Horticulture

PALM workers need help to access super

Jun 24, 2025

Finance experts are calling on the Federal Government to make it easier for Pacific and Timor-Leste workers to access unclaimed superannuation once their visa expires.

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More than 31,000 workers participated in the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme in rural and regional Australia in March 2025, helping to fill labour gaps in agriculture, aged care, hospitality and tourism.

PALM workers on a nine-month visa can typically accumulate between $3000 and 4000 in super before tax, while those on four-year visas can accumulate up to $16,000.

It can only be claimed after their visa expires and they’ve returned to their home country, with many PALM workers unaware these funds can be repatriated.

The process of accessing the funds is difficult and time consuming, meaning millions of dollars in superannuation go unclaimed.

Dr Rob Whait from UniSA Dr Connie Vitale from Western Sydney University say there should be policy reforms to make it easier for PALM workers to have their super directly paid into their own super fund in their home country while working in Australia, or have the funds paid as part of their wages in lieu of superannuation.

“If done correctly, PALM superannuation policy reform presents Australia with an opportunity to rebuild and strengthen relationships with its Pacific neighbours,” Dr Whait said.