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Information for Seafarers

AUSTRALIA

Map location

Countrywide Info
Universal Time Zone (+/- GMT, CET, UTC)	10 (NE/SE), 9.5 (central), 8 (west)
International Country Code	61
IDD International Prefix	0011 (voice calls) 0015 (fax calls - Telstra) 0018 (Telstra special rates)
NDD National Prefix	0

Country Currency

Australian dollar (A$) = 100 cents. Notes are in denominations of A$100, 50, 20, 10 and 5. Coins are in denominations of A$2 and 1, and 50. 20. 10 and 5 cents. All major credit cards accepted

Currency Restrictions

Export and import of coins/notes in Australian or foreign currency above A$5,000 must be declared to customs at the port of entry or departure

Public Holidays Observed

New Year's Day - 1 January
Australia Day - 26 January
Easter (4 days)
ANZAC Day - 25 April
Queen's Birthday - 2nd Monday in June (except Western Australia)
Christmas Day - 25 December
Boxing Day - 26 December

Main Religions

Protestant and Catholic. Smaller minorities of all other major religions

Languages Spoken

English

Customs Allowance
and Regulations

Maritime Crew visa (from 1 July 2007) - this visa replaces the Special Purpose visa for foreign crew of non-military ships. Foreign crew will be required to lodge a visa application outside Australia. For lawful arrival in Australia foreign crew will need to hold a valid Maritime Crew visa, a valid national passport and must be identified on another valid document as genuine crew of the vessel. Please see www.immi.gov.au for further information

Health Information

A Yellow Fever certificate is required from travellers arriving within six days of a visit to any region in any country that has had an instance of Yellow Fever in the previous 10 years. There are strict customs and health controls on entering and leaving the country. The government reserves the right to isolate any person who arrives without the required certificates.

What to Wear	Casual wear is worn everywhere except in the most exclusive restaurants, social gatherings and important business meetings.
Countrywide Communications	Payphones are red, green, gold or blue. Only local calls can be made from red phones. Green, gold and blue phones also have International Direct Dialling (IDD) and Subscriber Trunk Dial (STD). Telstra Smart Phonecards are available at newsagents, supermarkets and chemists. Creditphones take most major credit cards and can be found at airports, city-centre locations and hotels. Mobile coverage is good but access in some of the more isolated, outback and rural areas is limited.
Tourist Information	Most restaurants forbid smoking. Tropical cyclones occur in some parts of Australia, mainly Queensland, Northern Territory and Western Australia. The cyclone season normally runs from November to April.
Embassies	Philippine Consulate General in Sydney, Australia Level 1, Philippine Centre 27-33 Wentworth Avenue Sydney NSW 2000 Tel: +61 2 9262 7377 Fax: +61 2 9262 7355 Email: contact@philippineconsulate.com.au There are also Philippine embassies in Brisbane, Darwin, Hobart, Melbourne, Perth and Canberra. General Consulate of India in Sydney, Australia Level 27, 25 Bligh Street Sydney, NSW 2000 Australia Tel: +61 2 9223 9500 Fax: +61 2 9223 9246 Email: indianc@indianconsulatesydney.org Web Site: http://www.indianconsulatesydney.org/ There are also Indian embassies in Melbourne, Perth and Canberra. Embassy of Indonesia in Canberra, Australia 8 Darwin Ave, Yarralumla ACT 2600 Tel: +61 2 6250 8600 Fax: +61 2 6273 6017 Email: indonemb@cyberone.com.au Web Site: http://www.kbri-canberra.org.au/ Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Canberra, Australia Main Entrance 7 Turrana Street, Yarralumla ACT 2600 Tel: +61 2 6273 1208 / +61 2 6273 1211 Fax: +61 2 6273 3184 Email: polamb@tpg.com.au Web Site: http://www.poland.org.au Embassy of Turkey in Canberra, Australia 60 Mugga Way, Red Hill 2603 ACT Australia Tel: +61 2 6295 0227 There are also embassies from other top 20 seafaring labour nations represented in Australia. These are Greece, Myanmar, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Egypt, Netherlands, Italy and Taiwan. If you wish contact details on these embassies, please contact the ICSW office.
ITF Contacts	Dean Summers ITF Co-ordinator (F) Sydney Maritime Union of Australia 365 - 375 Sussex Street Level 2 Sydney NSW 2000 Tel: +61 2 9267 9134 Fax: +61 2 9267 4426 Mobile: +61 419 934 648 Email: deansummers@mua.org.au, summers_dean@itf.org.uk ITF Assistant Co-ordinator (F) Melbourne Maritime Union of Australia 46-54 Ireland Street West Melbourne 3003 Victoria Tel: +61 3 9329 5477 Fax: +61 3 9328 1682 Mobile: +61 418 387 966 Email: purcell_matt@itf.org.uk ITF Inspector (F) Fremantle Maritime Union of Australia 2-4 Kwong Alley North Fremantle Western Australia 6159 Tel: +61 8 9335 0500 Fax: +61 8 9335 0510 Mobile: +61 401 692 528 Email: adrianevans@mua.org.au, evans_adrian@itf.org.uk ITF Inspector (F) Townsville Maritime Union of Australia 18 Mcllwraith St South Townsville 4810 PO Box 277 Townsville QLD 4810 Tel: +61 7 4771 4311 Fax: +61 7 4721 2459 Mobile: +61 419 652 718 Email: bragg_graham@itf.org.uk Australian Institute of Marine & Power Engineers (A.I.M.P.E.) 52 Buckingham Street Surry Hills NSW 2010 Tel: +61 2 9698 3999 Fax: +61 2 9319 7505 Email: hchristiansen@aimpe.asn.au Australian Maritime Officers Union P.O. Box 407 Haymarket NSW 1240 Tel: +61 2 9264 2388 Fax: +61 2 9267 4766 Email: amou@amou.com.au Australian Workers� Union Level 10 377-383 Sussex Street Sydney NSW 2000 Tel: +61 2 8005 3333 Fax: +61 2 8005 3300 Email: members@awu.net.au Maritime Union of Australia 365 - 375 Sussex Street Level 2 Sydney NSW 2000 Tel: +61 2 93350500 Fax: +61 2 9261 3481 Email: paddycrumlin@mua.org.au
STCW Contact	Manager Ship Operations & Qualifications Maritime Operations Australian Maritime Safety Authority GPO Box 2181 Canberra ACT 2601 Australia Tel: +61 2 6279 5908 Fax: +61 2 6279 5056 Email: marine.qualifications@amsa.gov.au
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