Travellers entering Australia on a foreign passport will need a visa regardless of the purpose or duration of their stay. Tourists from selected countries (New Zealand) are exempt. More information about visas is available from the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs (DIMA).

Electronic visas

A procedure was established by DIMA in 1996 which allows passport holders of approximately 32 countries to obtain visitor (tourist) visas electronically without needing to send their passports to the Australian embassy. This is called an ETA - Electronic Travel Authority.

A list of participating countries may be found at DIMA's ETA web site. Eligibility is based on the country that issued your passport, not on the country where you live or where you will be travelling from.

Airlines used to process ETA's for free, but now charge a fee (if they do it at all). It is generally cheaper to apply online.

The bottom line is that, in any event, you will need to obtain an Australian visa before entering the country - be it an ETA or the more conventional sticker in the passport.

Foreigners who have passed through immigration are then free to travel throughout the country, including to Tasmania. Australian citizens do not require documents of any sort to travel interstate.

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Last reviewed 2006-08-06 12:44:23