Australia’s major gateways are bracing for the busiest Christmas-New-Year period since 2019, with more than 23.4 million passengers forecast to move through domestic and international terminals in December-January. In a joint statement dated 23 December, the Australian Border Force (ABF) and Australian Federal Police (AFP) announced a “high-visibility surge” across the country’s nine designated international airports.
More than 500 uniformed AFP officers will conduct patrols backed by canine units and short-barrel-rifle teams, while ABF has redeployed customs and immigration staff to front-line desks to reduce bottlenecks at passport control. The agencies report a 28 per cent increase in proactive aviation-security operations in 2025 and more than 21,000 incident responses so far this year. Travellers are being urged to arrive early, expect random baggage swabs and refrain from abusive behaviour; 1,160 people have already been charged with airport-related offences in 2025.
If you still need to sort out an Australian visa or update an existing Electronic Travel Authority before heading to the airport, VisaHQ can take the hassle out of the process with quick online applications and real-time status tracking—see https://www.visahq.com/australia/ for details.
![Border Force and AFP deploy extra airport patrols for record-breaking holiday travel surge]()
For corporate travel managers the message is clear: build extra buffer time into itineraries. Sydney and Melbourne peak-hour queues could exceed 45 minutes even for e-passport holders if any lane closures occur. Companies relocating staff over the southern-hemisphere summer are advised to pre-clear unaccompanied minors and pets, and to alert employees that officers may seize commercial quantities of duty-free alcohol or tobacco.
Airport retail and hospitality operators, meanwhile, welcome the surge as a revenue boost but worry about crowd control. Brisbane Airport Corporation is hiring 200 temporary customer-service staff and has converted a cargo shed into an overflow arrivals hall in case immigration halls hit capacity.
The travel-season operations will run until 2 February 2026, overlapping with the Asian Lunar-New-Year exodus. ABF Acting Commander Geoff Quinn said officers would “stand shoulder to shoulder” with the AFP to keep queues moving while maintaining vigilance against illicit-drug couriers and child-exploitation material. Passengers are encouraged to use the Airport-Watch hotline (131 237) if they see suspicious activity.
More than 500 uniformed AFP officers will conduct patrols backed by canine units and short-barrel-rifle teams, while ABF has redeployed customs and immigration staff to front-line desks to reduce bottlenecks at passport control. The agencies report a 28 per cent increase in proactive aviation-security operations in 2025 and more than 21,000 incident responses so far this year. Travellers are being urged to arrive early, expect random baggage swabs and refrain from abusive behaviour; 1,160 people have already been charged with airport-related offences in 2025.
If you still need to sort out an Australian visa or update an existing Electronic Travel Authority before heading to the airport, VisaHQ can take the hassle out of the process with quick online applications and real-time status tracking—see https://www.visahq.com/australia/ for details.
For corporate travel managers the message is clear: build extra buffer time into itineraries. Sydney and Melbourne peak-hour queues could exceed 45 minutes even for e-passport holders if any lane closures occur. Companies relocating staff over the southern-hemisphere summer are advised to pre-clear unaccompanied minors and pets, and to alert employees that officers may seize commercial quantities of duty-free alcohol or tobacco.
Airport retail and hospitality operators, meanwhile, welcome the surge as a revenue boost but worry about crowd control. Brisbane Airport Corporation is hiring 200 temporary customer-service staff and has converted a cargo shed into an overflow arrivals hall in case immigration halls hit capacity.
The travel-season operations will run until 2 February 2026, overlapping with the Asian Lunar-New-Year exodus. ABF Acting Commander Geoff Quinn said officers would “stand shoulder to shoulder” with the AFP to keep queues moving while maintaining vigilance against illicit-drug couriers and child-exploitation material. Passengers are encouraged to use the Airport-Watch hotline (131 237) if they see suspicious activity.
