|
How do I apply for a visitor visa?
VISA for tourists can often be arranged through your travel agency.
Application forms can otherwise be obtained by contacting your closest
Australian Consulate, Embassy or High Commission. You can also apply in person.
How long does it take to get a visa?
Varies from country to country. In persona U.S. or Canadian citizens
can generally receive a short-stay visa while they wait.
By mail: Allow at least 21 working days. Secure and Express Mail are
recommended.
Do I have to pay a fee?
If you intend to stay in Australia for three months or less, normally no
application processing fee is payable.
However an application to extend your stay after arrival will cost A$135.
The fee must also accompanied by an application for a visitor visa where the
intended stay in Australia is more than three months.
Visas in this category may authorize a stay for up to an additional three
months.
Any further extension will cost A$135. Longer stay visas are normally for 3-6
months stay
Visas generally allow for multiple entries for a twelve month period. For the
same processing fee you can apply for a visa valid for four years (or the
life of your passport if this is less than four years). You will then not have
to reapply for a visa each year you wish to visit Australia in the next four
years.
How long can I stay in Australia?
As a visitor you are expected to apply for a visa which covers the full
period of your intended stay.
Visitors are generally granted a maximum of six months stay in any one twelve
month period.
As a visitor you are not allowed to be employed or take formal study in
Australia. Non-formal study may be taken for up to three months (but there
are limitations on extensions for study purposes).
How should I lodge my Visa Application?
The application form must be signed by the applicant personally. All persons
travelling on their own passport must complete an application form.
Each passport holder will be Issued with their own visa. Children under I8 years
of age must provide their birth certificate showing both parents.
Any parent listed on the birth certificate who is not a visa applicant along
with the child, must provide notarised consent to the child travelling or
evidence
that they will accompany the child (travel bookings and notarised copy
Australian or NZ passport or valid visa for Australia.
When applying by mail, include a stamped self-addressed envelope large enough to
enable the return of your passport. (t is your responsibility to ensure that the
envelope you submit bears the necessary postage markings to enable return of
your passport by certified registered, express or special-delivery mail.
What about Working Visas & Immigration:,
Temporary working visas can usually be obtained by people sponsored by
companies or an employer in Australia. Permanent entry is generally restricted
to those people who pass a rigorous points test, unless you are being sponsored
as a spouse or fiancée, or dependent child.
Temporary Visas:
If you don't want to stay permanently in Australia, or if you can't meet the
criteria for permanent entry, then apply for a temporary visa.
Short-stay visas
If you come here to visit, as a tourist, for short-term study or for
pre-arranged medical consultation or treatment then you can apply for a
short-stay temporary visa in your overseas country. Temporary short-stay visas
are free.
Electronic Travel Application E.T.A - this is a way of applying for a
temporary visa electronically.
There are three types of ETA visa,
- Holiday and visiting (976). This visa allows you to stay 3 months on each
arrival, and it is vaid for multiple entries over a 12 month period. If you
apply through an Australian Embassy, the visa is free. You can also apply
through travel agents and air lines, but they may make a consultancy charge.
- Short Validity Business ETA (977). For business people to make one visit
of up to three months in a 12 month period. From an Australian Government
source this visa is free. Commercial travel agents and airlines may charge.
- Long Validity Business ETA (956) for business people to stay for up to
three months on each visit. AUD $60 for this visa, payment by credit card
only.
All ETA visas are obtained outside Australia. If you want to stay longer in
Australia, apply to the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs (DIMA) in Australia before your ETA visa expires.
If you want to stay in Australia for an extended period, usually more than
three months, but you do not intend to migrate permanently (or you cannot meet
the permanent migrant's criteria) then apply for a temporary resident's visa in
your overseas country.
If you wish to extend your short-stay visa, you may be able to do it under
one of the following classes. For most of these classes you can extend a
short-stay visa while you are living in Australia.
Australian Visas lists 19 temporary resident's visas:
Emergency
Sport
Visiting Academics - research or professional
Entertainment - cultural (not paid) or professional
Skilled Exchange - (for student exchange, see Students)
Foreign Government Agency
Special Program
Religious Worker
Domestic Workers
Family Relationship
Family Member
Expatriates
Diplomats
Film, Media, Actors and Support Staff, Photographers and Journalists
Lecturers and Experts on Public Topics
Retirement visas
Working holidays
Business
Students
Medical
For a temporary visa, apply to your nearest Australian Embassy or Consulate.
Working: with a visitor's visa you are not allowed to
work. A permanent visa gives you full rights to live and earn a living here (in
fact you will be assisted to find work in the same way an Australian would be).
A temporary visa will allow you to work for a certain period, or a certain
number of hours per week, for example as a student. The allowances and
arrangements are different for each visa.
For further details go to Department
of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs contact your
closest Australian Consulate, Embassy or High Commission. http://www.immi.gov.au/allforms/visitors.htm
For assistance with immigration
visit: Australian
Migration and VISA Solutions. |
Useful
immigration/VISA links