea
- Malaysia
- Mexico
- New Zealand
- Papua New Guinea
- Peru
- the Philippines
- the Russian Federation
- Singapore
- Thailand
- Vietnam.
Canada and the United States of America are transitional members of the APEC Business Travel Card scheme. Transitional members do not offer reciprocal entry arrangements, but do provide fast track immigration processing at major airports.
Application Process
Australian citizens apply for an APEC Business Travel Card via the Department of Immigration and Border Patrol (DIBP). DIBP will review the application including individual and business details to determine whether the application meets the criteria for an APEC Business Travel Card. If the application meets the criteria, the application will then be sent to all participating APEC economies for consideration. Each country will assess the application against their own immigration requirements. APEC economies will independently process and issue visa and entry permits linked to the APEC Business Travel Card.
The period of time required to completely process an application can vary between economies, however it is possible to nominate up to five priority economies for pre-clearance assessment. An interim APEC Business Travel Card will be issued once the priority economies have granted pre-clearance.
Our Services
The Migration Agency assists businesses and business people apply for a APEC Business Travel Card to the Department of Immigration and can provide advice on the application process to help ensure your application is successful.
Contact The Migration Agency to discuss your business travel needs with a migration agent.
