New PNG travel rules mean Australians could end up in Asia if they don’t have a visa

AUSTRALIANS travelling to PNG could end up stranded in Singapore under a “strange” new rule on visas.

Australian visitors to PNG could end up in Singapore or Tokyo.

AUSTRALIANS travelling to Papua New Guinea could end up stranded in Singapore as a result of the country’s decision to scrap its visa on arrival program.

In a bizarre footnote to the ruling, which will come into effect on Saturday, the Papua New Guinea government says that Australians who arrive without a visa will be put on the next available flight, and it may not be back to where they came from.

“Australians uplifted without a valid visa will be repatriated on the next available flight at the expense of the uplifting airline, which may not necessarily be to the port of origin,” a notice issued by the Papua New Guinea Immigration and Citizenship Service Authority said.

“For instance, an Australian uplifted without a visa from Cairns could be repatriated to Singapore if that was the next available flight at the cost of the uplifting airlines.”

The country announced a final decision to stop offering Australians a visa on arrival last week following the Abbot government’s refusal to return the favour to our nearest neighbour.

International airlines have been notified not to let Australians without visas on board flights to PNG, and a spokeswoman for flag carrier Air Niugini said it had ensured all its consultants and travel agents were aware of the new rules.

“They (passengers) have to have a visa on hand and we will check before they get on the plane,” the spokeswoman said.

“We have also advised all consultants.”

While the likelihood of an Australian being placed on an onward flight from Port Moresby is low, they could potentially also find themselves stranded at other destinations serviced from the PNG capital, including Hong Kong, Tokyo, Manila and Fiji.

It is unclear who would then pay for their return to Australia.

The Papua New Guinea Immigration and Citizenship Service Authority did not reply to a request for comment, but a spokeswoman for the country’s consulate in Sydney conceded the ruling “appears strange”.

She expected Australians who arrived without a visa would simply be put on the first available flight back home.

Papua New Guinea decided to revoke the visa-on-arrival service for Australians last December, following bilateral talks in Canberra between foreign minister Julie Bishop and her PNG counterpart Rimbink Pato.

But it decided to wait before enforcing the ban until March so the Abbott government could “reconsider its response”, and so Australians with existing travel plans were not inconvenienced.

Despite being our nearest neighbour, Papua New Guinea is only the 18th most popular overseas destination for Australian visitors.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 95,000 Australians visited the country in the 2012-13 financial year.