{"id":375991,"date":"2026-09-17T14:24:43","date_gmt":"2026-09-17T04:24:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=375991"},"modified":"2026-09-17T14:24:43","modified_gmt":"2026-09-17T04:24:43","slug":"nff-slams-visa-slowdown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2026\/09\/17\/nff-slams-visa-slowdown\/","title":{"rendered":"NFF Slams Visa Slowdown"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>
Hamish McIntyre (Photo: NFF)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

September 17, 2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

The National Farmers\u2019 Federation has warned that the Federal Government is putting Australia\u2019s food security, regional economies and farm safety at risk if it pushes ahead with a crackdown on Working Holiday Maker visas.<\/p>\n

NFF president Hamish McIntyre said farmers were furious that Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke had confirmed a three-month processing timeframe for Working Holiday Makers when approvals had previously taken only days.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a low blow for farmers and the businesses that produce Australia\u2019s food and fibre,\u201d Mr McIntyre said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe government\u2019s unilateral slowdown on Working Holiday Maker visas has already caused havoc across agriculture ahead of the busiest time of year for food and fibre production.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cA three-month processing target leaves farmers completely stranded with harvest already under way in parts of Queensland and the main season only weeks away.<\/p>\n

\u201cWorking Holiday Makers fill about one-in-seven farm jobs, making them central to getting food and fibre produced, harvested, packed and into supermarkets.<\/p>\n

\u201cFarmers need approvals in days, not months. For many farms, three months is the difference between harvesting a crop and losing it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe government has been asleep at the wheel on this issue and now risks careering off the road at the worst possible time for Australian agriculture.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to the NFF:\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

    \n
  • Working Holiday Makers make up around 14 per cent of all farm worker jobs and are especially important during peak demand periods, including around 44 per cent of the horticulture workforce, 31 per cent of grains, 26 per cent of red meat and 25 per cent of cotton workers<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
      \n
    • They can supply up to 80 per cent of peak harvest labour in fresh produce<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
        \n
      • About 52,000 Working Holiday Makers work in horticulture each year<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
          \n
        • They are expected to spend $4.68 billion annually in the Australian economy, including about $726 million directly in regional communities<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
            \n
          • Deloitte Access Economics has estimated the absence of Working Holiday Makers from horticulture would cost the industry $6.3 billion, put 127,000 supply-chain jobs at risk and reduce GDP by $13 billion<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            The National Farmers\u2019 Federation has warned that the Federal Government is putting Australia\u2019s food security, regional economies and farm safety at risk if it pushes ahead with a crackdown on Working Holiday Maker visas.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":365908,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3,36],"tags":[1134],"yoast_head":"\nNFF Slams Visa Slowdown - southburnett.com.au<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The National Farmers\u2019 Federation has warned that the Federal Government is putting Australia\u2019s food security, regional economies and farm safety at risk if it pushes ahead with a crackdown on Working Holiday Maker visas.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2026\/09\/17\/nff-slams-visa-slowdown\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"NFF Slams Visa Slowdown - 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