Crossing the border Advance Passenger Processing

Advance Passenger Processing (APP) is a two-way interface between an airline’s Departure Control System and our immigration databases.

It confirms before boarding to the carrier that a traveller has:

• authority to travel to Australia or to depart Australia and
• has a visa or appropriate travel documents.

Visa applicants and visa holders should advise Home Affairs if passport details have changed.

APP reporting enhances the Australian Government’s ability to target security concerns and streamlines the border clearance process for travellers.

The Migration Act 1958 (the Act) (sections 245L and 245LA) says airlines must report all passengers and crew arriving into and departing from Australia, including all transit travellers. Regular passenger transport airlines operating international flights to and from Australia do this using the Advance Passenger Processing (APP) system or Carrier Portal.

Completing APP reports enables airlines to meet their legislative obligations and confirms whether travellers have authority to travel to Australia.

To see how we handle the personal information we collect prior to an individual travelling through Australia’s border, see the Advance Passenger Processing Privacy Statement.

It is also available in following different languages:

• Advance Passenger Processing Privacy Statement - Arabic
• Advance Passenger Processing Privacy Statement - Cantonese
• Advance Passenger Processing Privacy Statement - Chinese (simplified)
• Advance Passenger Processing Privacy Statement - Farsi
• Advance Passenger Processing Privacy Statement - French
• Advance Passenger Processing Privacy Statement - Hindi
• Advance Passenger Processing Privacy Statement - Indonesian
• Advance Passenger Processing Privacy Statement - Japanese
• Advance Passenger Processing Privacy Statement - Korean
• Advance Passenger Processing Privacy Statement - Malay
• Advance Passenger Processing Privacy Statement - Spanish
• Advance Passenger Processing Privacy Statement - Thai
• Advance Passenger Processing Privacy Statement - Vietnamese

Airlines must:

• provide advance passenger reports on all passengers and crew

and

• not carry undocumented or inadequately documented passengers to Australia.

Provide advance passenger reports

It is the responsibility of carriers to provide advance passenger reports on all passengers and crew arriving and/or departing (including transiting) Australia. Each missed report may be an offence.

The maximum penalty, upon conviction, for not reporting APP is either AUD39,600 or AUD19,800, depending on whether the missed reporting is found to be intentional or not. All other instances of failing to report may attract a penalty of AUD3,300 per offence.

Don’t carry undocumented or inadequately documented passengers

Airlines must check a passenger’s authority to enter Australia using APP.

When APP is down, you must use the TIETAC check, which is part of the Electronic Travel Authority System (ETAS) to confirm visa status.

Where a carrier brings an inadequately documented passenger or an undocumented passenger to Australia, they may be liable, upon conviction, to a fine of AUD33,000. As an alternative to prosecution, carriers may elect to pay a prescribed penalty of AUD5,000 for an infringement notice.

Note: The airline can be liable for both infringement fines for the same passenger or crew.

See the Advance Passenger Processing (APP) Arrivals and Departures manual.

Airlines can avoid being infringed by:

• using APP to confirm that every person including infants and children with or without a separate travel document and a boarding pass has authority to travel through Australia prior to departure through the ‘OK to Board’ response
• using alternative methods to notify APP when the system is down
• reviewing your ‘Missed APP’ report.

Reporting when Advance Passenger Processing system is down

We still require advance passenger reporting to be completed when the system is down (APP system outage).

You must report every flight:

• Planned outages: use the Carrier Portal.
• Unplanned outages: seek to resolve through airlines IT support channels or if unresolved, email BOC@abf.gov.au.

Reporting using The Carrier Portal

If you require access to Australia’s Carrier Portal to process CTA, APP or to run your airline’s APP Transaction report, contact appwebsite@abf.gov.au.

Most airline users are able to have their Carrier Portal account set up by their airlines’ own Carrier Portal Administrators. Further requests for password resets and access to the APP website should be sent to appwebsite@abf.gov.au.

Emailing the Border Operations Centre

Email BOC@abf.gov.au with:

• direction of the flight (arrival/departure)
• flight number
• arrival and departure airports
• arrival and departure date/time
• number of travellers, not APP reported.

The following additional information will greatly assist us when reporting a system down issue:

• expected length of the ‘system down’
• what caused the system down
• any other relevant information.

Refer to the Systems Downs Procedure in the relevant APP Manual for further instructions on how to board passengers when the APP is down.

Reviewing your ‘Missing APP’ report

We send daily reports to airlines with advice on their missed APP reports for all of their travellers.

The 'Missing APP' report is an opportunity for your airline to:

• examine your records to determine if any travellers listed were in fact APP reported (and to gather evidence of this).
• investigate the cause of any missing APP report.
• review your processes for potential improvements to APP reporting.

The report will include information on:

• the date of the traveller's movement
• flight number
• family and given name
• date of birth
• gender
• whether the traveller was a passenger or crew
• passport/travel document number
• departmental reference number

We use these reports to inform infringement processing.

A carrier has 28 days to either:

• pay an infringement notice or
• submit a withdrawal request.

