Overview

• Ballot closed on July 18 with 5,157 applicants—roughly half of Tuvalu’s population—vying for 280 permanent residency visas under the Falepili Mobility Pathway.
• Successful entrants will gain indefinite rights to live, work and study in Australia with access to Medicare, education support, unrestricted travel back to Tuvalu.
• The visa scheme originates from the 2023 Australia-Tuvalu Falepili Union climate and security agreement, the first bilateral pact of its kind.
• Australia has pledged A$47 million for 2025–26 to fund coastal defenses, infrastructure upgrades and community resilience projects in Tuvalu.
• Pacific ministers continue to call on Australia to limit new fossil fuel investments as they prepare to respond to worsening sea level threats.