Upon completion, customers will receive a QR code (via email and in the Qantas app) that can be shown to Australian Border Force officers, instead of the paper card.
The ATD pilot programme is currently available to adult customers travelling on a single booking, with the program set to expand to bookings with children and groups by mid-next year.
Customers who prefer to use the existing paper card can continue to do so.
New Zealand already has a digital arrival card.
Earlier this year Flight Centre’s general manager of corporate traveller New Zealand, Angie Forsyth, said the digital scheme in Australia was welcome.
“Digital declaration has been in place in New Zealand for about a year now and our customers have told us that it makes getting through the airport once returning home a more seamless experience.”
Australia is the most popular destination for corporate clients, especially for those in the manufacturing and construction industries.
The Board of Air Line Representatives was also encouraged to see that Australia was moving forward with digital arrival cards, when announced in August.
A Tasman Seamless Travel Group is continues to discuss further short- and long-term initiatives to make transtasman flights easier.
It was established last year to deliver on the Australian and New Zealand prime ministers’ commitment to explore ways to move closer to seamless travel between the two countries.
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