Updated:
Readtime: 4 min
Every product is carefully selected by our editors and experts. If you buy from a link, we may earn a commission. Learn more. For more information on how we test products, click here.
- International arrivals to Australia will soon be able to fill out a digital passenger card instead of a physical one.
- Australia will roll out the digital Australia Travel Declaration to every international airport and seaport over the next 12 to 18 months.
- More than 450,000 eligible Qantas passengers have used the trial across Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne, with Perth and Adelaide joining before the end of 2026.
- The broader system will initially use a webform, while paper cards remain available for travellers who cannot use the digital option.
Few travel rituals feel as dated as being handed Australia‘s orange incoming passenger card somewhere over the Pacific and discovering, once again, that nobody in your row has a pen. Well, those days will soon be behind us, as international arrivals to Australia will finally be able to fill out their passenger card digitally.
The Albanese government has committed $56.1 million over four years to digitise the process online following a Qantas trial across Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne that involved more than 450,000 passengers.
From next year, travellers will be able to complete their arrival declaration before landing rather than rushing through the card once the cabin lights come back on. The change won’t happen everywhere at once, but the orange form is no longer the only option.
How The Australia Travel Declaration Works
Under the current Qantas trial, eligible passengers can complete the Australia Travel Declaration through the airline’s app up to 72 hours before departing for Australia. The form collects the same core information as the paper card, including passport and travel details alongside customs, health and biosecurity declarations, such as the dirt you might pick up on your boots after finding a little Scandinavian serenity behind the wheel of a Volvo in the Spanish mountains.
Once completed, the app generates a digital pass with a unique QR code that Australian Border Force officers scan on arrival. It doesn’t remove the need to declare food, plant material, animal products or other restricted items. If you’re ever in doubt, remember Steve Irwin‘s immortal words in his old quarantine campaign: “Quarantine matters.” And, because you’d never want to let him down, the digital version gives you more time to work through the questions before flying.
The government says collecting the information earlier should reduce manual processing and improve the data available for security and biosecurity checks. In a media release, Agriculture Minister Julie Collins said the declaration would provide “better quality information earlier”, allowing officials to identify potential risks before they reach Australia.
When Will Digital Arrival Passenger Cards Be Available in Australia?
The Qantas pilot will expand to eligible flights arriving in Perth and Adelaide before the end of 2026. The Australia Travel Declaration will then be phased into every Australian international airport and seaport over the following 12 to 18 months, beginning with a webform before the government works with airlines on in-app versions.
Funding will also support changes to airport departures and cruise clearance as traveller numbers rise ahead of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said the aim was to get people “out of the airport … as fast as possible”.
Until the declaration reaches your airline and arrival point, it’s worth checking before you fly rather than assuming your phone has already replaced the orange card. Paper forms will remain available during the transition for travellers who cannot use the digital system.
The card may be on borrowed time, but it’s not heading straight for the recycling bin. Seems the pen scramble has a little life left in it after all.
Related reads
Comments
We love hearing from you. or to leave a comment.