After PM Modi’s Visit: Australia Announces to Extend A Business Visa Validity To 5 Years

• Australia has now decided to start issuing multiple-entry business visas with extended validity following PM Narendra Modi’s visit to Australia this summer. It also wants to improve the trade ties between India and Australia.
• This new change of extending business visa validity has come under the mobility and migration agreement. But they also said the tourist or visitor visa duration remains the same. This article will discuss Australia announces to extend a business visa validity to 5 years after PM Modi’s Visit. 

Australia Announces to Extend a Business Visa Validity to 5 Years

• According to the latest news, Australia has decided to extend the validity of a business visa. Now, the validity of a business visa has been extended from 3 to 5 years.

• This extension of visa validity comes after two main events – Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Australia and Indians becoming Australia’s biggest visitor spenders, beating the pre-pandemic tally.
• The extension of this visa comes under the Mobility and migration agreement. Also, note that the validity of the tourist visa or visitor visa remains the same, which is valid for three years. 

• Nishant Kashikar, the Tourism Australia country manager, told TOI that Australia has also facilitated the visa procedure, mainly for Indians, as they now have the fastest-growing inbound market for Australia visas and also become the first to surpass the 2019 visitation levels. 

• Nishant Kashikar said Australia witnessed around 3.7 lakh visitors come here from India from June 2022 to May 2023. Over 2 percent more than during the pre-Covid 2018-19 period. 

• Also, May 2023 saw 41,300 visitors come to Australia from India, the highest number ever in a particular month since the opening of the borders of Australia. Now, India is on the 7th rank and has become the 4th largest inbound market for arrivals while pre-Covid.

• This number is expected to grow significantly with increased direct connectivity of India with Australia. According to the data revealed that Indians had spent nearly 2 billion (AUD) Australian dollars until March 2023. This amount is 16 percent over the numbers that were recorded for 2018-19.

• Now, Indians have become the 5th biggest source market for overseas spenders. Indians spend around Rs 3.2-3.5 lakh per trip. Pre-COVID-19, Indians ranked in the 6th position.