Paying an infringement

If the carrier is unable to complete payment within 28 days, complete Form 1466 – Request for Extension of Payment Date, including relevant evidence.

Ordinarily, we will not grant an extension of the payment date to enable a carrier to investigate the cause of missed APP reports.

Requesting a withdrawal of an infringement

Carriers must submit withdrawal requests on Form 1467 – Request for Withdrawal of Infringement with supporting evidence to appinfringements@abf.gov.au.

We will consider all withdrawal requests in-line with the guidelines set out in the APP Infringements Manual for Carriers.

If your enquiry concerns the infringement regime contact appinfringements@abf.gov.au.

A ‘Do Not Board’ message means we could not find a valid record based on the information entered. It could mean:

• the passenger or crew genuinely does not have a valid visa for travel to Australia
• the information was not entered correctly.

A check-in agent should:

• check and resubmit the information using accurate data from the bio-data page of the traveller’s travel document (most mistakes occur in the nationality code, travel document number or the spelling of the names)
• then seek assistance from BOC@abf.gov.au

If required, an airline can use TIETAC to apply for an Electronic Travel Authority.

An automatic Do Not Board (8502) message may be returned.

Using the 'A' and 'G' overrides

Airlines can use either an 'A' or 'G' override when they receive message '8502 - <DO NOT BOARD>' in the Advance Passenger Processing (APP) system.

'A' (airline) override

An ‘A’ override will allow an airline to submit the APP information to and board a passenger in certain circumstances, after an ‘8502 - <DO NOT BOARD>’ message is received.

Inward APP

The specific circumstances in which an ‘A’ override can be used to board a traveller are:

• travellers transiting Australia who are travelling on an eligible Transit With Out Visa (TWOV) passport
• military personnel travelling on military orders and holding military identification (certain countries only). This includes accompanying dependants.
• positioning air crew
• residents of Australia returning on an ‘Authority to Return’ or ‘Return Endorsement’ - but only under STRICT CONDITIONS. For further details refer to Advance Passenger Processing (APP) Arrivals and Departures manual.

Outward APP

The specific circumstances in which an ‘A’ override can be used to board a traveller are:

• New Zealand passport – current, not expired (not on the system)
• Australian passport – current, not expired (not on the system)
• undocumented traveller
• military personnel travelling on movement orders with military ID

For more detailed information about the circumstances where an ‘A’ override can be used, please refer to the Advance Passenger Processing (APP) Arrivals and Departures manual.

We recommend that airlines Departure Control Systems (DCS) have an ‘A’ override capability.

'G' (government) override

The 'G' override should be used when:

• Border Operations Centre (BOC) has given the airline authority to override an APP response
• APP is unavailable and the airline has contacted BOC to confirm passenger details
• BOC has cleared a passenger’s details after a negative directive from APP.

Appropriate use of the 'A' or 'G' overrides could prevent an airline from being infringed.

As the rules are different for arrivals and departures APP, airlines should refer to the more specific information about using 'A' and 'G' overrides in the Advance Passenger Processing (APP) Arrivals and Departures manual.

As the rules are different for arrivals and departures APP airlines should refer to the individual for more specific information about using 'A' and 'G' overrides.

Passengers may present at check-in with 2 passports – a valid passport and an expired or alternate passport containing a valid Australian visa.

Use the details of the new valid passport for checking in the passenger into the APP system, even if we issued the person’s visa on the expired or a different passport. All passport information entered into the APP system should only be the current, valid passport.

This applies to all visas, both paper and electronic, except for the Electronic Travel Authority (ETA).

Passenger has notified Home Affairs of new passport

If the notification has been recorded against the person’s record in our systems, the visa is still valid and the new passport is issued in the same personal details, including nationality, as the expired or a different passport, the APP system will give an 8501 – ‘OK TO BOARD’ response.

Passenger has not notified Home Affairs of new passport

If the passenger has not notified Home Affairs of the new passport or if the person’s personal details in new passport are different, the APP system will not return an ‘OK TO BOARD’ response.

Have the new passport added to the person’s record by calling the Border Operations Centre (BOC).

Once updated:

• the ‘OK TO BOARD’ message will be returned using the new passport
• airlines will not receive a 'Contact BOC' response for the life of this travel document whenever the passenger presents this passport for international arriving/departing flights for Australia.
• links for Australian dual nationals will be found by the APP system for their international flight check-in. Linking is available for Australian/foreign and foreign passports of the same nationality.
• advise passengers to use the passport that was used at check-in when using SmartGates. The check-in process will facilitate SmartGate clearance as the APP report will pre-populate the passport and flight details allowing for faster processing and speedier arrival at the boarding gate.

Passenger has an ETA

An ETA is linked to an ETA-eligible passport and the passenger must be travelling on that passport to get an ‘OK TO BOARD’. If the passenger is travelling on a new ETA-eligible passport without an ETA, the passenger should apply for an ETA for the new passport.

In order to be eligible for transiting Australia without a visa, the person must:

• be a traveller eligible to transit without a visa (TWOV)
• enter Australia by aircraft
• hold a confirmed onward booking to leave Australia within 8 hours of the person's arrival in Australia
• hold documentation necessary to enter the country of their destination
• remain in the transit lounge (if they want to clear immigration for any reason, they must obtain a visa in advance of travel).

