Help still needed for families affected by Tonga eruption
The tidal waves generated by the volcanic eruption in Tonga on 15 January 2022 displaced entire communities, with up to 80% of the population affected.
What are mandatory offshore periods?
- Short-term PALM scheme workers must spend a mandatory period of 3 months offshore each year. This means workers must leave for 3 months after being in Australia for 9 months, before starting another short-term PALM scheme placement.
- Long-term workers must spend a mandatory period of 6 months offshore after 4 years of participation in the PALM scheme. This means workers must leave for 6 months after being in Australia for 4 years, before starting another long-term PALM scheme placement.
Can I move to a long-term placement from a short-term placement?
- Short-term PALM scheme workers may be eligible to transition to a long-term placement without having to leave Australia.
- Subclass 408 visa holders are not eligible to apply for a long-term PALM scheme placement.
I would like to come to Australia to work under the PALM scheme. How can I apply?
- If you are interested in working in Australia under the PALM scheme you should contact the labour sending unit in your country.
- Workers must be a minimum of 21 years of age for both the short-term and long-term streams under the PALM scheme.
What tax rate should a long-term worker pay?
- Long-term workers are considered Australian residents for tax purposes. Their tax rate is calculated on weekly earnings and is applied at the same rate as all Australian workers.
What tax rate should a short-term worker pay?
- Workers participating in the short-term stream of the PALM scheme will have a 15% tax flat rate withheld on payments made to them by their employer.
- Under the short-term visa stream, workers are considered non-residents of Australia for tax purposes and are not required to complete tax returns at the end of the financial year.
What industries can PALM scheme employers recruit workers in?
- The Australian Government has committed to expand and improve the PALM scheme and is developing a robust approach to assess the feasibility and risks of recruiting workers in new sectors for which PALM scheme workers have not historically been recruited, that is, outside of agriculture, meat processing, aged care, hospitality and tourism. Over the coming months, the government will consider expanding further into new sectors, and in sectors with small numbers of workers.
What postcode restrictions apply in the PALM scheme?
PALM scheme employers are able to hire workers in all regional and rural postcodes for all sectors (including accommodation) except for agriculture and select agriculture-related food product manufacturing sectors, where there are no postcode restrictions.
Video - First aged care workers into Queensland since borders closed
In October 2021, 80 I-Kiribati workers departed quarantine in Grantham, to begin work in Queensland. This is the first recruitment of aged care workers for Queensland employers since Australia’s borders closed due to COVID-19.
Video - Aged care workers greet new employer with song and dance
In early October 2021, 33 aged care workers from Samoa arrived in the Northern Territory and met with their new employers at ARRCS. They introduced themselves and their culture through a traditional performance – and welcomed their employers to the dance floor.