Australia immigration gets easier for international athletes

September 07 2009 by Rebekah Nahai

Australia immigration changes for athletes

Some international athletes are to be allowed to represent Australia following changes to Australia immigration policies.

Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Chris Evans, announced that the changes will allow elite athletes who move to Australia to become Australian citizens even if they have to travel frequently.

Currently, international travel commitments can make it difficult for Australian immigrants to obtain citizenship. This also has an impact on immigrants working in Australia on oil rigs or on airlines as anyone who has been out of the country for 90 days in the year previous to application cannot currently be approved for citizenship.

Evans said: “These changes will create a smoother path to citizenship for elite athletes and people in specialist professions and enable Australia to benefit from the talents and skills they bring to our country.

“The revamped requirements will create a fairer system for people who, due to circumstances beyond their control, are currently ineligible for citizenship.”

Under the new rules, elite athletes must have lived in Australia for two years, must have spent at least six months of the previous year physically in Australia and must be making their Australia visa applications to represent the country in their sport.

Evans hopes the changes will lead to “more gold medals for Australia at sporting events” and a stronger workforce.

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