The APP system allows 2 movement indicators, ‘T’ for transit and ‘M’ for movement.

The ‘T’ flag should only be used for passengers meeting the above criteria.  Even if the passenger is OK to board, these passengers should not cross the border or stay longer than 8 hours without a valid visa or the airline can be fined.

Airlines incur fines of AUD5,000 per offence for the carriage of inadequately or undocumented passengers to Australia under s229 of the Migration Act 1958.

Further guidance for checking-in travellers eligible for Transit Without Visa (TWOV) is available in the Advance Passenger Processing (APP) Arrivals and Departures manual.

If all family members are travelling, airlines must submit an APP request and get an 'OK TO BOARD' for each family member, using their full details.

Check-in agents should be aware that children on a family passport can’t travel without the primary holder.

Where family travel documents is presented, airlines must submit an APP request for each family member using their full details.

For more details, see the Advance Passenger Processing (APP) Arrivals and Departures manual.

If directed by the APP system, provide both passports' information as requested to BOC@abf.gov.au. The Border Operations Centre officer will update departmental records. Upon resubmission the APP system response will return ‘OK to Board’ for either passport.

Processing crew that are transiting Australia

Operational crew are not able to transit Australia.

Crew that are transiting Australia must be processed as passengers with the PAX/Crew indicator set to either 'P' for passenger or 'X' for Positioning crew. The airline will receive a 'Do Not Board' or a 'Contact BOC' message if the PAX/Crew indicator is not set properly.

Processing APP for Positioning Crew arriving into Australia

Positioning crew processed as passengers using the 'P' (passenger) code may incur the Passenger Movement Charge. To avoid this, airlines should use the 'X' code for positioning crew.

The 'X' for positioning crew works the same as the 'C' code for operating crew and will allow positioning crew to use their Crew Travel Authority (CTA) for travel.

Crew holding only a CTA will return a 'Do Not Board' directive from the APP system if processed using the ‘P’ code. However, the airline can perform an 'A' override to complete the APP transaction and receive an 'Override Accepted' message.

Processing last minute crew changes

All air crew, both operational and positioning, must be reported through the APP system before boarding an arrival or a departure flight. This includes crew with Australian or New Zealand passports.

Many airlines have a crewing function based overseas that processes and schedules crew, and will handle changes.

In the event of an emergency crew change where there is not enough time to contact the overseas crewing function, a staff member based in Australia can access Australia’s Carrier Portal to submit APP for a last minute change.

Most crew are not processed through an airline departure control system (DCS) system like passengers, but can be processed through Australia’s Carrier Portal. However, if airlines process crew through their DCS as either Operational 'C'; or Positioning Crew 'X'; we will accept this.

Adding or amending scheduled services

All new flight data must be entered into the global communications network – Societe International de Telecommunications Areonautiques (SITA) – via the Official Airline Guide (OAG).

Loading a flight by an airline via OAG to SITA, and for SITA to load it to the Government Gateway can take up to 2 weeks. This process should only be used where an airline has adequate time before the first flight (that is, 2 weeks prior to first flight).

Adding or amending unscheduled services manually with TIETAYT

If an unscheduled flight will be operating within 2 weeks, airlines must load the flight manually using the TIETAYT command. This option is instant and can be performed at any time.
Airlines must have Electronic Travel Authority System (ETAS) capability in order to use the TIETAYT command:

• type TIETAYTA to establish a flight schedule
• enter flight data – airlines should ensure that all ports at which the flight stops are included
• type TIETAYTD to confirm that the new flight schedule has been successfully loaded.

Airlines should also advise BOC@abf.gov.au with the following details:

• flight number
• departure and arrival times
• departure and arrival ports.

If an airline experiences problems loading a flight via the TIETAYT command, they should contact.

SITA Help Desk

Phone:+61 1800 300 043
Email: pss-helpdesk@sita.aero

The Border Operations Centre (BOC) is available to assist airlines with boarding issues, including Advance Passenger Processing (APP) for international flights 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Phone:+61 1300 368 126 or +61 (02) 6264 1301 – select “1 EOC/BOC”.
Email: BOC@abf.gov.au

SITATEX: CBRIXCR

SITATEX messages should be sent no later than 45 minutes prior to the flight's departure time. This ensures sufficient time for the BOC to respond to enquiries. Our systems require full passport information when updates are made:

• Family name
• Given name(s)
• Other name(s)
• Date of birth
• Sex
• Flight number
• Country of birth
• Nationality
• Passport number old/new
• Date of issue of passport
• Date of expiry of passport
• Issuing authority
• Details of problem

It is not necessary for airlines to make follow up calls to the BOC after they have sent a SITATEX message.

More information

For more information contact travellerpolicy@abf.gov.au

If your enquiry concerns the infringement regime please contact appinfringements@abf.gov.au

Disclaimer: Please note some of the information listed on this page and in the APP Arrivals and Departures manual may be superseded in the event of a national emergency.