New immigration controls for Australia
Anyone visiting or planning to move to Australia will need to be aware of the Australian government’s plans for new counter-terrorist measures which may mean that obtaining a visa will be more difficult in the near future.
Australia’s Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, made an address to the nation this week in which he emphasised the importance of security controls to protect the country. The speech is in response to a recent white paper released in Canberra which states that Australia is at high risk of a terrorist attack.
During his speech, Kevin Rudd announced plans to introduce fingerprint and face image scanners for visitors from certain high risk countries. This information will then be cross-checked via a biometric data system. He also emphasised that the threat of terrorism is likely to come from Australian-born nationals.
