Minister Asselborn was first in Canberra to meet with Deputy Minister Hawke, and together they signed of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the Working Holiday Programme (WHP) initiative, also called the "Work and Holiday Visa Arrangement".
The arrangement signed between the Grand Duchy and Australia will, on a reciprocal basis, allow young citizens of both countries aged between eighteen and thirty, to undertake a stay of up to one year in the partner state in which they will be free to travel, as well as to work or study. The host state shall issue a single visa, called "Working Holiday Visa" (Working Holiday Visa) to the applicant.
The agreement, which will be limited to one hundred citizens per State per year, will enter into force upon the completion of internal procedures planned for early 2017. The young people will be supervised by the National Youth Service (SNJ), which will soon launch a website with all the relevant information.
In Canberra, Minister Asselborn also met the two vice-secretaries of the Australian state for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Gary Quinlan and Rick Wells. The discussions helped to take stock of bilateral relations and on relations between the EU and Australia, before addressing in detail major issues of regional and international politics.
Minister Asselborn also took advantage of his visit to Canberra to lay a wreath at the Australian War Memorial in honour of the heavy price paid by Australia during the two world wars, particularly in Europe.
Finally, Minister Asselborn traveled to Sydney to meet Jason Collins, President and CEO of the European Australian Business Council, to discuss issues of common interest in economic matters, including the negotiation of an agreement of non-double taxation.
Photo by MAEE: Minister Asselborn at the Australian War Memorial, Canberra
