The nation, with a population of approximately 10,000 inhabitants, is threatened by rising sea levels and researchers warn that Tuvalu will be uninhabitable within 80 years.
Australia and Tuvalu signed an agreement in 2024 that, among other things, opens up a category of climate visas for adult Tuvaluans. Already during the first four days that visa applications were open, 3,125 Tuvaluans had applied.
This is the first agreement of its kind in the world, said a spokesperson for Australia's Foreign Ministry.
Tuvalu's Prime Minister Feleti Teo praises the agreement, and says that it is the first time another country has undertaken to help the island nation legally if it were to be affected by, for example, a natural disaster.
