3401.0 - Overseas Arrivals and Departures, Australia, Sep 2019 Quality Declaration 
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 11/11/2019   
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Australian resident returns - short-term trips

Statistics on international travel movements of residents arriving back in Australia after short term trips (less than 1 year) overseas. It is the number of international border crossings rather than the number of people.

Key statistics

In September 2019, Australian residents returning from a short-term trip overseas (trend estimates):

  • Increased 0.7% since the previous month to 960,600 trips
  • Increased 3.4% since the same month previous year
  • Reported New Zealand as the most popular destination country, accounting for 13% of all those returning.


3.1 Resident returns - Original, Seasonally adjusted and Trend estimates(a)

Graph: Resident returns - Original, Seasonally adjusted and Trend estimates
(a) For more information see Explanatory Notes 19-32. For breaks in trend series see Explanatory Notes 30-31.


Destination countries (trend estimates)

The three leading destination countries for Australian residents in September 2019 were:

  • New Zealand (124,000 trips)
  • Indonesia (122,500)
  • USA (89,400).

3.2 Resident returns - Top 10 destination countries - Trend estimates
Graph: Resident returns - Top 10 destination countries - Trend estimates
(a) Includes the United Kingdom, Channel Islands and Isle of Man.
(b) Excludes SARs & Taiwan.

Among the top ten destination countries, the highest annual increases were recorded for:
  • Japan (15.1%)
  • Indonesia (14.1%)
  • India (9.2%).

The highest annual decreases were recorded for:
  • Thailand (-4.6%)
  • Singapore (-1.8%)
  • USA (-1.0%).

3.3 Resident returns - Top 10 destination countries(a) - Monthly and annual change
Trend
Seasonally adjusted
Original
Aug '19 to Sep '19
Sep '18 to Sep '19
Country of stay
'000
'000
'000
% change - trend
% change -trend
New Zealand
124.0
125.7
111.0
0.7
2.1
Indonesia
122.5
123.2
133.2
1.5
14.1
USA
89.4
89.3
95.2
0.5
-1.0
UK(b)
55.7
55.0
73.8
0.8
1.3
China(c)
50.7
48.8
46.6
0.5
0.5
Thailand
45.3
45.2
42.7
0.0
-4.6
Japan
44.6
45.5
30.9
0.9
15.1
India
37.0
38.0
22.9
0.9
9.2
Singapore
34.3
34.7
37.5
0.8
-1.8
Fiji
28.8
26.0
28.9
-0.3
1.1
(a) Top 10 source countries based on trend estimates.
(b) Includes the United Kingdom, Channel Islands and Isle of Man.
(c) Excludes SARs & Taiwan.


State or territory of residence (original estimates)

All travellers are asked their intended address in Australia upon arrival. State or territory of residence statistics are only available from original estimates as seasonally adjusted and trend estimates are only applied to destination countries.

For those residents who returned to Australia in September 2019, compared to the same month of the previous year, there was:
  • an increase of 22.9% travelling home to Northern Territory
  • a decrease of 0.6% for Western Australia

3.4 Resident returns, State or territory of residence - Annual change to September 2019 (original estimates)

Map: Resident returns, State or territory of residence - Annual change to September 2019 (original estimates)

3.5 Resident returns, State or territory of residence(a) - Annual change to September 2019 (original estimates)
Sep '18
Sep '19
Sep '18 to Sep '19
State or territory of residence
'000
'000
% change - original
NSW
313.3
318.8
1.8
Vic.
288.3
292.6
1.5
Qld
171.8
176.5
2.7
SA
45.2
47.8
5.6
WA
120.8
120.1
-0.6
Tas.
10.9
11.1
2.4
NT
6.5
8.0
22.9
ACT
17.1
17.8
3.7
Australia(b)
974.0
992.8
1.9
(a) Only available from original estimates.
(b) Includes Other Territories.