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PALM scheme data

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Data for the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme, including information about participating workers and employers, is published here and is updated monthly. Horticulture

For workers, information is provided about their sex, country of origin, the industry they are working in, their participation in the short-term or long-term PALM scheme streams, and the Australian state or territory where they work. 

For employers, information about the number and type of employers is available.  

Data users should note PALM scheme activity may be affected by seasonal patterns, including the nature of work in agriculture or workers returning home for holidays. Worker and employer participation may vary from month to month. Conclusions about long-term program trends should not be made based on monthly movements. 

Changes this month

Inclusion of sex disaggregation

The PALM scheme data publication has been updated to include PALM worker data by sex. For more information, refer to the glossary in the monthly data publication. 

Note that the addition of the new variable has required some reformatting of the monthly Excel tables. Users should exercise caution as the structure and presentation of the data in the tables has changed.

Changes to the historical time series 

Following access to more detailed visa data for pandemic event (subclass 408) visa holders only, small revisions (of less than 1%) to PALM scheme worker counts have been included for the months January to May 2024, and September 2024. This impacts data by stream, country and industry. State and territory data are not impacted.  

PALM scheme quarterly data report

The quarterly data report presents longer-term trends and analysis of PALM scheme data. The September quarter 2025 PALM scheme quarterly data report was released on 27 November 2025 and can be downloaded here.

 

PALM scheme key monthly data

Key PALM scheme worker and employer data - November 2025

Source: DEWR, PALM scheme, November 2025.

PALM scheme worker data

In November 2025:

  • there were 32,365 workers participating in the scheme
  • 15,560 were short-term workers and 16,805 were long-term workers
  • 6,540 were female and 25,820 were male. 

PALM scheme workers by state and territory 

Figure 1: PALM scheme workers by state and territory, November 2025

PALM scheme worker data by state and territory - November 2025

Source: DEWR, PALM scheme, November 2025.

PALM scheme workers’ country of origin

Figure 2: PALM scheme workers by country of origin, November 2025

FijiKiribatiNauruPapua New GuineaSamoaSolomon IslandsTimor-LesteTongaTuvaluVanuatu
5,1651,520402,6502,5504,8405,2052,9902857,115

Source: DEWR, PALM scheme, November 2025. 

PALM scheme workers’ participation by industry 

Figure 3: PALM scheme workers by industry, November 2025

PALM scheme worker data by industry - November 2025

Source: DEWR, PALM scheme, November 2025. 

PALM scheme employer data

In November 2025:

  • there were 530 approved PALM scheme employers
  • 420 employers were direct employers and 110 were labour hire companies.

More information 

Published PALM scheme data is sourced from administrative records captured by DEWR. It includes workers on the Temporary Work (International Relations) visa (subclass 403), Pacific Australia Labour Mobility stream. 

The relevant Subclass 408 visa (pandemic event) closed to new applications in February 2024. Workers holding this visa are included in historical data up to December 2024 (where possible). 

See publication table notes for more information. 

Data publication

PALM scheme data is also available on data.gov.au, the central source of Australian open government data. 

Data is published monthly, usually in the first or second week of each month. This timeframe can vary, usually due to the impact of public holidays or short months. The expected publishing date may also change for a range of reasons including lags in receiving data, or unanticipated resourcing pressures.

Expected publishing dates:

Data periodExpected publishing date
December 202513 February 2026
January 202613 March 2026
February 202615 April 2026

Data notes

Published PALM scheme worker data is rounded to the nearest 5 to ensure individual privacy is protected. As a result of rounding, the sum of totals may not add to other totals.   

For more information, contact (pacificlabourdata@dewr.gov.au).