In a landmark move set to revolutionise travel for the growing cohort of corporate travellers frequenting the USA, a new Global Entry program will promise streamlined travel for eligible Australians arriving and departing from major U.S. airports.  

Australia has been welcomed to the U.S. Global Entry program this year, with significant implications for the booming trade relations between Australia and the United States.

Now open for application to 1,000 travellers who entered the U.S. at least five times in the last 12 months, those approved will experience no processing lines, reduced paperwork, faster entry at all major U.S. airports, reduced wait times and eligibility for Transport Security Administration (TSA) Pre-Check. 

Flight Centre Corporate Global COO Melissa Elf said the program was a pivotal move for facilitating international business and trade, in response to the increasing levels of bookings into the USA. 

Our corporate travel data shows close to a 10 per cent increase in bookings between Australia and the U.S. in the second half of 2024 compared to the same time in the previous year

"Travel between the two countries is critical to economic success, and this program marks an important milestone for our ongoing relationship with the USA. With more than AUD120 billion in goods and services traded annually, the U.S. serves as Australia's largest economic partner^[1]. 

"Australian business travellers have been buoyed by the number of new, direct routes now open between the two countries, yet we still lag behind 2019 capacity levels, at roughly 90 per cent of the available airline seats. More choice and competition in the future will see travel grow even more. 

“The commencement of the Global Entry program comes at an important time for Australia’s relationship with the USA, as the States welcomes the new Trump administration. This is positive step towards strengthening ties, solidifying economic bonds and cementing our longstanding trade relationship with the USA.”

"The education sector has shown the most remarkable growth, up nearly 50 per cent in the second half of 2024 compared to the second half of 2023, followed by government and not-for-profit organisations, with a 36 per cent rise over the same period,” Ms Elf said. 

“Key routes that corporates are travelling are from Sydney to Los Angeles and New York, as well as Melbourne to Los Angeles. Chicago and the Silicon Valley hub of Boston also top the list of destinations for Aussie corporates.”

Around 1.3 million Australians visit the U.S. every year, and over 12,000 Australian companies export to the U.S. annually^[2]. 

The U.S. government charges a non-refundable fee of US$120 per Global Entry application, which, if approved, is valid for five years.

Flight Centre Corporate Global COO Melissa Elf said the move would bring about stronger competition and capacity, in turn bolstering choice and affordability in travel for Aussie corporates and holidaymakers.

“Flight Centre Corporate has been actively calling for more international capacity and competition to our shores, so we’re pleased to see this welcomed by Australia,” Ms Elf said.

The approval of the deal will support the recovery of our international visitor economy, and strongly contribute to corporate travel recovery.

It will not only make travel to the Middle East and Europe more affordable for our corporate travellers, but it will importantly see inbound benefits to Australian trade and tourism.

"Those extra flights will certainly have an impact on international travel out of Australia, particularly to Europe, which has generally been slower to return to pre-pandemic capacity, and has seen higher airfares as a result."

Ms Elf said we were seeing a similar example play out on flights into the U.S. and China currently, proving there was a direct correlation between regions that were adding and welcoming airline capacity and the cost of travel decreasing.

“We’re welcoming several new routes, airlines and carriers between Australia to the U.S. and China over the coming weeks, and we’re seeing this drive down the cost of international fares to those destinations, and it’s boosting the volume of bookings as a result,” she said.

“Not only will the approval of this deal impact international travel, but the wet lease arrangement should also free up aircraft to better service the domestic market.

“A strong and competitive airline industry is good for everyone, so we’re confident this will mean cheaper fares and more travel destinations for Australians from mid next year.”

New Virgin Australia flights available on the five-year wet lease deal with Qatar are expected to commence by mid-2025
 

About Flight Centre Travel Group

The Flight Centre Travel Group is one of the world’s largest travel retailers and corporate travel managers. The company, which is headquartered in Brisbane, Australia, has company-owned leisure and corporate travel business in dozens of countries, spanning Australia, New Zealand, the Americas, Europe, the United Kingdom, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates, and Asia. ASX listed Flight Centre Travel Group (FLT) also operates the global FCM corporate travel management network, which extends to more than 100 countries through company-owned businesses and independent licensees, along with Corporate Traveller, the flagship business specific to the small-to-medium-sized enterprise sector. For more information, visit fctgl.com.