Portfolio — 26 May 2026

Minister Julian Hill expanded the Australian Travel Declaration (ATD) pilot on 26 May 2026 to cover eligible passengers on two New Zealand routes — Qantas QF154 from Auckland and QF178 from Queenstown — arriving at Melbourne Airport [TA-260526-home-e96235de136e]. The expansion marks the pilot's third phase and reflects a deliberate sequencing strategy: each phase adds routes and airports before a broader rollout.

Travellers on these services can now complete their declaration through the Qantas app up to 72 hours before departure, receiving a QR-code pass by email to present to Australian Border Force and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry on arrival [TA-260526-home-e96235de136e]. The minister framed the digital-first design as shifting risk assessment offshore — border agencies engage with passenger data before the aircraft lands, rather than at the primary line.

Since launching in October 2024 the pilot has processed more than 380,000 digital submissions, and the minister confirmed further international Qantas flights to Melbourne will be added in the coming weeks [TA-260526-home-e96235de136e]. The Agriculture minister also commented on the announcement, highlighting biosecurity gains from the earlier data capture — a cross-portfolio signal that the ATD is being positioned as a dual-purpose instrument serving both Home Affairs and Agriculture objectives.

The underlying policy direction is the replacement of paper arrival cards with a fully digital declaration workflow, streamlining both security and biosecurity screening before passengers reach the border.