Australian ag visa announced

The Federal Government has announced the establishment of an agriculture visa to solve the labour crisis currently facing the farming sector in Australia.

The visa was flagged a few months ago following the announcement of a new Australian-UK trade deal, but has since been confirmed by the Government today.

In a joint statement between Transport Minister, Barnaby Joyce; Agriculture Minister, David Littleproud; Foreign Minister, Marisa Payne and Immigration Minister, Alex Hawke, the Federal Government stated the ag specific visa will cater to workers across the agriculture, fisheries and forestry sectors (including meat processing), and will be operational by the end of September 2021.

There are even talks of offering residency pathways and regional settlement as a sweetener to entice participation in the program.

The visa builds on the existing Seasonal Worker Programme (SWP) and Pacific Labour Scheme (PLS) which have helped the ag sector fill worker shortages in the past, but the costs and requirement involved to provide many months of work to sponsored workers meant the programs don’t suit most farms, according to the National Farmers Federation (NFF).

But details on when workers can start arriving and working, quarantine conditions, or which countries are covered under the new ag visa remain unclear.

About two months ago, Littleproud flagged the possibility for the visa to be extended to 10 South East Asian nations including Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, Philippines, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, Vietnam and Laos.

“The Australian Agriculture visa will be open to applicants from a range of countries negotiated through bilateral agreements,” the statement said.

“Full conditions will be developed and implemented over the next three years as the visa is operationalised. During this implementation period, we will work to achieve a demand driven approach and consider permanent residency pathways and regional settlement.”

However, the Government concedes that quarantine places remain the biggest constraint in this plan and is continuing to work closely with the States and Territories to ensure needs are met.

“The Government will immediately commence industry consultations to understand needs across the agricultural sector,” the statement continued.

“The departments of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Home Affairs and Agriculture, Water and the Environment will design the visa to ensure a high degree of integrity and safeguards for workers. 

“We will work closely with partner governments also, including our Pacific family, to ensure their interests are protected.”

The National Farmers Federation (NFF) has welcomed the decision with open arms, commending the Government on finally making an idea first raised in 2016, a reality.

"The NFF has been unrelenting in its call to Government for the introduction of an Agriculture-specific Visa to give farmers access to the workforce they need," said NFF President, Fiona Simson.

"Today, thanks to the leadership and commitment of Agriculture Minister, David Littleproud, NFF’s calls have been answered.

“This is a significant step towards solving the farm sector’s enduring workforce crisis with a bespoke visa designed to meet the industry’s many and varied skill needs.

"There will be a sigh of relief from farmers from the very northern tip of our country to those in the most southerly parts of Tasmania."

The NFF added the announcement is great timing for farmers as they prepare to enter the busiest time of the year with harvesting, picking and packing this year’s crop.   

The organisation added the onus is now on state and territory governments and their chief health officers to approve quarantine arrangements to safely house incoming foreign workers.

“To be most effective, the visa must allow workers to move between farms based on work demand," Simson said.

"Solving agriculture’s worker deficit is of paramount importance to agriculture achieving a farm gate output value of $100 billion by 2030 and a key component of NFF’s 2030 Roadmap.

“We thank Agriculture Minister, David Littleproud for his dogged commitment to NFF’s Agriculture Visa and the Government’s consultation with the NFF and the wider industry to arrive at today’s landmark outcome. We look forward to continuing to work together towards the operation of an Ag Visa by 30 September 2021.

“We hope farmers across the country can expect the full support of the Australian Parliament in making the Ag Visa a reality.”