Whether the thin coal seam can be recovered with low cost and high efficiency has always been the focus of open-pit coal mining industry. In China, most of the minimum selective mining thickness for open-pit mining follows the measurement thickness recommended in the Specifications for Coal and Peat Exploration, which is no less than 1. 5m for lignite, and no less than 1. 0m for other coal types. While in Australia, there are many thin coal seams, especially in Hunter Valley, where thin coal seams dominate in most of the coal fields, and the minimum selective mining thickness there is generally 0. 3m. Taking an open-pit mine in Hunter Valley as an example, the rationality of minimum selective mining thickness of thin coal seam in Australia is discussed from multiple perspectives, so as to offer reference for thin coal seam mining in China.