The ballot for the Pacific Engagement Visa Program (PEV) offered by the Australian Government has closed as of 11:59 pm on 29 July, 2026. The 2026-2027 ballot will be drawn in August for Papua New Guinea; each Pacific country has a different timeline for when its ballots will be drawn.
Introduced by the Albanese Government in 2024, up to 3,000 visas, inclusive of partners and dependent children, are available annually to Pacific countries and Timor-Leste nationals through a ballot process.
The PEV provides an opportunity for those randomly selected to apply for permanent resident visas in Australia. This means the primary applicant, if successful, is able to bring their family to settle in Australia.
Since 2024, many Papua New Guineans have applied for the PEV, which costs about K75.
For this year, the ballot allocation for Papua New Guinea is 1,350. This places PNG as the country with the highest allocation compared to other Pacific Island countries.
Fiji, Solomon Islands, and Timor-Leste were each given 300 allocations, Tonga and Samoa were given 150 allocations each, while smaller islands like the Federated States of Micronesia, Palau, and the Marshall Islands were given 50 allocations each.
If selected, the Australian Government has set up pathways to assist applicants in securing jobs and resettling in Australia. However, the PEV process can cost thousands of kina for both the visa application and relocation costs.
In the first ballot of 2024, the Australian High Commission in Port Moresby stated that up to 1,515 allocations were given to Papua New Guineans when a second ballot was drawn in the first year of the program.
The Pacific Engagement Visa is a permanent residence visa for participating countries across the Pacific and Timor-Leste, which aims to deepen connections between Australia and the region.
Under the Albanese Government, the Pacific Engagement Visa aims to grow the Pacific and Timor-Leste diaspora in Australia with ongoing connections to their home countries, strengthen people-to-people links, and encourage greater cultural, business, and educational exchange.
If applicants are selected in the 2026-2027 ballot, they will receive an email with instructions on how to apply for a visa. The status in their ImmiAccount will show as “Selected”.
However, if the applicant is not selected in the random ballot, the status in their ImmiAccount may show as “Received” for the current program year or “Expired” for a previous program year.
Selected participants have 120 days from the date of notification of selection to complete their visa application and submit it online.