Fans of the Papua New Guinean Chiefs will be able to enter Australia for just $25 as the NRL\u2019s newest team prepares for its 2028 debut.<\/p>\n
Players, coaches, officials, media representatives and fans of the PNG Chiefs will have their visa application fees slashed from the current $430 charge to just $25 under a pledge by the Albanese government to bolster people-to-people ties ahead of the team\u2019s entry into the NRL.<\/p>\n
Under the scheme, fans will be able to apply for a visitor visa, which will be valid for 12 months, allowing for short stays to attend games throughout the season.<\/p>\n
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said the friendship between Australia and PNG was \u201cdriven by our shared passion for sport\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe PNG Chiefs joining the NRL is more than a sporting milestone \u2013 it\u2019s a symbol of friendship and partnership,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to thank Prime Minister Marape for his vision, leadership, and unwavering commitment in making this historic initiative a reality.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith the PNG Chiefs running onto the field in 2028, we\u2019re ensuring a level playing field, tackling the same issues, and striving for success side-by-side and step by step.\u201d<\/p>\n
The federal government is also launching a one-stop-shop website for Chiefs fans and associates, including visa information, as well as dedicated processing officers within the Department of Home Affairs to expedite Chiefs-related visa determinations. <\/p>\n
It joins programs already in place aimed at bolstering visa opportunities for Pacific region peoples, including the Pacific Engagement Visa (PEV), which provides permanent residence opportunities for PNG nationals.<\/p>\n
The NRL last week announced Catherine Harris would replace Ray Dib as chair of the PNG Chiefs. <\/p>\n
According to the Home Affairs website, visa applications will be required to meet health, character, and genuine traveller requirements.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Fans of the Papua New Guinean Chiefs will be able to enter Australia for just $25 as the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":447706,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[221784,64,63,689,231878,231881,62195,231887,46784,231880,231885,208915,761,762,187436,158,677,231883,231888,135095,231886,231882,85,153369,231879,231877,231884],"class_list":["post-447705","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-anthony-stephen-tony-burke","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australia-and-new-zealand","tag-catherine-harris","tag-dedicated-processing-officers","tag-department-of-home-affairs","tag-genuine-traveller-requirements","tag-home-affairs","tag-marape","tag-media-representatives","tag-nathan-schmidt","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-newswire-news","tag-nrl","tag-oceania","tag-people-to-people-ties","tag-permanent-residence-opportunities","tag-ray-dib","tag-region-peoples","tag-sport-fans","tag-sports","tag-visa-application","tag-visa-determinations","tag-visa-information","tag-visa-opportunities"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/447705","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=447705"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/447705\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/447706"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=447705"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=447705"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=447705"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}