The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade quietly revised two destination advisories on 25 June that are highly relevant to Australian corporates with operations in the Pacific and Latin America. Vanuatu has been downgraded from “exercise a high degree of caution” to “exercise normal safety precautions” after a six-month review of cyclone recovery efforts and improvements to Port Vila’s Bauerfield Airport navigation aids. Conversely, Venezuela’s overall advice level has been lifted to ‘Do not travel’ following a week of nationwide strikes, currency shortages and violent protests in Caracas and Maracaibo. DFAT cites a “sharp deterioration in security conditions” and the potential for further airport closures as reasons Australians should leave while commercial flights are still operating. Firms sending technicians and aid workers to Vanuatu can now expect standard corporate-travel-insurance premiums rather than the 25 per cent surcharge that many underwriters applied when the country sat at Level 2. However, travellers must still be aware of periodic volcanic activity on Ambae and water-borne diseases in outer islands. Multinationals with staff in Venezuela should activate contingency plans: check passport validity (the Australian embassy in Santiago can issue emergency documents) and review cash logistics because ATMs often run out of bolívares.
![Smartraveller updates: Vanuatu travel advice eased as Venezuela raised to ‘do not travel’]()
Before booking flights or dispatching staff, organisations can also streamline visa and travel document processing through VisaHQ, which keeps pace with the latest entry requirements for Vanuatu, Venezuela and every other destination Australian firms might touch. The company’s online portal—available at https://www.visahq.com/australia/—lets mobility teams arrange electronic visas, passport renewals and couriered submissions in a single dashboard, cutting lead-times when security conditions change unexpectedly.
Remote workers supporting South American clients may also see internet outages as state operators ration electricity. The Smartraveller website allows users to subscribe to country-specific SMS alerts—a step mobility managers should mandate for all high-risk postings. Organisations failing to heed official advisories may find their corporate insurance nullified if an evacuation becomes necessary.
Before booking flights or dispatching staff, organisations can also streamline visa and travel document processing through VisaHQ, which keeps pace with the latest entry requirements for Vanuatu, Venezuela and every other destination Australian firms might touch. The company’s online portal—available at https://www.visahq.com/australia/—lets mobility teams arrange electronic visas, passport renewals and couriered submissions in a single dashboard, cutting lead-times when security conditions change unexpectedly.
Remote workers supporting South American clients may also see internet outages as state operators ration electricity. The Smartraveller website allows users to subscribe to country-specific SMS alerts—a step mobility managers should mandate for all high-risk postings. Organisations failing to heed official advisories may find their corporate insurance nullified if an evacuation becomes necessary.
