March 8 , 2002
Australian Arrival Procedures

COASTWATCH
A hundred miles from the Australian coast, our VHF crackled into life and we instinctively scanned the horizon to check if we had missed seeing a vessel in the darkness. And, to our horror, there was indeed a red light--which seemed to be a close but we couldn't see any superstructure. As Colleen fumbled with the binoculars, Brian responded to the call. Yes, we were the vessel in the position given and, as the caller identified himself as Australia Coastwatch, we finally worked out that we were looking at aircraft lights.

Coastwatch took our details and asked us if we understood Australia's quarantine rules before wishing us good night and a safe passage. It was good to know that someone knew we were there and left us in no doubt that Australia's entry rules were there to be obeyed, to the letter.

VISAS
There are two ways to obtain an Australian visa. One is to apply at an Embassy or High Commission. The other is to obtain an electronic visa via the Internet.

Electronic visas are for 3 months only and they are not renewable/extendable. They can cause some delay or inconvenience on arrival as there is nothing in your passport to say you have a visa, so the immigration officer may have to return to his office to check your details on the computer before finalizing your paperwork.

Normal visas are stamped into your passport and are for variable lengths depending upon your needs/circumstances.

PORTS OF ARRIVAL
There are several Ports of Arrival in Queensland. We entered at Scarborough, where we were locked into the quarantine berth to await the arrival of customs and quarantine. There is an A$135 charge for quarantine. If you arrive on Sunday, you have the option to wait until Monday or pay double time for a Sunday check in.

QUARANTINE
The follow items will be removed:

Items that will be inspected and may or may not be approved include:

We do not have pets on board, so we are not familiar with the exact procedures, but strict quarantine rules apply. For more information have a look at www.aqis.gov.au.

WE PASSED
Having got ourselves cleared into Australia by friendly, courteous officials, we were free to begin getting to know this huge and interesting country. We are looking forward to our time here.