Sydney, Australia
CNN
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More than a third of Tuvalu’s population is applied to travel to Australia under a groundbreaking visa scheme designed to help people rise in sea levels.
According to latest government statistics, the island nation, which is roughly halfway between Hawaii and Australia, houses around 10,000 people and lives on clutches on small islands and atolls in the South Pacific.
With some of the territory not exceeding 6 meters, it is one of the most at-risk places in the world of rising oceans caused by climate change.
On June 16th, Australia opened an application window for about a month, saying it was a unique visa recruitment that climate change requires. Under the new scheme, Australia will accept 280 visa winners from a random vote between July and January 2026. Once Tuvaluans arrive in Australia, they gain access to public health and education.
According to official figures seen by CNN, over 4,000 people have applied under the scheme.
“The opening of the Pharaopi Remobility Pathway will realize a shared vision of mobility with dignity by providing opportunities to live, study and work in Australia as the impacts of the climate worsen,” Australia’s Foreign Minister Pennywon said in a statement.
CNN reached out to the Tubal government.
According to Tuvalu’s Prime Minister Feleti Teo, more than half of Tuvalu will be flooded regularly by 2050 due to a tide spike. By 2100, 90% of his country will be regularly underwater.
The country’s capital, Fongafale is the largest and most populous island of Funafuti, the main atoll of Tuvalu. In some locations there are runway-like lands that are only 65 feet wide (20 meters).
“As Prime Minister of Tubal, I can put myself in my situation, reflect on development, reflect on services for the basic needs of our people, and at the same time presents highly conflicting and disturbing predictions.”
“Tuvalu’s internal relocation is not an option. We are completely flat,” the prime minister said on June 12th.
The Visa Scheme is part of a broader agreement signed between Australia and Tubal in 2023, which will tie Australia to protect Tubal militarily and against rising seas.
Claiming 900,000 square kilometres of the South Pacific, Tuvalu is considered by Canberra as a key player in the ongoing struggle with China for regional influence.
Recognition is what Australia says guarantees to Tuvalu even if no one can live there in the future. “Tuvalu’s state and sovereignty continues, and despite the effects of climate change-related sea level rise, the inherent rights and obligations will remain,” their treaty reads.
In 2022, at Egypt’s Sharm El Sheikh COP27, Tuvalu announced that it had called for it to become the world’s first country to travel completely online. The government has since formulated a plan to “digitally recreate the land, archive its rich history and culture, and transfer all government functions into a digital space. Australia is now aware of Tuvalu’s “digital sovereignty.” This “digital sovereignty” hopes to “keep that identity and continue to function as a nation even after the physical land is gone.”
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said last year that his country shared a vision for a “peaceful, stable, prosperous, unified region.”
“Pacific partners show that they can rely on Australia as trustworthy and authentic partners.”
Australia’s support for the Pacific Island nation has been in stark contrast to President Donald Trump’s administration in recent months, imposing a radical crackdown on climate policy and immigration.
Tuvalu is one of 36 countries that the Trump administration is trying to add to its current travel ban list, according to the Associated Press.
The ban completely restricts the entry of citizens from 12 countries: Afghanistan. Myanmar is also known as Burma. Chad; Republic of the Congo; Equatorial Guinea; Eritrea; Haiti; Iran; Libya; Somalia; Sudan; and Yemen. People from seven countries also face partial restrictions in Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela.
Thirty-six countries, including Tubal’s Pacific neighbours Tonga and Vanuatu, have been told to make improvements to review travelers and take steps to address the status of nationals who are illegal or face similar restrictions in the United States.
