The Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme allows Australian businesses to hire workers from ten countries in the Pacific region. PALM visas are issued for short- or long-term jobs (up to nine months or four years, respectively), provided those jobs are classified as low-skilled, semi-skilled or unskilled.

The PALM scheme is often presented as one that is advantageous to all parties involved: Australian industries enjoy access to short-term labour, while PALM workers are able to send home the Australian dollars they earn, thus also providing a benefit to their home countries’ economies.

In reality, the economic benefits of the scheme are weighted in Australia’s favour. The amount of money that PALM workers spend in Australia—on accommodation, expenses, tax and superannuation—is greater than the amount they are able to send home, meaning that Australia’s economy benefits more from their labour than their home countries’.