APEC Business Travel Card Eligibility

Australian citizens – current criteria (expected to be phased out in the coming months)

To be eligible for the card, Australian applicants must first satisfy all of the following business-related criteria:

• The applicant must be a senior executive level business person (see below)
• The applicant must be directly involved in the trade of goods and/or services or the conduct of investment activities when travelling overseas
• The business entity (which the applicant represents) must be well-established and well-credentialed in terms of its international trade and investment activities
• The business entity (which the applicant represents) must demonstrate significant economic benefit within the APEC region from its business activities.

A senior executive level business person is someone at the highest levels of organisational management. Only those people occupying the three highest management tiers of a large business enterprise, or the two highest tiers in medium-small enterprises would be eligible for the card.
Examples: Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, Managing Director, Vice President or the equivalents.

These executives must also hold specific authority to commit to trade and investment activities, for example, to negotiate and sign contracts that result in the international purchase and/or selling of goods or services.

Equally as important, the applicant must satisfy the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) that the business entity represented by the applicant is well-established and well-credentialed (i.e. can demonstrate a track record for being a reputable and well-known company engaged in trade and investment activity internationally), and can demonstrate that its business has made a significant economic contribution within the APEC region. A business must be trading or investing to the value of around $5 million per annum with other APEC economies to meet this criterion. Information provided to the department in support of this will be treated as Commercial-in-Confidence.

Further information concerning eligibility requirements is contained in the Application Form.
See: Application for APEC Business Travel Card (155KB PDF file)

Australian citizens – new criteria (introduced on 16 November 2011)

The new eligibility criteria for Australian citizens applying for an ABTC was introduced on 16 November 2011. The new criteria will be implemented in two stages to allow some applicants to take advantage of the new arrangements as soon as possible.

Stage One, which commenced on 16 November 2011, enables applications to be lodged by applicants whose business does not require certification by an ‘approved body’. Stage Two will enable applications to be lodged by applicants whose business requires certification by an ‘approved body’. The department expects Stage Two to commence in the coming months.

Until Stage Two is implemented, the department will continue to allow applications from those business people who wish to be assessed against the eligibility criteria that are being phased out.

To be eligible for an APEC Business Travel Card under the new criteria, an applicant must:

1. Demonstrate frequent travel for business purposes

   To be eligible for the card, Australian applicants must demonstrate frequent travel from their place of residence to an APEC economy (other than Australia) for business purposes.

   Frequent travel is a minimum of 4 business trips during the previous 12 month period.
   Example: if an applicant applied on 16 November 2011, the applicant must have departed Australia and re-arrived a minimum of 4 times since 16 November 2010. This will be verified by the department through checks of movement records.

2. Be either:

   • a CEO, board member, regional/country head or owner/director of a business entity
   • an employee nominated by one of the above people in their business entity (except a board member).

   To be eligible for the card, Australian applicants must either be a senior business person listed below or be an employee of a registered business entity or Australian-based business peak body, who has been nominated by a senior business person. Board members are unable to nominate employees for this purpose.

   Under this criterion, a senior business person is:

   • the Chief Executive Officer (or equivalent), or regional / country head of a registered business entity
   • a board member of a registered business entity
   • an owner / director of a registered business entity or
   • the Chief Executive Officers of an Australian-based business peak body.

   Any employee of the business entity, regardless of the level of their position, may be nominated by a senior business person to conduct trade and / or investment in the APEC region on behalf of the business entity. An employee does not include a person contracted to work for the business entity.

   All nominations must be made using the department’s pro-forma nomination letter and be signed by the relevant senior business person (other than a board member).
   See: Pro-forma Nomination letter ( 20KB PDF file)

3. Be employed by a registered business entity, or Australian-based peak business body, engaged in international trade or investment between APEC member economies

   Every business entity that seeks to utilise Australia’s ABTC for its employees must establish that it is engaged in international trade or investment in the APEC region.

   Under Stage One, a business engaged in international trade or investment can be assumed if the business meets one of the following requirements:

   • The business is listed in the current Forbes Global 2000 business list
     These businesses are exempt from the business certification requirement on the basis that they are well known for their engagement in trade and/or investment between APEC member economies. The current Forbes Global 2000 list is available on the Forbes website.
     See: www.forbes.com/global2000/
     
   • The business has received an Export Market Development Grant (EMDG) from Austrade in the past five years
   • The business has been a finalist in the Australian Export Awards (supported by Austrade and ACCI) in the past five years
     Business entities that have received an EMDG or have been a national finalist for an Australian Export Award are also exempt from the business certification requirement on the basis that the Australian Government has already recognised their trade and/or investment activities.

   Under Stage Two, the following arrangement will be implemented for all of those business entities not recognised above.

   • The business has been certified by an ‘approved body’ - (‘approved body’ certification will not be available until Stage Two commences)
     The establishment of arrangements whereby an ‘approved body’ may certify that a business entity is engaged in trade or investment in the APEC region will require an agreement between the department and appropriate business bodies. This arrangement reflects the advice of the business community with whom the department consulted during 2011. A further consultation process will be undertaken in relation to Stage Two arrangements. Subject to this process, we expect Stage Two to be implemented in the coming months.

4. If an applicant resides outside Australia, they must also be authorised for residency and work purposes by the relevant immigration authority in the economy in which they reside.

   An applicant residing outside Australia must be authorised for residency and work purposes by the relevant immigration authority in their economy of residence. This requirement exists to ensure that the ABTC is not used as an avenue for business people to work in another economy in contravention of that economy’s laws.

   An applicant must attach a copy of their work permit and/or residency permit to their application form to satisfy this criterion. This will be verified by the department in consultation with the relevant economy.

   Further information concerning eligibility requirements is contained in the application form.
   See: Form 1390 Application for APEC Business Travel Card (201KB PDF file)

Non-Australian applicants

If you are a passport holder of a participating economy, you should apply to the agency responsible for the Scheme in your home economy. Current contact details for relevant APEC Business Travel Card agencies are available on the Business Mobility Group website.
See: APEC Business Travel Card > Contact details